Mt Cook & Lake Tekapo Small Group Tour from Christchurch
Overview
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Mt Cook & Lake Tekapo Tour. This small group, fully-guided day trip combines all of the key highlights in the area with the famous Lake Tekapo, Mt Cook National Park and Tasman Glacier as key highlights. Led by our famously passionate tour guides, notorious for bringing your journey to life by sharing their stories and rich background knowledge and run in modern, comfortable minibuses packed with extras ensuring your comfort and safety.
Description
Highlights:
- Lake Tekapo
- Church of the Good Shepard
- Mt Cook & Aoraki National Park
- Tasman Glacier, Lake Pukaki
Itinerary:
- Christchurch - Your tour starts in the stunning city of Christchurch. As we drive out of the city your guide will not only set the scene for your adventurous day but also point out and guide you past some of the area’s top highlights.
- Canterbury Plains – Departing Christchurch we then make our way through the impressive Canterbury plains with plenty of amazing New Zealand farmland and countryside to see along the way!
- Fairlie Bakehouse (10 mins) - A Classic New Zealand farming town hidden away in Mackenzie. Fairlie goes through some stunning colour changes especially come Autum, this is truly one of the best locations to sit and relax with one of their world-famous meat Pies from the Bakehouse. And this stop is also where we will pick up your lunch to keep you full of energy for the rest of the day.
- Lake Tekapo (5mins) – We head towards the famous blue lakes of Lake Tekapo but to get there first we must go through some impressive alpine passes with amazing views. As we come over the hill to Tekapo you will be stunned by amazing view of the lake.
- Church of the Good Shepherd (10 mins) – Once in the township of Tekapo you will have time to explore the very popular Church of the Good Shepherd, see the Mackenzie Sheep dog and get those Instagram worth shots of Lake Tekapo before we continue to Mt Cook.
- Lake Pukaki (10 mins) – Turning west we begin to enter the Aoraki National Park and Lake Pukaki begins to emerge in front of us. Lake Pukaki is one of the bluest lakes you will ever see and is stunningly framed by the backdrop of Aoraki/Mt Cook and the Southern Alps. We stop for some amazing photos and to just marvel at the sight that we are beholding. It’s not hard to see why many Lord of the Rings scene were filmed nearby and we will point them out for you.
- Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park (2 - 2.5 hours) – Arriving at Mt Cook Village, weather depending, we should get some amazing shots of the mountain itself. At 3724m, Aoraki/Mt Cook is New Zealand’s highest peak, however, the mountain can be viewed without any acclimatisation whatsoever from the village which is just 750m above sea level.
- While in the national park you have 2.5 hours free time to enjoy free walks/hikes or one of the extra optional activities. Some of our recommendations include: Kea Point or Tasman Glacier Walk, Scenic flights (see the region from the air and land on the Tasman Glacier) or Mt Cook Visitor Centre & Hermitage Hotel. Whatever you decide to do we will pick you up and drop you off where you need to go and make sure you are well looked after.
- Christchurch – Unfortunately after an amazing day of sightseeing it is time to return to Christchurch. Please note additional stops are taken into considerations for toilet breaks.
Please note: the Hooker Valley Track is currently CLOSED while the Department of Conservation works on replacing one of the swing bridges. This is expected to be complete in Autumn 2026 so the track will be inaccessible to the public until then.
Cancellation Policy
Terms: Tours will only run if at least 5 people have booked on the tour, we reserves the right to alter the tour due to weather or operational needs.
A full refund will be issued for cancellations made a minimum of 10 days prior to the scheduled departure time.
What‘s Included
Small Group
Fully Guided Tour
Picnic Lunch
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
Options
Reviews
184 reviews
A Canadian
Jean S,Mar 18, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00Mt. Cook was stunning. Grant, the driver’s commentary was excellent. As a retired teacher and geologist his wealth of information was fascinating.
Excursion was just what...
Luisa T,Mar 17, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00Excursion was just what my husband and I expected. Views were impressive, and we were lucky to have beautiful weather. Janus was an excellent guide. We highly recommended.
Scenic Vistas But Long drive
Ann H,Mar 14, 2026
- Review from Viator
3.00Cheeky Kiwi does an excellent job top to bottom. They have excellent drivers who are very personable and informative, they run very well on schedule, the vans are comfortable, they provide adequate snacks, lunches, restroom breaks, and plenty of water, and manage to keep long drives like this entertaining. This tour took us to some beautiful vistas of the lakes and snowcapped peaks, but be forewarned that there are also several hours of driving through agricultural areas and towns. Not unappealing, and some is quite bucolic, especially as you begin to climb into the foothills, but maybe we grew a bit tired of it as this was our third 12-14 hour day of scenic drives and we had already seen quite a few sheep! Our driver was a former geology teacher and was also knowledgeable about agricultural practices, local landowners, and the history, so I quite enjoyed his talks along the way. Our particular day did not allow for as much time at the walking trails as we would have liked, but there aren't really that many trails anyway. It is mainly just taking in the beautiful landscapes, and we were fortunate to have perfect weather with beautiful blue skies. Nice sightseeing.
Mt Cook
Marvin S,Mar 10, 2026
- Review from Viator
4.00It was a great trip scenery was absolutely beautiful. Guide was very informative, friendly and took great care of us. Just be prepared for a very long and tiring day. Nothing can be done about that it's just a long distance from Christchurch to Mt Cook. Ride was difficult. It was small type passenger van and was completly full. I'm tall and wide shoulder, had to sit entire day leaning over a bit to stay off my seatmate. Seats are made for small people and made for a really hard day. I know nothing can be done about this they don't make the vans so just be prepared for a uncomfortable ride but trip was worth it
A wonderful experience
alicegE1235YO,Mar 10, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Joel was a fantastic tour guide, very knowledgeable and down to earth. It was a long day but very well worth it, we thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend!
New Zealand Jewel
anthony h,Mar 9, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00A long day excursion., but truly worth it. Our driver Logan from Cheeky Kiwi was very knowledgeable of his home land and was very passionate. Always willing to please his customers with plenty of stops and photo shoots.
A day trip to Mt Cook and Lake
samantp2026,Mar 7, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Good and enjoyable trip Much enjoyed the trip
A total feast for the eyes!!!
Maria S,Mar 7, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00A brilliant day…well worth the early start and long drive. The drive was comfortable and the views were amazing with the ever changing landscape. Our guide was great and very knowledgeable. We were very lucky with the weather so the colour of Lake Tekapo was stunning and Mount Cook looked so majestic. I would have liked longer at both locations as Lake Tekapo was literally a quick photo stop, but we knew that before we went, and would still recommend it!!! WONDERFUL!!!!
Good one day exploring…
pngsamant,Mar 7, 2026
- Review from Viator
5.00Very nice and in forgettable experience Mt cook and lake tekapu too good Weather also very good for visit
An amazing trip
johnnib668,Mar 3, 2026
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Our trip was absolutely amazing. While the scenery was beautiful and the bus was comfortable, the highlight was undoubtedly our guide. He was so knowledgeable and easy-going that the time seemed to fly by. This is a trip I would highly recommend to anyone.
From A$252.88
Christchurch, New Zealand
- Free cancellation
Reserve Now & Pay Later - available
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