2024 - West Coast Wilderness Photography Tour

Join Ken Wright and Glen Howey on this exceptional seven-day photography tour of the South Island’s wild West Coast. Timed at the end of winter, when the light is crisp and low, the West Coast Photography Tour offers excellent opportunities to capture the area’s wild beaches, forests and waterfalls, and the snow-covered Southern Alps.

The South Island’s west coast boasts more forests, mountains, and protected lands than any other region of New Zealand. Here, wild and remote coastlines are flanked by primaeval rainforests, with the high peaks and glaciers of the Southern Alps rising beyond.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Te Wāhipounamu World Heritage

• Amazing coastal sunsets

• Lake Matheson sunrise

• White Heron Sanctuary Tour in the Waitangiroto Reserve

CHRISTCHURCH - QUEENSTOWN

• Lake Matheson

• Punakaiki Pancake Rocks

• Westland National Park

• Paparoa National Park

ITINERARY

Day 0 - Christchurch
Arrive in Christchurch and make your way to the hotel - this night accommodation is included in the tour. 

Day 1 – Christchurch - Punakaiki
This morning we depart Christchurch and head across the Canterbury Plains and up into the Southern Alps. Driving through the famous Arthur’s Pass we will stop to photograph the waterfalls and forests of this area as we make our way to the West Coast. We will reach Punakaiki and its famous Punakaiki rock formations in time for sunset photography.

Day 2 - Punakaiki
The day begins with an exploration of the exquisite limestone and river landscapes of Paparoa National Park. We will spend the rest of the day exploring the exceptional coastline and sunset sees us heading out onto stunning beaches to capture the last light hitting the coastline and huge breaking waves.

Day 3 - Punakaiki - Fox Glacier
This morning, we drive down the coast stopping in at the Hokitika Gorge to capture the beautiful turquoise waters and then heading further down to Whataroa for a guided White Heron Sanctuary Tour up the Whataroa river; this is the only way to access the Waitangiroto Nature Reserve. Here, we will photograph the country's only nesting site for the beautiful White Herons (Kotuku), along with the Royal Spoonbill. We finish the day at sunset, we visit a remote west coast beach offering panoramic views of the snow-covered peaks of the Southern Alps.

Day 4 - Fox Glacier
This morning, we will photograph the sunrise at Lake Matheson, capturing the often-perfect reflections of Aoraki/Mt Cook and Mt Tasman—New Zealand’s highest mountains. If the weather is right, you have the option (at additional cost) to take a helicopter flight onto the vast upper neve of the Fox Glacier for some unparalleled photo opportunities. Sunset tonight will see us heading out to Okarito Lagoon, with panoramic views of the Southern Alps rising beyond a sweeping extent of rainforest.

Day 5 - Fox Glacier - Hasst
We travel along the coast, exploring the magnificent rainforest of the Te Wāhipounamu (a UNESCO World Heritage area). At sunset, we visit a remote West Coast beach for another west coast sunset.

Day 6 - Haast - Wanaka
After a coastal sunrise this morning we drive through Haast’s Pass, the gateway back inland to Wanaka. Along the way, we photograph a number of extraordinary waterfalls, including a beautiful 30-metre cascade in stately beech forest. Tonight we capture the sunset over Lake Wanaka. 

Day 7 – Wanaka - Queenstown
This morning we will head out on a 4WD drive trip to capture the changing light over mighty peaks and mountain valleys. The rest of the day we will explore the hills around Wanaka before heading back over to Queenstown for late afternoon flights.

PRICE INCLUDES

• 7 days’ photography guiding by Ken Wright & Glen Howey

• 7 nights’ hotel accommodation (twin-share, single upgrade available) mostly 4✩ 

• 6 breakfasts

• White Heron Sanctuary Tour 

• Wanaka 4WD Trip

• Transport during the tour

• Christchurch pickup / Queenstown dropoff

• DOC (National Park) concession fees

• Copy of our Pocket Guide to Landscape & Wildlife Photography 

• Donation to our Conservation Fund

  Native tree planting to Carbon Offset your tour