Travel through rolling green farmland, past quaint country towns and along rocky coasts. The journey through Tongariro National Park, with its three spectacular volcanic mountains- Tongariro, Ngauruhoe and Ruapehu- is a highlight, a place of extremes and surprises, where snow-blanketed fields, ancient lava flows and dense beech forests can be seen side by side. Traverse stunning river gorges and wind through the Raurimu Spiral near National Park, an amazing feat of railway engineering.
While on board enjoy the journey in award winning world class carriages with specially designed seats. Awaken your senses in the open air viewing decks or sit back and enjoy the GPS triggered audio commentary available through headphones at every seat. All trains have a licensed café carriage providing snacks and light meals.
See Availability.
Auckland Strand, Parnell, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
07:45 AM
11 hours(approx.)
Wellington Station, Bunny Street, Pipitea, Wellington 6011, New Zealand
Wheelchair accessible
Infants must sit on laps
Wheelchair accessible, please advise at time of booking if travelling with a wheelchair.
Children must be accompanied by an adult
Stroller accessible
Please arrive at least 20 minutes prior to scheduled departure and check in at the station to receive your boarding pass
Service animals allowed
Near public transportation
Transportation is wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 15 travelers
Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
Posted By : Judith_T
Enjoyed the scenery from Auckland to Wellington. Train well organised. Best scenery from National Park to Wellington. Took may photos from our window and in the special carriage at front of the train.
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Posted On : 2024-04-25
Posted By : Ruth_S
Wonderful way to see North Island in all its majesty from aquaducts to rolling sheep cow and deer farms to scenic Mountain View’s, this is the way to do it! There is a viewing carriage on the train for photo shots but we also took them from our seats. Only reservation we had was the cleanliness of the train which could do with some deep cleaning and food tray wipe down. Could also do with upping the quality of the food on board but the aesthetic experience was worth it all!
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Posted On : 2024-04-23
Posted By : Snarth
We enjoyed this very long train ride, although rain and low clouds did obscure some of the views we were expecting. The cars are clean, the service very well organized, and there is an upbeat vibe to the whole thing, which is obviously geared to tourists with time on their hands. It's a nice way to get a feel for the landscape rather than flying over it. We didn't find the audio commentary very fascinating and gave it a pass eventually.
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Posted On : 2024-04-08
Posted By : DayTrip599747
Very pleasant and comfortable. Glad to have met some fellow travelers with whom we will spend time in the future. Seeing the beautiful landscapes was rewarding.
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Posted On : 2024-04-06
Posted By : DudleyandFreda
Was something to tick off the bucket list, a very long boring 13 hours! Done, would not do again. Have to say the staff were amazing!
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Posted On : 2024-04-06
Posted By : Amanda_O
As we only arrived in NZ the day before the rail trip we found The views magnificent . A real insight of what we had to come. The disappointment was when we arrived at the Strand there was no booking for us and the train was full. This was quite stressful and did mar the start of the day. It resulted in us sitting in the cafe car with no commentary . It seems that Viator had not had confirmation from great northern to say we had seats and this should have been followed up .
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Posted On : 2024-03-24
Posted By : gap770
I you like to ride trains, this would be an enjoyable trip. For me, ran out of sandwiches 4 hours into 11 hour journey, nothing real spectacular on the scenery and an hour late. As I said if you’re looking for a relaxing trip on a train, this is for you. Too long and uninteresting to me.
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Posted On : 2024-03-23
Posted By : Blueymac
Travelled from Auckland to Wellington.
When booking as a couple ask for two seat configuration much better than sharing four seat configuration.
Commentary was good. Long trip but enjoyable.
Beware large taxi driver with white hair and long white beard at Wellington Train Station, make sure meter is on.
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Posted On : 2024-03-19
Posted By : Robert_S
The train was on time, very comfortable and the views were awesome once we got away from Auckland. Simone was a fantastic guide that talked us through all the highlights of the scenery, the amenities on the train and safety instructions. It was a long ride but very relaxing and scenic, a great, stress free way to get to Wellington from Auckland.
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Posted On : 2024-03-18
Posted By : Gina_C
We had a blast! Once you get out of the Auckland area the beauty of the country opens up. So worth it. Even though the trip is 11 hours it didn’t feel that way. Was able to take some amazing photos.
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Posted On : 2024-03-15
