I spent the better part of March (2023) hiking in New Zealand. In addition to some day hikes, I did three of the famous Great Walks of New Zealand – namely, Kepler, Routeburn, and Milford Tracks.

The experience has definitely exceeded my expectations. The Great Walks, as the name suggests, offered such an unparalleled experience and beauty that it made it difficult for me to enjoy the day hikes (offering equally beautiful scenery) that I did in between the three walks. If I ever travel to New Zealand for a third visit, I would probably devote all my time to the Great Walks, which are nine in total. I truly enjoyed the headspace that comes with the multi-day hikes and experiencing the true disconnection that you feel a little bit more strongly with each step, kilometer, and a day left behind. 

In addition to my separate posts on the Milford, Kepler, and Routeburn Tracks, this is an introductory post about the Great Walks, including logistics-related information and my trail impressions.

All three hikes are uniquely beautiful in their own distinct ways. The walks never felt repetitive in terms of the scenery. Kepler offers the thrill of high-altitude hiking, whereas the Routeburn provides picture-perfect scenery. Finally, the Milford Track takes you through a landscape so majestic that you literally want to stop and scream (speaking from experience), gazing at the hundreds of roaring waterfalls that emerge from giant cliffs.

What are the Great Walks of New Zealand?

The Great Walks of New Zealand are nine multi-day hiking trails managed by the Department of Conservation. Each trail offers a different experience and a mind-blowing variety of scenery. All the trails are very well maintained and marked and, therefore, very easy to navigate (during the walking season, which for most tracks runs from late October until the end of April and under fair weather conditions).

While some sections involve steep climbs, I think anyone with a moderate level of fitness can manage these trails relatively easily, provided they pack lightly. The photo gallery, Oceania, features some of my photos from these three Great Walks, as well as some from the Great Ocean Walk of Australia, another fantastic long trail. 

Three of the Great Walks, namely Lake Waikaremoana, Tongariro Northern Circuit, and Whanganui Journey, are located on the North Island. The remaining six tracks, including Kepler, Routeburn, Milford, Paparoa, Heaphy, Rakiura, and Abel Tasman Coast tracks, are located on the South Island. 

Since the tracks involve multi-day trails, hikers stay either at the huts managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC) or at the campsites (though camping is not an option for some of the Great Walks, such as in the case of the Milford Track).

Some of these hikes are seasonal – meaning that the DOC support at the huts is only available during the Great Walks season (that covers, among others, Kepler, Milford, and Routeburn tracks). During the Great Walks season, the huts are staffed (with very friendly rangers who give a hut talk every night and update the hikers about the weather and trail conditions), and cooking gas and flushing toilets are available. There are bunk beds and mattresses, but hikers need to bring their own sleeping bags and pillows (if you use one, I simply used my hiking jacket).

Outside of the walking season, hikers are strongly advised to check the weather conditions before setting out on their hikes. Snowstorms are not unusual, and none of the amenities available during the walking season are available. You can, however, still stay in the unstaffed huts.

How to book the Great Walks of New Zealand?

Great Walks can be booked at the DOC Great Walks Booking Website. Bookings for each hiking season usually open in late April or early May. Since, for some of the more famous trails, there is a limitation on the number of people who can start the trail each day – 40 to 50 people in total – the huts (especially for Kepler, Routeburn, and Milford Tracks) get fully booked very quickly. I heard that for the 2023 season, Milford Track sold out in 12 minutes.

This should, however, not discourage you. Thanks to the cancellations (which are not very rare), I was able to book the Milford Track in late December (for a mid-March hike) and the Kepler and Routeburn Tracks in January (for early March hikes). I met people at the huts who could get a booking merely a week before they started the trail.

While the difficulty of getting a booking can be discouraging, the limitation on the number of hikers is, in addition to mesmerizing scenery, what makes these Great Walks a very unique experience. I enjoyed the immense sense of solitude in some of the most otherworldly scenery I have ever experienced, which dramatically elevated the lasting impact of the experience.

The cost of the Great Walks for solo hikers

While the accommodations along the trails, in terms of comfort, offer a very down-to-earth experience with basic yet atmospheric huts, where each hiker brings their own sleeping bags, cooking utensils, and food, the Great Walks are not necessarily a cheap hiking experience. In addition to the hut fees (for which a dual fee structure is in place, with different fees for New Zealand residents and foreign visitors), one also needs to consider the track transport and food expenses. The huts along Kepler and Routeburn tracks cost 102 New Zealand Dollars/night for foreign visitors (and half the price for New Zealand residents). For the Milford track, the cost of huts per night is 110 New Zealand Dollars for foreign visitors.

While I strongly think that the experience is worth the cost, all the cost items add up. A pricing chart on the DOC website displays the hut cost for each of the Great Walks.

For me personally (as a solo hiker), the total cost of the Routeburn Track came down to 480 New Zealand Dollars. The most expensive one was the Milford Track, as it is a four-day track, and the transport costs were exceptionally high. The total cost of my Milford Track was around 700 New Zealand Dollars.

Great Walks track transport

Since the Great Walks of New Zealand are very popular both among New Zealand residents and foreign visitors, there is an excellent infrastructure in place that not only covers the well-maintained trails and huts but also the supporting third-party services such as track transportation (even track food packages) for those hikes where the public transportation network does not cover the trailheads.

The track transport companies take you from the nearest established base town (in the case of Kepler, Routeburn, and Milford Tracks, it is Queenstown or Te Anau) to the trailhead and collect you again at the end of your hike.

For all three tracks, I used the services of Track.net, and I was very satisfied with their professionalism (and flexibility in terms of last-minute changes). For those traveling with a car, most companies also offer car relocation between the start and end points of the trails.

Kepler Track – walking through the clouds

Kepler Track, located on the South Island of New Zealand, was the first Great Walk that I did. Looking back now, it is the track that made me feel most excited about the scenery. The second day of the track follows a ridge exposed on both sides. During the better part of the trail, you are surrounded by mountain ranges and lakes. It felt like walking through the clouds.

Kepler Track is a loop hike. You start and end the hike at the same point, where there is a car park. As a result, it is, among all three, the easiest one in terms of logistics. The trailhead is also close to Te Anau town (some hikers start the trail in Te Anau). The whole track is 60 kilometers long and is commonly walked in three to four days.

Luxmore Hut where most hikers spend their first night (if started from Broad Bay) is famous for its iconic views of Lake Te Anau and the surrounding mountains. You will likely come across many hikers who either do a day hike to Luxmore Hut (or to Luxmore Mountain, which requires an additional hour) or spend a night at Luxmore and return to the trailhead without completing the three-day trail.

While I enjoyed my time at Luxmore Hut – relaxing, mingling with the other hikers, and observing the beautiful kea birds – Luxmore felt more like a hotel compared to the other huts along the Kepler Track. Iris Burn Hut, with beautiful valley views, and Moturau Hut, located right by a lake, both felt more atmospheric and in tune with the surrounding nature. For more, you can read my Kepler Track post.

Routeburn Track – picture-perfect scenery

I met many people who had completed the majority of the Great Walks during my trip, and most said that the Routeburn Track was their favorite. Among the three most famous tracks, Kepler, Routeburn, and Milford, the Routeburn offers the most picture-perfect scenery, featuring endless greenery, high-altitude lakes, and impossibly picturesque huts that would make a perfect setting for Tom Sawyer’s adventures. 

While some people complete the hike in a day (not trail runners, who do it in half a day), the Routeburn Track is more commonly completed in three days, with a two-night stay at either Routeburn Flats, Fall Hut, or Lake McKenzie Hut. All the huts along the route, Routeburn Flats Hut, Routeburn Falls Hut, and Lake McKenzie, are uniquely beautiful. The first one sits in an expansive valley, whereas the second one overlooks that same picturesque valley. Lake McKenzie hut is located right next to a lake and feels like a summer cottage. For more, you can read my Routeburn Track post.

Milford Track – epic hike and a moving experience

Any experience that is as hyped as the Milford Track inevitably leads to this question: Is it overrated? No, in my experience, the Milford Track is not overrated – not even close.

Milford Track was my third and last Great Walk in New Zealand. After hiking the Kepler and Routeburn trails back-to-back, I was under the wrong impression that I had seen it all and no other trail could match their scenic beauty. On top of that, the weather forecast for my pre-booked Milford hike was very discouraging – (heavy rain to the point that they did not know until the morning if we could proceed with the hike). Yet, Milford Track still blew my mind. It is an epic hike. The majesticity of the track is incomparable to anything else that I have experienced. Among all three, Milford is the trail where you will feel like hiking through otherworldly terrain.

The Milford Track is also the most controlled of all the Great Walks. In addition to the limit of 40 hikers per day, each hiker must follow the same route, and the trail cannot be hiked in reverse order (this is permitted on the Kepler and Routeburn Tracks). For more, you can read my Milford Track post.

Which is the best Great Walk?

There is really no one right answer to this. Kepler is the walk where one gets to experience alpine-style hiking by walking on an exposed ridge for the better part of the hike. Routeburn is the trail with picture-perfect and more approachable scenery. As for Milford, the scenery can at times feel intimidating – giant cliffs and roaring waterfalls – but that is what makes it very special, the majesticity of it.

If I ever get a chance, I would, any day, come rain or shine, very happily re-walk any one of these three Great Walks.