Day 1: Christchurch to Aoraki/Mt Cook
Our bus left early in the morning from outside the Christchurch bus station. There were many buses coming and going but things were organized and the bus driver had a checklist with names. The drive to Aoraki/Mt Cook was scenic in itself. Below is a photo of Lake Pukaki from one of the stops.
The mountains are so much closer as you get near the village. There is no supermarket in the village, and no permanent residents, only employees and tourists. There are multiple places to stay and multiple places to eat. We knew all of it would be expensive for what it was, being in the middle of nowhere, so we stocked up at the supermarket in Christchurch.
We toasted our arrival with Fijian spiced rum on our terrace with a view of Mt Sefton. At least what we could see below the clouds.
We had dinner at the Hermitage Hotel buffet. It was an uphill climb there. At least it was downhill after dinner.
Day 2: Hooker Valley Track
We awoke happy that we saw the mountains yesterday because this morning it was like they were never there.
We hiked the Hooker Valley Track today, or at least as much of it as was open. They were in the process of replacing one of the suspension bridges. We walked to the trailhead from our hotel.
The clouds rolled back later in the day and we were treated to shafts of sunlight through the clouds.
After our hike we walked over to the Chamois Bar & Grill. They had a nice outdoor terrace we sat on to admire the view with a pint of craft beer. Our entertainment was eavesdropping on a couple of Irish expats. They had amusing stories. Then we retired to our hotel room for sandwiches.
Day 3: Gazing at Mountains
It was rainy and windy a good chunk of the day and I was under the weather (hah!) so we spent the day admiring our view. It started with sunrise on the mountains.
As the day progressed the mountains came out from behind the clouds.
It ended with sunset reflecting off the glaciers.
Day 4: Kea Point Track
The following morning opened with fluffy pink clouds at sunrise.
That morphed into a golden glow just 15 minutes later.
Late morning was a parade of different types of clouds.
By midday we roused ourselves to do the Kea Point Track, another of the easy trails in this part of the park. There are more challenging hikes upward to overlooks. The tracks we took had plenty of scenery without the effort.
Essentials
Lodging
We stayed at the Aoraki Court Motel. It wasn’t a bargain but it was good value. The room was spacious and well thought out, and it was nice having cooking facilities. (Even though all we did was heat up meat pies in the microwave.) The view from the terrace was spectacular. There oddly wasn’t any outdoor furniture. Probably because of the weather? We had really strong winds our last night. We heard some people lost their tents.
Dining
We had dinner at the Hermitage Hotel Alpine Buffet our first night. The selection was wide and the quality was decent. Plenty of fresh seafood, cooked items, and fancy little desserts. It was pricey; we didn’t feel the need to eat there again.
Transportation
We booked our bus to and from Aoraki/Mt Cook through InterCity buses. It was actually part of a day tour from Christchurch to Queenstown but you don’t need to do that. A search for Christchurch to Aoraki/Mt Cook will include the option. There are actually two stops at Aoraki/Mt Cook: tat the Hermitage Hotel (called Aoraki/Mt Cook) and at Haka House Mt Cook. If you are staying at the opposite end of the village, like we were, the Haka House stop is closer. Once there everything in the village is within walking distance, and there are several tracks nearby. You’d need a car for anything beyond that.