Mt Cook Small Group Scenic Day Tour from Queenstown
Description
Get ready for an adventure or a relaxing day in the mountains! Explore Mt Cook on a fully guided, small-group tour from Queenstown, with free time to hike, fly, or simply unwind. Highlights: • Mt Cook & Aoraki National Park • Lake Pukaki • Hooker Valley Track • Kawarau Gorge, Lindis Pass, the Southern Alps • High Country Salmon (time dependent) • Free time for activities & walks Enjoy approximately three hours of free time at Mt Cook to make your day as adventurous or relaxed as you choose: hike alpine trails, soar above glaciers on a scenic flight, or unwind at the Hermitage Hotel with a hot chocolate, soaking in the views. Make memories that last a lifetime.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Your tour starts in the stunning city of Queenstown. 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 areas top highlights.
Departing Queenstown we then make our way through the stunning Kawarau Gorge passing stunning views, the Kawarau Suspension Bridge and the famous Roaring Meg Lookout. Time and light permitting we will stop for that first great shot of the tour.
Exiting the Kawarau Gorge we enter the fruit and wine growing region of Cromwell. Passing huge fields of vines, we cross Lake Dunstan and follow this beautiful lake towards Lindis Pass.
Pass through Lindis Pass, one of only three alpine roads through the otherwise impassable Southern Alps we stop at the famous lookout.
While driving through the endless plains of the Mackenzie district we will spot several of the famous Merino breed of sheep before stopping at the quaint township of Omarama. While in Omarama we have time for a break or even to try the best creamy chicken pie in NZ (in our opinion)!
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.
While in the national park you have 2.5 - 3 hours free time to enjoy free walks/hikes or one of the extra optional activities. Some of our recommendations include: - Local hikes - walk the famous Hooker Valley or Kea Point Tracks for breathtaking scenery and photo opportunities. – Scenic flights – see the region from the air and land on the Tasman Glacier. Which ever activity from these 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.
Farewelling Aoraki/Mt Cook Village and making our way back to Queenstown we stop in at High Country Salmon, a local salmon farm, where you can feed the fish and taste some of the freshest salmon in New Zealand.
As we get close to Queenstown we often stop at Jacksons Orchard to try or buy some fabulous and delicious local fruit, fruit ice-cream and pies, or you can just stretch your legs!
Sadly the tour must come to an end as we re-enter Queenstown and say our goodbyes.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
*If no pickup is selected at time of booking, you will be allocated your default meeting point (The Station - Home of Adventure). You are welcome to update this at any time. If your location isn’t listed, please choose your nearest available option & meet us there. *Pick-ups can begin up to 20 minutes before the tour departure time, depending on location. To ensure a smooth start, please be ready and waiting outside 5 minutes prior to your specific pickup time. *Pick-up locations are carefully planned for each tour and may vary by day. If your pick-up location changes, kindly inform us in advance. *Your guides make multiple stops and may arrive within a 10-minute window. We are unable to wait for late guests.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately.
Reviews(436)
We had an absolutely fantastic day!! Abbey was wonderful!! She shared interesting history about New Zealand along the way and took the time to connect with every single guest. It was very obvious that she loves what she does!! And Mt. Cook itself was simply magical. We did the Hooker Valley Track, and it was spectacular!! Also, Abbey made great stops to and from the mountain, which added to the trip. Thank you!!
Great guide, great pick up/drop off, great tour itinerary. Long drive but it was more than doable in the nice Mercedes van. Always happy to support a local business; even happier when said local business is good at what they do. Would book again! PS everyone should do the Lake Hooker trail. 10km return of mostly flat terrain, with stunning views on an easy established path. See photos attached!
Had a great experience with Cheeky Kiwi Travel yesterday! The trip was well organised, and everything ran smoothly. A special shout out to our tour guide and driver, Paul, who was awesome, friendly and knowledgeable, and made the journey even more enjoyable. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a fun and hassle free tour.
Wow what an incredible day out, I cannot recommend this tour enough! We were lucky to have Paul as our driver and guide who was so friendly, knowledgeable and just wanted to give us the best experience possible even if that meant more racing round and work for him. Being a small group allowed for some flexibility, Paul constantly checked in with everyone to make sure they were comfortable and what everyone was wanting to do and get out of their free time in Mt Cook. Paul was able to arrange a helicopter flight for several of us even though it was booked out when he first called (highly recommend the Tasman taster flight) and still gave us time to enjoy a hike on the hooker after the flight so we got to experience the best of both! Paul even added in an extra viewpoint stop on the way back for us to enjoy. Mt Cook is absolutely beautiful and 100% can recommend traveling with the cheeky kiwi to get the most out of your day. Thanks again Paul for a great day out, your hard work didn’t go unnoticed to make our day and the tour was one of my highlights of my trip to the South Island!
It was honestly one of the best trips I’ve ever been on. Paul was an amazing guide. the Mount Cook small group tour is mind blowing! We also opted to do the Tasman taster heli flight which included a glacier landing - which was the absolute jewel on the crown. We were blessed with the weather gods and the sun shone brightly all day! 10/10
Awesome tour. Our guide Benny was great. We enjoyed ourselves a lot and loved the whole experience. Thanks
Thank you for your feed back. We are so pleased you had a great day and we hope the mountain showed her top for you. A great mountain to see, in a very special park. Thank you for travelling with us.
My partner and I had an amazing time at the Mt Cook tour. The vehicle was comfy and snacks and water. were provided. Our tour Danny was amazing and made our trip very engaging with his commentary. He was very friendly and accommodating. The tour itself was amazing, beautiful nature and yummy salmon. I would recommend this tour to everyone. One thing to note is that if you want to do the Tasman Glacier hike, it is very uphill and requires moderate fitness. However, there are other flatter tracks to do if you can't do this main one.
My partner and I had an amazing time at the Mt Cook tour. The vehicle was comfy and snacks and water. were provided. Our tour Danny was amazing and made our trip very engaging with his commentary. He was very friendly and accommodating. The tour itself was amazing, beautiful nature and yummy salmon. I would recommend this tour to everyone. One thing to note is that if you want to do the Tasman Glacier hike, it is very uphill and requires moderate fitness. However, there are other flatter tracks to do if you can't do this main one.
Being locals at one stage, this was a trip we probably wouldn’t have done on our own. Booking the tour was a great experience that I would definitely recommend not to just tourists but to locals as well. Very knowledgeable tour guide and very entertaining. Thanks for a fabulous day!
Wonderful tour! The weather was perfect and the views and mountains were stunning! Our tour guide was great!
