3 Day Trip Lake Tekapo, New Zealand!
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Lake Tekapo is famous for its turquoise water and stunning mountain backdrop. I was lucky enough to fit in a three-day adventure there while in New Zealand in November 2023. I was in Whangarei packing up my my storage container and I jumped at the chance to visit my sister, Rosie, down in Christchurch.
Lake Tekapo is a three-hour drive from Christchurch Airport in the South Island of New Zealand. It is a well-known tourist destination, but was my first time going there. The small tourist town boasts a range of attractions; from hot springs, to star gazing, hiking, camping, and four-wheel driving, and it is the largest dark sky reserve in the world (check out the Dark Sky Project).
But our main goal for the trip was to do the Hooker Valley Track at Mount Cook National Park. After all, the major attraction of the area is the gorgeous alpine scenery and nature.
Original plan
DAY 1: Drive to Lake Tekapo from Christchurch and explore the local area in the afternoon.
DAY 2: Drive to Mount Cook National Park and do the Hooker Valley Track Walk.
DAY 3: Relaxing morning, explore the area and do a short walk, then drive back to Christchurch in the afternoon.
However, this did not happen due to some crazy New Zealand weather. It was raining on and off in the afternoon when we arrived at Lake Tekapo on day 1, and the forecast for the next day was thunderstorms and heavy rain at Mount Cook, with a weather warning for the National Park.
We changed our plans and decided to do the Hooker Valley track the last day, but this involved a lot of driving for one day, so I wouldn’t recommend doing it that way.
Rosie under a rainbow at Lake Tekapo.
Jenny and Rosie at Lake Tekapo.
Day 1
Flying into Christchurch
After being in Auckland, with all the rain and cold, it was nice to arrive into sunny Christchurch. Flying over the braided rivers and farmland was spectacular, and it wasn’t too cold. A lot warmer than Auckland, in fact.
Rosie picked me up and took me to brunch at a lovely cafe in Rolleston—Black & White Coffee Cartel. We then went to the Burnham Military camp where Rosie is based, and she took me on a quick tour of the army base, which was really interesting to see.
Flying over farmland into Christchurch.
Flying over a braided river into Christchurch.
Black & White Coffee Cartel Rolleston.
Drive to Lake Tekapo
We picked up Rosie’s bags and set off on the three-hour drive to Lake Tekapo. We stopped for lunch at the Fairlie Bakehouse, a cafe famous for their award-winning pies, and, of course, I had to get a pie.
For those not familiar with pies in NZ, they are meat filled pastries, and a very popular food with Kiwis. The most common type is mince and cheese (mince is ground beef), and you can get them basically everywhere.
I got mince and cheese as a control pie to test for quality, and Rosie got a chicken and mushroom pie, but they had all sorts of interesting specialty flavours including Christmas turkey and stuffing, and pork belly and apple sauce.
If you are going to Lake Tekapo, stop and get one of these pies! It was the best pie I’ve eaten in years.
Farlie Bakehouse.
Jenny with a mince and cheese pie.
Menu board of pies at Farlie Bakehouse.
Lake Tekapo
We arrived at Lake Tekapo in the afternoon and checked into our Airbnb which was super easy to find. It was walking distance to the lake, and I was excited to see there was a fireplace we could use. It turned out the town is tiny, so you can pretty much walk to the lake and the shops from anywhere, which is awesome.
Between rain showers and some extreme wind, we got a few photos of the vibrant lupins and the lake. It was so much colder up there than in Christchurch, like freezing, complete with alpine winds and icy rain. Fortunately, I had found a fleece sweater in my storage, so I was glad to have that with me, as well as a big wind breaker.
Jenny in the lupins at Lake Tekapo
Famous dog statue at Lake Tekapo.
Purples lupins with Lake Tekapo backdrop.
Jenny and Rosie in the wind at Lake Tekapo.
Lake Tekapo with a backdrop of mountains.
Dinner Day 1
We wandered around for a while, checking out the town, then decided on a restaurant for dinner. There weren’t many to choose from as it seemed to be a low season time of year. But we ended up going to Mackenzies Bar and Grill, which had lots of great food options. I opted for a stone grilled steak, which was giant, but it was a novelty to cook it at the table and tasted amazing! Rosie got a steak she didn’t have to cook, and hers was a winner as well.
Rosie with her steak.
Mackenzies Bar and Grill.
Jenny with a giant stone grill steak.
Church of the Good Shepard
After dinner we were stuffed full, and walked around the town some more. Everywhere we went there were rainbows in the sky. I’ve never seen more rainbows in my life than this trip to NZ! Super weird, but good for photos.
We explored around the Church of the Good Shepard, which sits on the edge of the lake with the snow-capped mountains in the distance. The photos don’t do it justice.
There were hardly any people around and the air was lovely and fresh after the rain. We saw a cute bunny on a wall, and took our time taking photos, enjoining the scenery and the lack of tourists. November was a wonderful time of year to visit.
Rosie on the bridge going from town to the Church of the Good Shepard.
Playground at Lake Tekapo with a full rainbow.
Jenny on the bank of Lake Tekapo.
Church of the Good Shepard in the evening,
Tussocky grass in the evening.
Rosie and Jenny in the lupins with the Church of the Good Shepard in the background.
Rosie on the bridge.
Day 2
Lupins
It was raining when we woke up, so we had a leisurely morning, and got brunch at Jack Rabbit cafe, which was packed with people, but nice and warm after racing from the car in the chilling wind.
Lots of the customers were dressed for hiking, and the meals they served were giant; very suitable for filling up before a day of adventuring.
We explored the surrounding area in the car, driving around the lake and checking out some view points. We stopped to take photos of all the beautiful lupin flowers everywhere we went. There was a field of cows and lupins which was both funny and picturesque.
Pink lupins at Lake Tekapo.
Purple and white lupins.
Yellow lupins.
Landscape with lake and lupins.
Rosie with purple lupins.
Rosie in front of Lake Tekapo.
Cow in a field of purple lupins.
Pink lupins.
Lake Alexandrina Walk
We travelled down some gravel roads through scenic farmland, and when it stopped raining, we did a short walk around the edge of Lake Alexandrina.
The lake has a backdrop of more snowy mountains and tonnes of bird life. On our way in, we saw lots of black swans with their babies all bobbing around on the waves in the lake. And on our walk we saw Southern Crested Grebes, a native to New Zealand, and the rarest lake bird in the country.
That night we opted to stay in due to the heavy rain and decided it was good we hadn’t risked going into Mount Cook Park that day. I was happy to light the fire, and drink wine, catch up, and watch movies on Netflix. It was super cosy and had all the ambiance of a mountain cabin. I hadn’t been anywhere cold in a while, so it was a nice change from being in the heat of Phoenix and Darwin.
Since our Airbnb had a full kitchen, we went down to the local Four Square supermarket earlier in the day and got supplies for dinner and lunch the next day.
Map of the walkways and mountain bike tracks around Lake Tekapo.
Rosie walking along the lakeside track at Lake Alexandrina.
Lake Alexandrina where we saw the southern crested grebes.
Countryside road.
Farmland with sheep.
Day 3
Drive to Mount Cook National Park
It is worth travelling to the area just for this drive alone. The scenery is epic, with borders of jagged mountains, the vibrant blue of Lake Pukaki, expansive farmlands, and alpine rivers.
We were fortunate enough to have clear sunny skies for the drive, and we stopped several times to take photos. Around every corner was a new view of the colossal mountains. They were draped in low clouds and when the wind hit the edge of Mount Cook, the snow blasted off it on a perfect, sharp angle like a sheet.
Driving past Lake Pukaki.
Road tripping! Rosie and Jenny.
Lake Pukaki and Mount Cook
Bridge over a river in Mount Cook National Park
Arriving at the Hooker Valley Track.
Rosie and Jenny at Lake Pukaki on the way to Mount Cook National Park.
Mount Cook with windswept snow blasting off it.
Hooker Valley Track
This was our main event, and I was so excited we made it there, because the weather hadn’t been looking so good. But there were no thunderstorms forecast for the morning, and we set out in very light rain, but dressed for the worst. New Zealand always has unpredictable weather, especially in the mountains, so it pays to be prepared, even if it’s just a day hike.
The path was easy and started out winding through low brush with a view of the entire valley back to lake Pukaki behind us.
The walk is only 10km and is easy and flat, with two suspension bridge crossings over raging rapids. The path is well maintained and takes about 3hours to walk to the glacier lake at the end, and back along the same track.
The wind picked up as we went, and it was bitterly cold. I was glad of all my layers of clothing with my warm socks, beanie, fleece and windbreaker that I velcroed across my face to keep my face from going numb. I was nice and warm inside my cocoon of clothes, but we saw several people slogging along as we were heading back; some were wearing summer clothes with flimsy plastic ponchos, or rubbish bags to keep out the rain. Some were carrying umbrellas, and one lady was wearing a short skirt and non-hiking shoes—crazy.
Start of the Hooker Valley Track. Jenny and Rosie.
Hooker Valley track view near the start.
Boardwalk on Hooker Valley Track.
One of the suspension bridges on the track.
Suspension bridge over Hooker River.
I loved every bit of this walk; the scenery made me feel like I was in Lord of the Rings the whole time. The snow-covered mountains towered over us, the river was so powerful it was deafening; I loved all the tones of golden browns in the tussocky grasses that undulated in waves with the wind, and everything smelled earthy and fresh with mountain air.
We got to the end, and ate lunch sitting next to the glacier lake where huge icebergs emerged from the cloudy water. At the end you could see the glacier and the valley it carved out. This was my first glacier, and it was so exciting to see one in real life!
On the walk back, the wind picked up but we had our backs to it, so it wasn’t too bad and it pushed us along like sails. Though on the narrow boardwalk, it was tricky to walk straight at times!
I would love to do this walk every month of the year to see how the seasons change the landscape. It is stunning, and a place you could never tire of.
Jenny and mountain scenery on Hooker Valley Track.
The Hooker River.
Hooker Valley Track track.
Jenny and Rosie on the boardwalk at the Hooker Valley Track.
Jenny and Rosie in the wind by the river.
Iceburgs in the glacier lake at the end of the Hooker Valley Track.
Jenny in front of the glacier lake with glacier in the distance.
Tasman Glacier and Blue Lakes
Our fingers and noses were frozen when we got back into the car, but we weren’t done yet. We had a quick snack then drove to the next stop down the road—The Tasman Glacier carpark.
Rosie said the glacier was just off the road. But it turned out it was just off the road, but also up about 1000 stairs (disclaimer-I have no idea how many stairs it actually was).
It turned out to be an easy walk that is only 1.8km return if you go up to the lookout point. We took lots of photos of the view walking up and stopped about halfway where you look down on the Blue Lakes. It was nice to break up the stairs with the stops, and there was an awesome view of Tasman Lake and Tasman Glacier at the top, along with some information boards about the glacier and the lakes in the area.
My legs were jelly when we made our way down the stairs, but it was all so worth it for the views, and none of it was too difficult.
Stairs up to the lookout for Tasman Lake.
Blue Lake.
Tasman Glacier Lake.
Drive Back to Christchurch
By the time we finished our walks, it was late in the afternoon, and we still had to drive back to Christchurch. We had planned to stop in at the Silverstream Hotel at Kimbell, but we ran out of time. But this is a great place to stop on your way through, so add it to your list.
We made it back to Christchurch and Rosie dropped me off at my Airbnb where I was spending the night before flying out the next morning.
This was a short, but sweet trip to Lake Tekapo, and I will come back for sure. I’d love to do some exploring around Mount Cook National Park. I highly recommend a trip to this area if you are going to the South Island of New Zealand.
Accommodation Lake Tekapo
This place was a great location, easy to get the keys, and had everything we needed. The wood fireplace was a huge plus for us! I love fire. We only booked it two days before and there weren’t many choices, so be sure to look around.
Close proximity to the lake, and the advantage of being in a house with a kitchen. There are lots to choose from.
Amazing location with lake views and is right in the heart of town for restaurants and cafes.
Transit Accommodation
Auckland
If you’re transiting through Auckland at any point, I recommend staying at a hotel near the airport. Auckland city is quite far away and the traffic to and from the airport is a nightmare. It’s easier if you have an early flight to be near the airport and jump on a shuttle bus.
This is my number one choice. It is affordable and has really nicely renovated rooms, a great restaurant, and a gym and pool. This is now my go-to hotel when flying out of Auckland.
This is another good hotel because it’s basically in the Airport. You just walk out the door and cross the road to check in. It has nice rooms and a good restaurant, but it is expensive and I’ve found you need to book well in advance.
This one is good too.
Christchurch
This is where I stayed and was a fun location because the apartment was inside a tram station/ shopping mall. It was walking distance to restaurants and attractions around the city.
Novotel Christchurch Cathedral Square
There was also a big Novotel around the corner, this is where I got my Uber from and looked like a good spot and was right next to the Christchurch Cathedral.
This is the hotel I wanted to stay at because it looks like Hogwarts with a magical lobby, a creepy stairwell, and luxurious rooms. But it is expensive and five star; so if you stay there, send me some photos!
Have you been to the South Island of New Zealand? Leave me a message in the comments if you know some other not-to-be-missed places for the next time I go back!
