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west-coast

West Coast

Highlights

  • Ōkārito lagoon
  • Rare birdlife

Proximity

  • by car:

    30 mins from Franz Josef Glacier 

  • by car:

    2 hours 10 mins from Greymouth

Take a kayak or guided tour to explore New Zealand's largest unmodified estuarine lagoon - home to more than 70 bird species, including the beautiful kotuku.

At Ōkārito lagoon, on the west coast of the South Island, there's a huge area of shallow open water and tidal flats just waiting to be explored. It's the perfect location for sheltered water kayaking, and there is plenty to see as you paddle along.

The lagoon is surrounded by lush native rainforest, above which rise the towering snow-capped peaks of the Southern Alps. The area is an important feeding ground for thousands of wading birds that seem relatively unruffled by the wide-eyed people drifting quietly by in kayaks.

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