Wine and Wild Coast - Small Group Tour

General information

Destination
Wellington, New Zealand

Program details

Your expert local guide will narrate as you take a scenic drive over the Remutaka Ranges, where you will enjoy wine tastings at a selection of Martinborough wineries, on this full day tour. Lunch will be served at a vineyard restaurant before the tour heads to the south Wairarapa coast. Visit the rugged coastal village of Ngawi and the North Island's largest permanent seal colony as well as a drive by of the famed “Paths of the Dead” from Lord of the Rings, the Putangirua Pinnacles. Finally climb the steps to the Cape Palliser Lighthouse for epic sweeping sea views before heading to the Lake Ferry Hotel on the edge of Lake Onoke for dinner. This 10 hour tour takes in a variety of stunning landscapes in the greater Wellington region.



The tour departs at 10:00am and travels north east, following the Hutt River into the Hutt Valley and a visit to the Kaitoke Regional Park including a crossing of the swing bridge and a loop walk through the original native rainforest. This is followed by a scenic drive over the Remutaka Ranges, including a stop at the Summit for spectacular views. It then descends into the Wairarapa region, passing through Featherston for a cheese tasting at C’est Cheese and into Greytown for a chocolate tasting at Schoc Chocs before arriving in the quaint winery town of Martinborough. Here you will visit award winning wineries and enjoy their cellar door experiences and sample their world renowned wines before a sumptuous lunch at a vineyard restaurant.

The tour then heads to the rugged south Wairarapa coast and Cape Palliser. The tour follows the edge of the coast, providing unstoppable views of the Bay before exploring the rural fishing village of Ngawi with it's iconic tractors hauling fishing boats up the beach. Marvel at the North Island's largest permanent fur seal colony and test your fitness on a climb to the Cape Palliser Lighthouse that provides epic sweeping sea views.

After working up an appetite take a short walk along the edge of Lake Onoke (Lake Ferry) and hear about its history whilst local fisherman haul in their catches fresh from the ocean and sit down at the historic lake Ferry Hotel for dinner. The tour then returns to Wellington.