Kia ora! I’ve just returned from an incredible family trip to New Zealand’s South Island, and I’m excited to share all the incredible adventures that we had along the way. Over the next few blog posts, I’ll be diving into everything you absolutely must have on your New Zealand bucket list. Read the previous blog post here. For a bit of context: my brother lives in NZ, so my mum and I travelled over for a family holiday with him packed with hikes, swims, and endless mountain views. This trip marked my second time in this stunning country (after exploring the North Island in December 2022 with my Mum and Dad and brother), and I was beyond excited to come back. Trust me, there’s so much to see and do in New Zealand, I hope this blog helps inspire anyone looking to plan their own trip.

Arthur’s Pass marked our first real glimpse with the magical wonders of New Zealand’s South Island mountains, setting the bar high for the remainder of our trip. I honestly thought, “Nothing is going to beat this“, but spoiler alert: the rest of our trip was just as, if not more, breathtakingly beautiful.

During our two-day stay in Arthur’s Pass, we had the opportunity to include: Porter’s Pass and Castle Hill on the drive from Christchurch to Arthur’s Pass and then a hike up to Temple Basin. The following day we completed two short walks, one to Devil’s Punchbowl Falls, and the other to Bealey Chasm.

Porter’s Pass

Here we were spoilt to the delights of a cloud inversion — ironically we saw this moments after having a conversation in the car where I had admitted that I’d never seen one before.

We jumped out of the car and soaked up this spectacular view.

Castle Hill

Ed Sheeran was not at Castle Hill, despite the song Castle on the Hill circulating my brain whilst we were here.

The rock formations here were incredible. The nearest thing I’ve ever seen to these rocks are the Tor’s on Dartmoor… but these were next level!

They are limestone and are the result of water-eroded remains from when New Zealand was underwater (30-40 million years ago, during the Oligocene period). Pretty cool ey?

Temple Basin

I was so excited to head into the mountains, but wow—what a climb! In just 2km, we gained over 480 meters in elevation.

Temple Basin is a ski field in the winter so we were able to see the Goods Lift and the Lodge. We sat (aka. hid) in the Lodge for a snack and a break from the sun. It feels quite bizarre trying to imagine a blanket of snow over the Basin when we were huffing and puffing from the climb and covered in sweat.

Feeling a bit too exhausted to carry on up and over to a lake that sits below Blimit, we decided to explore Twin Creek Gorge instead, hoping to find an alternative spot to cool off with a dip. Little did we know, we stumbled upon the most incredible hidden gem.

It was a very chilly dip, and I still remember the water stinging on my sunburnt legs but after a few moments, it was rather soothing.

Such an awesome spot that I’d love to rediscover one day.

Devil’s Punchbowl falls

I am an absolute sucker for a waterfall, and this one was an impressive 131 meters tall!

It was a 2km walk to the waterfall which took in misty views of Arthur’s Pass.

One thing that stood out to me during our travels was just how vibrantly green everything in New Zealand is. I mean just look at this forest! The vivid green paired with the sounds of Fan Tails chirping away and the waterfall tumbling through the rocks made this walk a very peaceful and calming experience.

I decided to take a refreshing swim next! This was the first time I’ve ever felt cold water actually hurt my feet, so it took me a little while to adjust before I finally got in. But I’m so glad I did—it was so serene, and being in the water made the whole experience even more unforgettable.

This ended up being one of my favourite walks from the whole trip …although I’ll probably end up saying that about every walk!

Bealey Chasm

Hopefully, you can see from the photo how atmospheric the scenery was with the low clouds and mist. This was a short walk there and back to the Bealey River. We crossed a few bridges which I can imagine after a rainy day the rivers would be gushing pools and rapids.

After Arthur’s Pass we headed to Punakaki! I can’t wait to share more of our adventures with you!