The Ultimate New Zealand Adventure Itinerary in 14 Days

For the next instalment in our Ultimate Itinerary Series, we pulled together our favourite adventure activities from ten years of living in and travelling around New Zealand. New Zealand is an adventure playground, and you can comfortably work through the best of it in this 14-day, 14-night New Zealand adventure itinerary. It doesn’t cover every region, you’d need far longer than two weeks for that, but this route hits the award-winning adventure activities we think you shouldn’t miss.

Queenstown is often called New Zealand’s adventure capital, so that’s where you start. After a couple of adrenaline-filled days there, you’ll head out on a road trip in a campervan or hire car, finishing up in Auckland.

Not feeling quite this adventurous? We’ve got other itinerary ideas too. Try our 10-day North Island itinerary, our 10-day South Island itinerary, or the full 30-day New Zealand self-drive itinerary if you want to see it all.

Top tip: click through the links in this article for our full, in-depth guides to each region.

Please note: this isn’t a sponsored post. We’ve done the majority of these activities ourselves, which is exactly why we can recommend them with a straight face.

In this article

• The route and highlights
• Day-by-day: Queenstown, Fiordland, Wanaka, the glaciers and the West Coast
• Day-by-day: Abel Tasman, Rotorua, Taupō, Coromandel, Waitomo and Auckland
• Budgeting for an adventure trip
• Your questions answered

Prices below are in New Zealand dollars (NZD). As we wrote this in July 2026, NZ$1 was worth roughly £0.43 / US$0.58 (so about NZ$2.33 to the pound and NZ$1.72 to the US dollar), but exchange rates move, so check a live converter before you book anything. Several of the activities below don’t have a price we could confidently verify at publication, so we’ve said “book online for the current rate” rather than quote you a number that might already be wrong by the time you read this.

The route

Highlights of this itinerary

• Bungy jumping the world’s first commercial bungy jump, over the Kawarau River with AJ Hackett in Queenstown
• White water rafting on the Shotover River
• Kayaking Milford Sound and Fiordland National Park at dusk
• Heli hiking on Franz Josef Glacier
• Kayaking and hiking in Abel Tasman National Park
• Getting off-road in Rotorua
• Facing your fears with skydiving in Taupō
• Canyoning in the Coromandel, arguably the most demanding day of the whole trip
• Black water rafting in Waitomo, New Zealand’s cave country

Day by day

Day 1: Arrive in Queenstown, go bungy jumping

Most international flights land in Auckland. If you have an early arrival, we’d suggest flying straight down to Queenstown and transferring to your accommodation for a two-night stay. You won’t need a car for your time in Queenstown: the town is compact, and most activity operators run free transfers to wherever the activity actually happens.

In the afternoon, hit the ground jumping, quite literally, with a bungy jump at the Kawarau Bridge with AJ Hackett. This is the original commercial bungy site, and transfers are organised from Queenstown. Book online for the current rate; the package typically includes the jump, photo and video, a jumper t-shirt and return transport.

Fancy dipping your head in that?

Day 2: The best of Queenstown

In the morning, we can pretty much guarantee you’ll be grateful for a lie-in; jet lag has a habit of catching up with people about now. If you’re still feeling brave, look at white water sledging on the Kawarau River (riding fast water rapids face-first on a buoyant sledge, run by Serious Fun Riverboarding, operating safely since 1989). Or go for something gentler: a hot air balloon ride over the Otago region with a champagne breakfast at the end, run by Sunrise Balloons.

No trip to Queenstown is complete without a visit to the Shotover River. Jet boating here is hugely popular, but we loved getting soaked white water rafting the Shotover instead. Rafting on the Shotover is largely a spring-to-autumn activity and weather and river-flow dependent, so book ahead and have a backup day in mind.

For more options, check the links throughout this section: Queenstown’s adventure menu really is close to endless.

Day 3: Travel to Te Anau, explore Milford Sound

Pick up your campervan or hire car and drive to Te Anau (around 2 hours), then continue on to Milford Sound (a further 2 hours) for an overnight stay in Fiordland National Park. In the afternoon, explore Milford Sound with a difference: a kayak trip with Rosco’s Milford Kayaks, New Zealand’s longest-running owner-operated sea kayak company. It’s the best way to dodge the crowds and see the sound at its most peaceful. Check current departure times, as evening paddles depend on the season. Return to Te Anau to overnight, which breaks up tomorrow’s drive to Wanaka nicely.

Milford Sound awaits.

Day 4: Stunning Wanaka

Wanaka doesn’t always get the credit its neighbour Queenstown does, but there’s still plenty here to make an overnight stay worthwhile. One of the most memorable things to try is U-Fly Wanaka: a chance to take the controls of a small plane yourself, with an instructor beside you, and see Mount Aspiring from the air in a way most visitors never do.

Day 5: Travel to Franz Josef Glacier, road trip day

Now the real fun begins: road trip time. An early start takes you over Haast Pass all the way to Franz Josef Glacier (around 4 hours). In the afternoon, take the helicopter trip of a lifetime: the heli hike on Franz Josef Glacier. The glacier has retreated enough that there’s no longer a valley-floor route onto the ice; Franz Josef Glacier Guides holds the exclusive landing rights, and a helicopter is genuinely the only way up there now. Budget around 4 hours door to door, with 2 to 2.5 hours on the ice itself, and book online for the current rate. The village’s Glacier Hot Pools make a lovely way to unwind afterwards, but they’re a separate, standalone visit rather than something bundled into the heli hike.

Exploring the glaciers is a must.

Day 6: Explore Punakaiki

Travel to Punakaiki (around 2.5 to 3 hours) to explore the West Coast and the world-famous Pancake Rocks. There are caves worth exploring here too, and for something different, a horse trek along the beach is a lovely change of pace, so ask locally about current operators and availability.

The West Coast is not to be missed.

Day 7: Fall in love with Abel Tasman National Park

Travel to the Abel Tasman area (allow around 4 hours; it’s a longer drive than it looks on the map). Ditch the car or campervan once you arrive and explore Abel Tasman the right way, on foot or by kayak. There are overnight kayaking and walking trips throughout this beautifully stunning national park. We’d suggest overnighting in Kaiteriteri, ready for an early start the next morning.

Days 8 and 9: Get off the beaten track in Abel Tasman National Park

Wilsons Abel Tasman offers overnight kayaking and walking trips within the park, with transfers at each end so you don’t have to worry about logistics. They also have access to some genuinely beautiful lodges if you want the stay to feel a bit special. If you don’t mind camping, Abel Tasman Kayaks offer overnight walking, kayaking and camping trips within the park too, with all the equipment supplied. You just bring your own food. For the full lowdown on the park, our Abel Tasman National Park travel guide covers the coast track, tides and where to stay in more depth.

A kayak trip through Abel Tasman National Park is a must.

Day 10: Travel to Rotorua

Return your campervan or hire car at Nelson Airport, and to save time, fly to Rotorua (usually via a connection through Auckland or Wellington). Pick up a small hire car in Rotorua and get stuck into the region’s incredible geothermal activity. Rotorua is the North Island’s answer to Queenstown, with an adventure list as long as your arm. Off Road NZ runs the best 4WD adventure in the North Island (you get to drive), and we’d also suggest getting off the beaten track at these free geothermal spots around the city.

Get off the beaten path with Off Road NZ.

If off-roading isn’t your thing, spend the day mountain biking instead. Rotorua’s Whakarewarewa Redwoods Forest has some of the best mountain biking trails in New Zealand.

Day 11: Get crazy in Taupō

Time to get crazy: skydiving in Taupō (about an hour’s drive from Rotorua), consistently ranked one of the cheapest places in the world for a quality tandem skydive. Choose your altitude, 9,000ft, 12,000ft, 15,000ft or the top option at 16,500ft for the longest freefall. Video and photo packages are available, and book online for the current rate. It really is pretty epic.

Us, just before we took the leap of faith.

Day 12: Visit the Coromandel Peninsula

Travel to the Coromandel region (around 3.5 hours) and brace yourself for one of the best canyoning adventures in the country. The Sleeping God Canyon tour, run by Canyonz (the only operator with a DOC concession for this canyon), is a vertical descent of more than 300 metres involving abseils, water slides and jumps. Packages start from around NZ$270, though check current pricing before you book. It’s a full-day trip, so leave early; it’s worth every minute.

Day 13: Travel to Waitomo

Travel to Waitomo, New Zealand’s cave country, to try black water rafting: caving with a difference. You’ll tube through Ruakuri Cave and float underground on an ancient river, through a few waterfalls and drops, with glow worms lighting the ceiling above you. It can get properly exciting.

Day 14: Discover Auckland

End your trip exactly the way you started it: with a jump. Take on the SkyJump and SkyWalk at Auckland’s Sky Tower, still New Zealand’s highest jump at 192 metres. Goodbye New Zealand, hello memories.

A must-do: Auckland’s Sky Jump.

Budgeting for an adventure trip

Adventure activities in New Zealand aren’t cheap, and this itinerary packs in a lot of them. Rather than quote you numbers that will likely be out of date, we’d suggest budgeting generously and booking the big-ticket items (the heli hike, skydive and canyoning especially) as far ahead as you can, both to secure your date and to lock in a rate before any price rise. If you need to trim the budget, our guide to travelling New Zealand on a budget has practical ways to save on accommodation and food that leave more in the pot for the activities that matter to you.

Please send us a postcard along the way. And if 14 days isn’t enough, our 30-day New Zealand self-drive itinerary covers a lot more ground.

Your questions answered

Is 14 days enough for a New Zealand adventure itinerary like this one? Yes, if you keep moving. This route covers Queenstown, Fiordland, Wanaka, the West Coast glaciers, Abel Tasman, Rotorua, Taupō, the Coromandel and Waitomo in 14 days, but it’s a fast pace with driving most days. If you’d rather slow down, drop one or two of the North Island stops and add an extra night in Queenstown or Abel Tasman instead.

Can you still walk onto Franz Josef Glacier without taking a helicopter? No. The glacier has retreated significantly, and the lower section between the valley floor and the ice is now considered too unstable for foot access. Franz Josef Glacier Guides holds the only landing rights on the ice, so a heli hike is currently the only way onto the glacier itself. Fox Glacier, further south, is in the same position.

Do I need a 4WD for this itinerary? No, a standard hire car or campervan is fine for every drive on this route, including Haast Pass and the road to Punakaiki. You’ll want a 4WD experience on Day 10 with Off Road NZ, but that’s supplied as part of the activity.

How much should I budget per day for adventure activities? It varies hugely depending on which activities you choose, but this is a premium-priced trip. Big-ticket items like the heli hike, skydive and canyoning can each run into the hundreds of dollars per person, so book ahead, compare current prices online, and build a realistic buffer into your budget.

What’s the best time of year to do this itinerary? Late spring through to early autumn (November to April) gives you the best weather window for the West Coast glaciers, Milford Sound and the outdoor adventure activities. December to February is peak season and the busiest, so book accommodation and activities well in advance if you’re travelling then.

Can I do this itinerary in a campervan instead of a hire car? Yes, most of this route works well in a campervan, and it saves on accommodation for several nights. The exceptions are the two nights in Abel Tasman National Park itself, where you leave the vehicle behind and travel by boat and on foot, and central Queenstown, where a car is more hassle than it’s worth.

Got questions about any part of this route? Get in touch with us here, we’re always happy to help plan an adventure.