Australia
Ten hours, one small-group van, two hours on the water with the whales.
A 10 hour small group day trip from Christchurch to Kaikōura built around a roughly two hour whale watching tour, with the Hundalee Hills, seals and mountain-to-sea views on the drive.
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From
$319 AUD
per person
Booked with Wanderlust, an Australian travel business based in Byron Bay (ABN 34 636 612 523). We handle your booking ourselves, before and after you travel.
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$319 AUD pp
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Kaikōura sits between snow-capped ranges and the Pacific, and its coast is one of the best places in New Zealand to see marine life. This tour is a straight run there and back from Christchurch for the whale watch.
You head north with a guide who points out Christchurch and Canterbury highlights, stop in Cheviot for a break, then cross the Hundalee Hills, where surfers and seals can turn up. In Kaikōura you are dropped at your pre-booked whale watch, around two hours on the water. Species recorded there include sperm, blue, humpback and southern right whales, orca, five kinds of dolphin, elephant and leopard seals, and albatross and petrels.
The tour is purely for whale watching, so there is no time for extra walks or shopping. It is a carbon neutral trip in a Mercedes Sprinter or similar, with Wi-Fi and USB charging, bottled water, Kiwi snacks and guide commentary.
Whale watching tour, about 2 hours on the water
Wildlife sightings including seals and dolphins
Hundalee Hills scenic drive
Mountains to sea views
Carbon neutral small group tour
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Public reviews of the operator who runs this tour on the ground.
"We saw 5 adult whales and 1 baby-whale also dolphins and the seals."
Elena F
Tripadvisor review
"The pickups were on time, and we had a very nice tour guide who gave us a lot of informative and insightful commentary through the way, and we learnt so much, which we would have ofherwise missed out on had we driven the route ourselves."
Bhavya C
Tripadvisor review
"He paced out the day very well, expertly navigated the roads with his safe driving, and accommodated the group so we could truly enjoy every stop along the way."
P L
Tripadvisor review
Traveller reviews, source shown on each · shown as excerpts.
New Zealand
9 days · 8 nights
4.9 (575 · Trustpilot)
Auckland to Wellington
6 meals included
$1999 AUD
≈ $222/day
New Zealand
9 days · 8 nights
4.9 (575 · Trustpilot)
Christchurch to Queenstown
7 meals included
$1999 AUD
≈ $222/day
New Zealand
17 days · 16 nights
4.9 (575 · Trustpilot)
Auckland to Queenstown
13 meals included
$4399 AUD
≈ $259/day
From
$319
