X - 2022 - Beaches and Bays Photography Tour
- Duration: 7 Days
The top of the South Island offers a variety of fantastic and easily-accessible photography locations. Shaun Barnett and Ken Wright will guide you on this seven-day tour, where you will photograph stunning limestone formations, lush native forests, ever-changing sand dunes, and the place where the mountains meet the beautiful South Pacific Ocean.
Featuring 5 boat trips, this tour allows us access many stunning beaches and marine wildlife in the world-famous Abel Tasman National Park, the Marlborough Sounds, and the Kaikoura Coast.
HIGHLIGHTS
Private charter boat in Abel Tasman
Albatross Boat trip in Kaikoura
Stay at a lodge in the Marlborough Sounds
Iconic Archway Island sunset
NELSON - CHRISTCHURCH
Abel Tasman National Park
Marlborough Sounds
Kaikoura Coastline
ITINERARY
Day 1 – Nelson - Abel Tasman National Park
From Nelson, we drive to Abel Tasman National Park to board our private charter boat, where we will spend the day photographing Abel Tasman National Park. You will discover the most photogenic areas of the park, and there will be plenty of opportunities to head ashore to take in the pristine bays and beaches along this stunning coastline. This afternoon we drive to Golden Bay. The day finishes with our first sunset shoot at one of Golden Bay’s many stunning beaches.
Day 2 – Golden Bay
We will spend today exploring Golden Bay, taking opportunities to photograph the stunning coastline of Wharariki Beach and Farewell Spit. Our day ends with a sunset shoot over the iconic Archway Islands.
Day 3 – Golden Bay - Marlborough Sounds
After sunrise this morning we depart Golden Bay, heading back inland over Takaka Hill and stopping to photograph the limestone formations and beech forests of this area. This afternoon, we travel onwards to a beautiful lodge in the Marlborough Sounds that is only accessible by boat. The lodge will be our home for the next three nights with amazing vistas over the sounds for sunrise and sunset each day.
Day 4 – Marlborough Sounds
After sunrise we will spend the day exploring the Marlborough Sounds traveling out to Motuara Island by water taxi, capturing some lovely coastal vistas as well as brilliant wildlife that the Island is a haven for.
Day 5 – Marlborough Sounds
We continue to photograph the Marlborough Sounds today, walking out on a small section of the Queen Charlotte track to capture forest birds, native forest, and waterfalls. Tonight offers another chance to shoot sunset from our lodge, looking out over the Marlborough Sounds
Day 6 – Marlborough Sounds - Kaikoura
Following an early rise to capture the sunrise, we travel from the Marlborough Sounds to Kaikoura—where the mountains meet the sea. This region is home to incredible coastal photography and marine life, including New Zealand fur seals. Tonight, we will capture a truly spectacular sunset, with the Kaikoura ranges rising from the sea.
Day 7 – Kaikoura - Christchurch
This morning, we head out on a boat to photograph some of Kaikoura's local wildlife and royal albatross before travelling on to Christchurch to meet with late afternoon flights.
PRICE INCLUDES
7 days’ photography guiding by Ken Wright & Shaun Barnett
6 nights’ hotel accommodation (twin-share, single upgrade available) mostly 4✩
6 breakfasts
Stay at a lodge in the Marlborough Sounds
Private chartered boat in Abel Tasman
Private chartered boat in Marlborough Sounds
Albatross boat trip in Kaikoura
Free access to our Online Essential Landscape Photography Course
Transport during the tour
Nelson pickup / Christchurch drop off
DOC (National Park) concession fees
Copy of our Pocket Guide to Landscape & Wildlife Photography
Donation to our Conservation Fund
Native tree planting to Carbon Offset your tour