Epic Travel → Asia & the South Pacific → New Zealand → Canterbury →  Lake Tekapo

Location: Lake Tekapo area, Canterbury, New Zealand

Time Required: 2 hours – 2 days (depending on activities)

Red Tape/Notes: None.

What’s Nearby?: Lake Tekapo Peninsula Walkway,Ball Flats Hike, Tasman Glacier View Track, Aoraki/Mt. Cook National Park

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Impossibly blue water. Mountains. An adorable lakeside town. Do you really need more reasons to spend some time here? We didn’t. You can hike or drive up Mt. John – there’s an observatory at the top but the real reason to go is for the views – flocks of sheep grazing on rolling hills that slope away to panoramic views of stunningly blue Lake Tekapo with snow capped mountains in the distance. Photography opportunities abound at lower altitudes as well, with the Church of the Good Shepherd and some easy and quick lakeside hiking trails. If you’re sick of lake views, you can also hop on a mountain bike and stare at some other beautiful scenery.

Bonus travel tip: if you go in early summer (late November through December-ish), the lupines are in bloom and this is a wonderful area for photographing them.

Epic Travel → Asia & the South Pacific → New Zealand → Canterbury → Lake Tekapo