When I first heard of this lake, I was told it was called lake take-a-poo. I had been pronouncing…read morethis place as such for a while and like the adult I am, enjoyed the name very much. Unfortunately, its pronounced lake -teck-a-po, with one o at the end as spelled. I think I will always remember this lake now. The lake itself on a july afternoon was very pretty. Still, serene, freezing, and blue. Perhaps summer is when the turquoise I'm reading about takes hold. I like how easy it is to walk right up to the lake. If it weren't so cold out I would have probably enjoyed the view a bit longer. We walked along the lake and to the dog statue as well. Saw the church of the good shepherd which is a tiny tiny building. Taking photos from my iphone didn't do the scenery justice so I ended up putting away my phone and just soaking up the view. I've seen some beautiful scenic lakes and mountains in my life and I didn't think this was a 5 star view. I'm sure its more breathtaking in the spring and summer when the flowers are out and the water is turquoise, but its not as nice as I was hoping it would be.

Lake Tekapo was one of our stops in our drive from Queenstown to Christchurch, and I wish we stayed…read moremore than one night as this place was beautiful and magical. A snowstorm was coming, and did not want to be trapped or delayed by road closures. It's about a 3 hour drive from Queenstown, which was an amazing drive! This is a small town with a small city centre with limited options, but you're here for the amazing scenery of the snow-capped mountain range behind the everchanging, various shade of blue lake. It's bright and turquoise during the day that changes to teal later on in the day. The water is very clear, clean, and crispy. There are other places to visit such as the Church of the Good Shepard that's right beside the lake; the Mt. John Observatory, which is weather dependent (road going up can be closed due to wet or snowy conditions); the Tekapo hot springs; regional park; shoreline beaches, and etc. Remember to take the foot bridge that goes over the lake between the Church and city centre. Overall, Lake Tekapo is an amazing and relaxing place! I will definitely come back next time to New Zealand. All the people we encountered were so nice and friendly. The town is small, and places do close a little earlier than what you may be used to if you don't live here, and has everything you need and different cuisines to choose from.

We walked to the trailhead from our room at Mt. Lodge Motels & Inn…read more The Red Tarns route was a 1.5mile steep stairs uphill trek to the top of mountain, then including a small Red Tarn Pond loop- The entire route took about 45min return. To be honest, we cared less about the actual Red Tarns Pond- the stair climb was an excellent cardio hike- and the view from the top was amazing- we didn't bother with the red tarn pond loop once up top, we just sat and enjoyed the view, rewarding ourselves for the climb.

Another hike that might not be top of your list ( Milford and Routeburn the tops) but if you want…read moreamazing views of Mt Cook this is the one. Easy hike that crosses some really cook bridges and rivers. The end is a gorgeous glacial lake. Pack a lunch and enjoy the views

Of all the places to hike this is one you will want to get up early to do. We started our hike at…read more7:3am to miss the crowds and be able to see and hear God's beautiful creation. This place is totally amazing! Layer your clothes and take water. When your body warns up you can take off. There are toilets available before your hike. Campground is also located there if your the camper type. About an hour into the hike they currently have the trail closed due to repairs to the bridge. After the hike we drove over to the cafe for hot tea and coffee. Enjoy!

We really enjoyed our time here! This is a great spot to take a day off NZ hiking and relax…read more We wanted to make the most of our day here and spend a good 4+ hours onsite, relaxing in the pools. I appreciate that they had a variety of temperatures so you could swim in a cooler pool, then move to warmer ones, and switch on and off. There were a good amount of kids here, but the warmest one was adults only. I wished they had more chairs for laying out and putting things near - they were pretty limited. The area was beautifully kept, with greenery and rocks and decor. One of our favorite parts was the sauna, steam room and cold plunge. This was an added cost but gave us some variety in the day and the cold plunge was a great reset to go back out in the hot springs. They close the cooler pool and one of the others before the end of the day, which was where we had our chairs and towels/personal items, so we had to move our stuff towards the end of the day. We didn't do a massage or the night experience, but you can add those on too. These are marketed as hot springs, and while I do think they are naturally heated, I think they may also use chlorine or cleaning chemicals - which I totally get with that many bodies in and out each day.

After a long day of driving from Te Anau, we wanted to relax. We were under the impression these…read morewere natural hot springs but it's not: clearly chlorinated hot tubs (just FYI if you thought you were getting natural hot springs), nonetheless it's a nice relaxing experience. They have two warm pools at 37 and 38 degrees Celsius but only one is adult only (if you are trying to have some "me" time and don't want screaming children in the water). The decor and ambiance feels a bit like a water park but the adult only hot pool is quite peaceful even though you can hear the screaming children one pool away. Downside is that there is an upcharge for everything: from towels to lockers to even using the sauna or steamroom, there's an extra fee for that.

Bautiful glacier, I agree that it was underrated and less popular than Franz Josef but it is also…read morenice because it was alot more laid back and the road less crowded. The holiday park at Mount Cook has a beautiful outdoor kitchen with the glacier showing in the background. I knew that this park was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen in my life and I planned to propose on top of the glacier here; the photos came out amazing and the tour guides/helicopter pilot was super friendly and awesome to work with. They pointed out that in front of the national park is where a large LOTR battle took place but the actual glacier should have been the feature because of its beauty. Go visit at least once in your life!

There is nothing in NZ which is not must do. NZ is gods own country ... beauty all over the place …read more Mt cook is definitely one of the best places I saw in my trip . It's beauty is hard to describe in words , snow capped mountain peaks , bright piercing sun light creating numerous small rivers n glaciers , beautiful wild flowers , crystal white color sheeps , most amazing n helpful people , this place is like a meditation center ... so so so beautiful .... we took helicopter ride which was bit expensive but definitely so worth it ....

This is a nice easy walk on a gravel and partially paved path with great views of Mt Cook and the…read moreMountains of Fox glacier. It was windy on the day we went so we didn't catch the mirror image of the mountains in the lake, go very early in the day for this. We carried on to the Lake Gault trail which adds another 8 or so kilometers of continuous uphill. The Lake Gault trail starts near the 2/3 point of the Matheson trail ( if traveling clockwise on the trail), and ends at an alpine lake with a picnic shelter and traverses dense forest, and the best part is no crowds on this part of the hike. Hiking poles can be helpful on Lake Gault if you want to take load off of your knees on the downhill.

Wonderful place with gorgeous reflections ! Grab a cup of tea at the cafe ! On a nice sunny day the…read morereflections are gorgeous ! Take your time and enjoy the views

The gorge walk starts right from town, you walk behind a water storage area along a gravel road…read morewhich gradually turns to a trail and culminates at the Callery river suspension bridge. Once at the bridge be sure to head down to the river for great views of the river and the cave like area that the river has cut through. The walk is moderate with gradual up hill to the bridge and takes about 1.5 hours round trip, though plan for longer if you want to linger.