My favourite top 10 activities in the Nelson Tasman region
The world-renowned Abel Tasman National Park sits at the top of the South Island and offers a range of forests and beaches and is home to wildlife including seals and dolphins. It hosts the internationally recognised Abel Tasman Coast Track. Nelson Lakes National Park and Kahurangi National Park are also very popular.
As mine and Schele’s last longish trip of our year in New Zealand, we took a week of leave and decided to visit the city of Nelson and this famous Abel Tasman National Park. On Saturday May 29th 2021 we flew from Napier to Wellington, then on to Nelson. On the Saturday evening we went for a pizza and Sunday morning was brunch at the Boatshed and then a lazy afternoon (it was raining).
We had a fantastic trip and some of my favourite things to do in the Nelson Tasman region are listed below. A highlight was of course, the ride that I did at Marahau Horse Treks, which you can read here.
Eat your way around Nelson
The quality of food and dining out in New Zealand is exceptionally high. We were never disappointed by a single meal during our whole year away. It was also fantastic for me, as so much of the meat is halal (because a lot of meat from NZ is exported to Muslim countries).
Our first meal in Nelson was a pizza at Comida, a super cosy little restaurant which also operates as a deli during the daytime.
Brunch at the Boatshed Cafe was fantastic and the cosy vibes looking out over the water were really relaxing.
We also really enjoyed the Thai restaurant Nahm Nelson where we had dinner on our last night in Nelson.
We stopped off at the The Village Cafe in Motueka on our way up towards Takaka. On the way back down to get back to Nelson airport we had a doughnut at the popular cafe The Smoking Barrel. This was a recommendation by a local, and the doughnuts get sold out pretty quick - they were delicious!
The top two images are from the Boatshed Cafe, the bottom two are from The Grape Escape, which was a beautiful quaint little cafe that we cycled past on our way back to the airport to return the bikes. They had pet rabbits and this vibrant conservatory, it was so special.
2. Hike at Nelson Lakes National Park
On Monday we did the Mount Robert circuit walk (a 5 hour loop) at Nelson Lakes National Park, which was absolutely breathtaking, and really worthwhile. It was probably one of my favourite day hikes, and we really felt the change in weather in the exposed conditions at the top.
It is a bit of a journey from Nelson, if you are based there, and we had to leave early in order to get there and complete the hike in time. The views are definitely worth it though. There is a doc hut at the top where we went inside for a break and had our packed lunch there.
3. Cycle a section of the Great Taste Trail
On the second day of our trip, we cycled a section of the Great Taste Trail, from Nelson airport to Rabbit Island. This was really fun, we enjoyed stopping at places along the way, including Pic’s Peanut Butter Factory, various cafes and beaches. The company Nelson Cycle Hire made it really easy for us to work out what to do, and the bikes were good quality.
4. Gorge your way through Pic’s Peanut Butter Factory
No trip to Nelson is complete without visiting the esteemed Pic’s Peanut Butter Factory. This was such a good interlude in the cycle ride, and gave us loads of energy for the rest of the day. The cafe had such delicious food and we had some coffees before heading off for the rest of the day.
5. (Try to) catch a fish at Anatoki Salmon Farm
On the third day of our trip, the Wednesday, we stopped off at Anatoki Salmon Farm to try our luck at fishing and stayed overnight in Takaka before heading to the Abel Tasman National Park on Thursday morning.
Unfortunately the salmon farm said that they had run out of fish (I know), but one of the people who ran the place was really kind to us and said we could try our luck anyway just for the experience of it, so we did. We spent about 2 hours trying and didn’t catch anything.
It was still good though, and I can see why people can end up fishing for hours, we definitely spent a couple there and Schele was trying to get me to leave, and I kept saying ‘give me one more try’ and then praying loads. The drive up to the farm is also really scenic, we saw this field of cows just before arriving and they looked so photogenic.
6. Kayak around the Abel Tasman coast
See fur seals, get an arm workout and freeze your feet off like Schele - or wear these waterproof socks like I did and be snug and smug. Definitely a fun way to see the area and makes a change from walking. We stopped on the beach for some packed lunch which we brought with us. It was amazing spotting the baby seals up on the rocks, and Schele saying ‘hello, little friend’ to all of them.
7. Go wild on a water taxi
This is a very unique kiwi experience and I loved it. They have these ‘water taxis’ which basically is a boat attached to a trailer which wheels the boat into the water at certain times in the day, and and taxis you to the area of the coastal track that you want to walk from. It gets pretty cold on there especially if you go in the colder months so wear plenty of layers. There’s opportunity to see the famous ‘split apple rock’ and also lots of bird life and seals.
Photo property of https://www.nelsontasman.nz/
8. Walk the Abel Tasman Coastal Track
I have to say that Abel Tasman was probably my favourite of the walks that we did in New Zealand. The landscape is so varied, and the terrain is quite flat most of the way, there aren’t tonnes of ups and downs.
On the Friday we took the water taxi from Marahau up to Awaroa, walking down to Bark Bay which was about 13km, before getting on the water taxi back to Marahau.
On the day I first wrote this post, Schele had gone out for some more hiking (also known as ‘tramping’, in Kiwi) on the Abel Tasman coastal route, on the section from Bark Bay down to Anchorage which we hadn’t covered in the previous two days, and I went for out for the 2 hour horse ride at Marahau Horse Treks.
Before you start walking, don’t forget to check the tide times so you don’t end up getting stuck, there are some crossings that might make you get wet if you go at the wrong time.
The Department of Conservation (DOC) Abel Tasman Coast Track brochure, walking track guide and detailed map will be very useful in planning your walk in order to get the most out of it.
9. Get mystical with the spirits at Pupu Springs
Only around 7km from Takaka, it is well worth a visit to Te Waikoropupu Springs, colloquially known as Pupu Springs to do the short 705m loop track.
The Maori consider this area a ‘taonga’, meaning treasure and in the past, the springs were a place of ceremonial blessings at times of birth and death and the leaving and returning of travellers.
“Te Waikoropupu Springs are the largest freshwater springs in New Zealand, the largest cold water springs in the Southern Hemisphere and contain some of the clearest water ever measured.”
10. Visit The Grove Scenic Reserve
While Schele and I were having dinner at Thai Restaurant Nahm Nelson we ended up chatting with a friendly couple on the table next to us, who recommended a few places for us to visit. We only had time to go to the Grove Scenic Reserve, but it was one of the places I really enjoyed.
It’s very close to Takaka so if you have time, it’s worth a short stop.
