Day 10: Grovetown → Punakaiki
2026-11-11 · Grovetown → Punakaiki
217 mi · 349 km · 5h 26m @40mph
The trip's longest drive — leave by 8:15am. Stock up at Blenheim New World (last big supermarket until Wanaka), then SH6 west through the Wairau Valley to St Arnaud, lunch in Murchison, down the Buller Gorge to Westport and the Cape Foulwind seals, arriving Punakaiki around 4pm for the Pancake Rocks at high tide.
Stops
- Blenheim~09:08townThe hub of the Marlborough wine region, surrounded by the vineyards that make NZ's world-famous Sauvignon Blanc. One of the country's sunniest and driest towns.
- Nelson Lakes National Park~11:48parkThe northern end of the Southern Alps, where beech-forested mountains drop to the glacial lakes Rotoiti and Rotoroa. A compact alpine park based at the village of St Arnaud.
- Buller Gorge~14:06sightScenic SH6 river gorge crossed by New Zealand's longest swingbridge, a highlight of the Nelson-to-Coast drive.
- Westport~16:06townRugged West Coast town with a coal-mining past at the mouth of the Buller River. Close to the seal colony and blowholes of Cape Foulwind and Tauranga Bay.
- Cape Foulwind Seal Colony~17:24viewpointClifftop walkway near Westport to a New Zealand fur seal colony and a lonely coastal lighthouse.
- Pancake Rocks, Punakaiki~19:24viewpointLayered limestone stacks and blowholes on a short loop — dramatic at high tide.
Tonight: Punakaiki
No place picked for this night yet.
In Punakaiki base plan
- Punakaiki Beach Camp holiday-park
Beachfront park a five-minute walk from the Pancake Rocks. Books out early in season — reserve ahead.