Routeburn Track

Nice easy track with decent scenery. However the DOC makes it super hard to book. The Mackenzie Lake (which cut the route in half) is always booked. So you need to book Routeburn flat which is only 7 km from the start. Now you gave to walk 25 km on the second day -_-

1.5h one way. Magnificent 360° views of mountains all around. The way there is not difficult.

We did the summit walk and went to the nearby lake too. It is the best walk I've ever done, even though it was really foggy and we didn't see any view from the summit. The nature in this area is so unique

Only did a small section of trail (off the highway to Milford Sound), but was lush green with fern and trees. Well maintained trail. Clean bathrooms at the stop.

It's a great little track. It's around 33 k. We walked over 3 days as had two kids 11 years and two were doing first time. The DOC huts are great. Has flushed toilets, Kitchen, mattress. Views are amazing. Most certainly breathtaking. We walked Glenochy to divide but I would recommend going in opposite direction. Why? Routeburn crosses two national parks. Mt Aspiring and Fiordland. Glenochy side is in Mt Aspiring and easy to walk. Fiordland part is mostly rocky and can be frustrating and tiring. If you walk from divide there may be little more to climb but views on last day will be so amazing, you will forget everything.

Best multi day hike in NZ. Book your accomodation well in advance and make sure you have all your gear ready in case it rains (weather can change super quickly!). Go check with the DoC before leaving. Huts usually have some gas so you’d be able to boil water and heat up some food. I went in March and it wasn’t really cold (+10 Comfort Sleeping Bag was enough).

Arguably a little harder than other Great Walks like the Kepler or Milford, but can be done in one day if you are reasonably fit.

Stunning trail up to harris saddle and through to lake mackenzie. Views were spectacular every day - and very different every day too!

Just an amazing track! Go through the Flat for about 45min then start climbing up the cravass to the first lake then go even higher and have vieuws on Milford Sound! If you ar well equiped and physically able, i would reccomond going all the way to the top for a 360° view of the area! View on lake Adelaide!

This track has 31,1km one direction and inclime 1772m from Routeburn Shelter to The Divide. It is possible to do it in many option like one day hime in one direction just with water and some snack or split it in 2/3 days track. There is more sleeping option as a best choice is Falls Hut or Mackenzie Hut. I did Routeburn track in both ways in 3 days. I started from Queenstown, first night I slept in Mackenzie campside in my tent. Second day I finished the track in the morning and continue back. I slept at Harrison Lake, however it isn't allowed. If you decide to sleep in tent and not in campside, be aware of Rangers, don't take colourful tent and don't use the light.

Beautiful track. Not very challenging.
We did the key summit as well.
We stayed at the lodges with Ultimate Hikes and had a great experience. Food was delicious and beds were comfortable.

Really nice walk with good distance between huts and toilets. Time estimates are reasonably good assuming you take minimal breaks, so factor in lunch times when planning.

Loved it. Excellent hike on a good track but be careful with the uneven surface. I recommend not using the toilets at the carpark end of the trail (they're breath-takingly smelly) but to use the one up the hill at Key Summit.

Beautiful track, especially in winter time. Such a wonderland and quiet place for relax and escape from city. Spend night in Routeburn falls hut alone.

If you only have a day you can park at the divide and walk up the key summit trail and down to lake howden hut.it took us about 3 hours all up with a break for lunch.a moderate amount of fitness is needed.key summit was spectacular and was much more than I was expecting.make sure to bring enough water as the water taps weren't working at the carpark and at lake howden they recommend boiling the water.

Beautiful hike full of majestic alpine views and huge waterfalls. Track was a bit crowded at times, especially close to the Divide with access to a popular day hike. I do recommend doing the whole track in 2-3 days to get the full experience.

Took the hike up to Key Summit from this end of the Routeburn Track. It was an uphill climb the whole way without any flat sections, but the climb was at a steady, reasonable incline the whole way so we were able to keep up a good pace without feeling overworked. We aren't the fastest nor the slowest and we got to the summit turn off in about 40 minutes. It was another 20 min from there to get to the summit. With pictures and a snack break, it took about 2.5 hours to hike to the summit and back (2 hours if you only count the walking time - sign at the beginning says to allow about 3 hours).

The trail is more humid and warm near the bottom, and had a lot of ferns growth. As you get higher, you see a lot more trees and it cools off. The nature trail at the top takes longer than expected to actually reach the true summit (it says 5 min, it's more like 10-15, depending on your pace). It goes past a boggy/marshy area, then at the actual summit, you get a tiny glimpse of Lake Marian. It was nice but the summit doesn't really get high enough to get the amazing view that some of the other walks we did in the area had.

It's short enough to be worth the time, but if you only have time for one hike, not sure I'd say this is the one not to miss.

There's water you can fill your bottles and right behind the bus waiting area in the parking lot. Toilets were not great at all, but one nice thing is that there is a toilet close to the top of the summit, just in case you need one. The day we were there, we only got bit once by a biting fly, and that was down in the parking lot.