Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The South Island's Top 15
DAVID WALL/GETTY IMAGES ©
8
In less than five hours the
TranzAlpine
(
Click here
)
crosses from the Pacific Ocean to
the Tasman Sea. Leaving Christchurch it speeds across the Canterbury Plains to the foot-
hills of the Southern Alps. After negotiating tunnels and viaducts, the train enters the broad
expanse of the Waimakariri Valley. A stop at Arthur's Pass Village is followed by the
8.5km-long Otira tunnel, burrowing right through the bedrock of New Zealand's alpine
spine. Then it's all downhill: through the Taramakau River Valley, past Lake Brunner, and
finally into sleepy Greymouth.
