Otago Rail Trail

This tour starts from Christchurch with a gradual warm-up with mainly flat riding on the first two days as you ride through to the quiet country towns of Methven and Geraldine.

From Geraldine you tackle some of the moderate hills that follow for the remainder of the trip as you cycle through breath-taking scenery to the spectacular lake-side town of Tekapo, where many of the scenes for the ‘Lord of the Rings” were filmed.

From Tekapo its along the canals and glacier-fed Southern Lakes and through the dramatic Mackenzie Basin to Queenstown, the Adventure Capital of New Zealand.

After a rest day in Queenstown, you head to Cromwell and on to the historic Central Otago Rail Trail.

On the rail trail you tackle gentle off-road riding through the historic gold and farming towns of Central Otago as you head across the dramatic backdrop of the Maniototo Plains.

From Middlemarch there is a short bike ride and then a spectacular train ride on the Taieri Gorge Railway to your final destination of Dunedin.