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Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter 2026

Duration: 12 Days

Price: from NZ$7,995

Departure From: Christchurch

Departure Date: June-September 2026

Tour Type: Escorted

Meal Plan: Most meals

Physical Grading: 2/5

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Inspired by one of the greatest and most iconic adventurers of all time, the Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Tour is a 12-day South Island rail and coach journey capturing the magic of New Zealand in winter.

Experience snow-capped mountains, alpine valleys, and historic towns as you combine world-class train journeys with the comfort of luxury touring.

Beginning and ending in Christchurch, the Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Tour showcases the very best of the South Island. Board the legendary TranzAlpine train across the mighty Southern Alps, discover Franz Josef Glacier on the wild West Coast, and spend two nights in Queenstown, New Zealand’s alpine adventure capital. Continue to the spectacular Fiordland National Park, followed by a visit to Invercargill, the southernmost city in New Zealand.

Your winter adventure continues aboard the historic Taieri Gorge Railway and the exclusive Mainlander charter train, travelling via Dunedin to the charming Victorian stone town of Oamaru. From there, return inland to Aoraki / Mt Cook for a stay at the iconic Hermitage Hotel, where a member of the Hillary family will share personal stories about the man whose name defines this remarkable journey.

The Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Tour is more than just a holiday—it’s a once-in-a-lifetime New Zealand winter rail tour that celebrates adventure, scenery, and heritage. Seats are limited, so book early to secure your place on this unforgettable South Island winter experience. Get in touch to tailor-make your ideal holiday with our tour experts, or click the link to see the full range of Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Tours, including Spring/Summer 2026/2027 departures.

“Adventure for the sake of a dream, for the pleasure of searching”

Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter 2026

Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Edition Tour 2026 Highlights

  • Discover Christchurch aboard a beautifully restored heritage tram, gliding through the city’s elegant streets and gardens.
  • Journey on the world-famous TranzAlpine train, crossing the Southern Alps with panoramic views of mountains, rivers, and deep gorges.
  • Cruise Lake Wakatipu aboard the vintage TSS Earnslaw steamship, a classic vessel still powered by its original coal-fired engines.
  • Savour a gourmet BBQ lunch at the historic Walter Peak Homestead, set in a stunning high-country lakeside location.
  • Ascend Queenstown’s Skyline Gondola and enjoy a memorable Stratosfare lunch with sweeping alpine vistas.
  • Experience the untouched beauty of Doubtful Sound on a full-day trip and cruise through its serene fiord landscapes.
  • Visit the Takahe Sanctuary to encounter one of New Zealand’s rarest and most iconic native birds.
  • Explore the Te Hikoi Museum and uncover Southland’s rich stories of Māori culture and European settlement.
  • Marvel at the Bill Richardson Transport Museum, home to the world’s largest private collection of classic vehicles.
  • Traverse dramatic canyons and viaducts on the Taieri Gorge Train, Otago’s most celebrated heritage railway.
  • Relive the past on a Dunedin Railways journey to Victorian Oamaru, a town renowned for its beautifully preserved architecture.
  • Immerse yourself in the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre at Aoraki/Mt Cook, celebrating New Zealand’s greatest adventurer.
  • Enjoy an inspiring presentation from a Hillary family guest speaker, offering a personal insight into Sir Edmund’s legacy.

Learn more about the Sir Edmund Hillary Tour Highlights in our guide

Sir Edmund Hillary – Aoraki/Mount Cook

The Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer rail tour series was recently voted as a World Travel Award Winner. Click Here for the full range of Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Tours

Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Edition – Optional Excursions

Franz Josef Helicopter Flight – Enjoy a sensational helicopter flight over the Southern Alps and famous West Coast Glaciers. A real highlight for the adventurers.

Te Anau Glow Worm Tour – A special experience crossing Lake Te Anau by boat and then enjoy heading underground into glow-worm caves which were only rediscovered in 1948

Larnach Castle Tour & High Tea -Enjoy a guided tour of New Zealand’s only Castle including the tower, gift shop, Castle gardens, grounds, historic stables and outbuildings. Your ticket also includes High Tea served in the Ballroom Cafe, a real treat!

Tasman Glacier Flight – Enjoy a flight in a helicopter or plane in Mt. Cook to explore the stunning snow covered mountains and glaciers in Tasman Valley.

Larnach Castle Dunedin situated on the beautiful Otago Peninsula – an optional excursion

Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Edition Tour 2026 – Rail Highlights

The TranzAlpine Train
On this fabled TranzAlpine package you are offered an unforgettable journey from Christchurch to Greymouth, widely celebrated as one of the world’s most spectacular rail experiences. Travel in comfort through the patchwork fields of the Canterbury Plains, cross soaring viaducts, and wind through the dramatic Southern Alps before descending into lush West Coast rainforest. This is the ultimate showcase of New Zealand’s winter alpine landscapes, all from the comfort of your panoramic carriage.

New Zealand Rail Journeys
A wintery scene as the TranzAlpine crosses the Southern Alps

The Taieri Gorge Railway
Departing from the resplendent Dunedin Railway Station — a masterpiece of Edwardian architecture — the Taieri Gorge Railway is Otago’s most scenic rail journey. Traversing spectacular viaducts, narrow tunnels, and steep ravines, this route offers breathtaking views of rugged, untouched landscapes that are otherwise inaccessible. The journey blends engineering marvels with natural splendour, making it a highlight of South Island rail travel.

Taieri Gorge Railway
The Taieri Gorge Railways winds its way from Dunedin to the Central Otago Plateau

The Mainlander Train
The Mainlander is an exclusive charter train, reserved solely for guests of the Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Edition. Travelling from Invercargill through Dunedin to Oamaru, it revives a classic route once served by New Zealand’s great intercity expresses, bringing back the romance of rail to the South Island’s deep south. Along the way, guests are treated to sweeping coastal views, rolling farmland, and historic townships — landscapes rarely experienced by passenger train today. Purpose-operated for this journey, the Mainlander combines comfort with nostalgia, offering a unique opportunity to travel a storied rail line in a way that blends history, scenery, and indulgence.

Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Edition Tour Dates

Prices are based on per person sharing. Single supplements apply to all tour prices, rates shown below. All tours depart from and conclude in Christchurch across 12 days, 11 nights and includes 11 cooked breakfasts, 8 sumptuous dinners (including your Welcome Dinner), 9 lunches including a Gourmet BBQ lunch at Walter Peak Homestead and at Skyline Queenstown’s Stratosfare Restaurant and bar.

Sir Edmund Hillary Explorer Winter Tours 2026 Departures

Departures from ChristchurchPricing & Notes
27 June 2026$7,995
04 July 2026$7,995 – SOLD OUT
11 July 2026$7,995 – SOLD OUT
18 July 2026$7,995
25 July 2026$7,995
01 August 2026$7,995
08 August 2026$7,995 – SOLD OUT
15 August 2026$7,995 – SOLD OUT
22 August 2026$7,995 – SOLD OUT
29 August 2026$7,995 – SOLD OUT
05 September 2026$7,995
12 September 2026$7,995

Please see below for a detailed itinerary and booking conditions or Contact Us Now to check for availability. LOCO Journeys can offer you pre-tour and post-tour departure activities, flights and accommodation, just ask at the time of booking.

LOCO Journeys offers New Zealand’s most extensive choice of rail tours matching your budget, travel style and duration. Click here for alternate New Zealand scenic train and railfan tours.

Tour Inclusions

  • Four star hotel accommodation
  • 11 cooked breakfasts, 8 sumptuous dinners and 9 lunches
  • South Island rail journeys as shown.
  • Sightseeing and entrance fees as indicated in the itinerary
  • Tips and gratuities to local guides, drivers, train staff etc.
  • Deluxe air-conditioned coach transportation
  • Baggage handling of one suitcase per person
  • Lunches include gourmet BBQ lunch at Walter Peak Homestead and a buffet at Skyline Queenstown Stratosfare Restaurant.
  • Services of experienced Tour Leaders

Pricing Notes

  • Advertised price based on per person, twin share
  • Non-refundable deposit of 20% of tour cost per person is due at time of booking. You date of full payment will be advised at the time of booking.
  • A single supplement is available upon request
  • Price is subject to change unless paid in full
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Tour Itinerary

Day 1 | Christchurch
Your Tour Registration starts at 2:30pm and then spend the afternoon exploring Christchurch by Tram at a leisurely pace. The “Ice- breaker” Welcome Dinner and Tour Briefing will be held at the hotel restaurant at 6pm.
Your journey begins at Christchurch Railway Station, where the iconic TranzAlpine awaits. Often regarded to be one of the world’s great train journeys for the scenery through which it passes. The journey is 223 kilometres one-way, taking almost five hours. You will see epic vistas, travel the edges of the ice-fed Waimakariri River, traverse the majestic Canterbury Plains and Southern Alps, and see large tracts of native beech forest. Luxury coaches await in Greymouth to transport you to your hotel in the ruggedly beautiful Franz Josef.
Wake up to enjoy the option for a helicopter tour of the Fox Glacier. Leaving Franz Josef, we travel down the West Coast to Fox to enjoy the option of a helicopter tour of the Fox Glacier. Continuing on through the Haast Pass, journeying through large tracts of native rain forest and over the Southern Alps. This remote area has a ruggedly beautiful landscape of vast rainforests, gushing waterfalls and snow-capped mountains. Continuing through Makarora on the border of Mount Aspiring World Heritage Park, we pass by the crystal-clear waters of Lake Wanaka, Lake Hawea and Lake Dunstan. The adventure playground of Queenstown then awaits! Cap off a special day as we take in The Remarkables Mountain Range and the view of Lake Wakatipu.
Wake up to join a winter lake cruise which takes us across Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak High Country Farm for a gourmet BBQ Lunch. Enjoy the afternoon on your own exploring Queenstown.
Before departing Queenstown enjoy unforgettable views sky high with a trip up the iconic Queenstown Gondola, followed by a delicious buffet on top of the world at Stratosfare Restaurant and Bar. We then travel by luxury coach to Te Anau, known as the gateway to Fiordland National Park. Take in the breathtaking landscapes and for those who wish to add on a unique experience, take part in a guided Glowworm cave tour for a truly magical experience.
Traveling from Te Anau to Doubtful Sound is one of the finest scenic drives in the world.The scenery is exceptional, ranging from glacial lakes, deep fiords, towering mountains and dense rainforest. Board the coach and travel through stunning scenery from Te Anauand into Fiordland, where it is a short cruise across Lake Manapouri to get you to the base of Wilmot Pass. After travelling over Wilmot Pass by coach, you will find the remote & magical Doubtful Sound. The tour includes a cruise around the fiord so you can experience its wonders up close and see waterfalls and amazing wildlife, such as dolphins and seals. Cruise the inner most reaches of Doubtful Sound to the open Tasman Sea and back. A one-day itinerary is enough to see all the beautiful views along the way, take a scenic cruise around the fiord, and get back to Te Anau in time for dinner.
As we depart Te Anau for Invercargill, we start the morning with a visit the Takahe Bird Sanctuary. Takahe are the stars of the show and meeting these prehistoric-looking characters is a ‘must do’ for the Fiordland visitors.The sanctuary is a large part of the success of the Takahe Recovery programme. Driving to Riverton via the small rural town Tuatapere we stop at Te Hikoi Museum which showcases the history of how Māori and Europeans adapted to life in this area. Arriving in Invercargill we will stay at the brand new Distinction Invercargill hotel.
In the morning, we will visit Invercargill’s Bill Richardson Transport World which features over 300 classic vehicles. Then board our recently re-established train to Dunedin, a rail experience exclusive to our tours - “The Mainlander” which weaves it way through rolling hills and lush scenic rural landscapes of the deep south of New Zealand.
In the morning, we explore the remote Taieri Gorge by Dunedin Rail over river gorges, weaving our way through a myriad of historic tunnels and guide you to the historic Wingatui Viaduct, a marvel of 1880s construction that remains the largest wrought iron structure in New Zealand. An afternoon at leisure is planned or there is the optional excursion visit to Larnach Castle for a decadent high tea & garden tour.
Departing from Dunedin by rail, we continue to hug the coast towards Oamaru. We then detour inland via Waitaki Valley & Omarama by coach and onwards towards the spectacular Aoraki Mt Cook. Here, we find the home of the tallest mountain in New Zealand, which helped Sir Edmund Hillary to develop his climbing skills in preparation for the conquest of Mt Everest. Recognised as part of the Te Wahipounamu UNESCO World Heritage Area, the National Park is a breath-taking environment of glaciers, terminal lakes, turbulent rivers and Australasia’s tallest peak, the mighty Aoraki Mt Cook soaring above at 3,724 metres. There is the option after dinner to enjoy star-gazing at the Planetarium, digitally immersed in what has been voted the world’s largest “International Dark Sky Reserve”.
Enjoy a leisurely morning and then a visit to the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre, which is a tribute to New Zealand’s global icon as well as discovering New Zealand’s colourful transport, climbing and hotel history. Followed by an afternoon scenic drive through the National Park surrounded by the silent splendour of the Southern Alps. Morning optional activity includes a scenic ski plane or Helicopter flight with expert pilots navigating their way over the glacial lake, passing soaring mountain tops over NZ’s longest glacier – the 600-metre thick, Tasman Glacier. A true highlight to round of a magical day is a Hillary family representative presentation in the Sir Edmund Hillary Centre Theatre before dinner. The optional Planetarium show takes place in the theatre after the Hillary Presentation.
A morning departure from the hotel leaving Aoraki Mt Cook by coach, we journey back to the coast via Tekapo, Geraldine and Rakaia on the way to Christchurch. On arrival in Christchurch, This brings us to the end of the tour.

For more information about this tour, price queries and updates on specials, please Enquire Now.