The Southern Scenic Route links more than 600 kilometres of coast, forest and lake country. Seven days gives the Catlins two nights, keeps Fiordland from becoming a detour and leaves room for southern weather.
Dunedin through the Catlins
Stock up in Dunedin, then use Balclutha or Owaka as the practical entry to the Catlins. Waterfalls and beaches sit on side roads that turn a short map distance into a full afternoon.
At Nugget Point, Curio Bay and wildlife beaches, follow seasonal access and keep well away from sea lions, penguins and nesting birds. Darkness and wildlife make late coastal driving a poor trade.
Invercargill and the south
Invercargill provides repairs, groceries and indoor options after wet days. Bluff adds a satisfying geographic marker, but it should not replace time for local museums, food or a vehicle reset.
If travelling to Rakiura, park or book the vehicle according to ferry arrangements and expect Foveaux Strait weather to change schedules. Keep a flexible mainland night.
Te Anau to Queenstown
Use Te Anau for Fiordland rather than driving Milford Sound as a day trip from Queenstown. Fuel, road conditions and avalanche controls need checking before the early start.
Finish via the lakes to Queenstown with enough margin for traffic and roadworks. A shorter last day preserves the concentration needed after a week of narrow roads.
The Catlins are the reason to take this route
Between Balclutha and Invercargill the coastline holds Nugget Point, Purakaunui Falls, Cathedral Caves and Curio Bay, and it sees a fraction of the traffic of the main highway. The road includes unsealed sections and everything takes longer than the map suggests.
Give the Catlins two days rather than one. Compressed into a single transit it becomes a series of car park visits, which is exactly what the route is not for.
- Two days for the Catlins
- Some sections are unsealed
- Far quieter than the main highway
Cathedral Caves and Curio Bay run on the tide
Cathedral Caves are only accessible around two hours either side of low tide, the access road is privately managed with an entry fee and seasonal opening, and it closes entirely outside the season. Turning up without checking is the standard disappointment here.
Curio Bay's petrified forest is also tide-dependent, and the yellow-eyed penguins come ashore in the evening. Keep well back and behind the roped areas, because disturbance keeps them at sea and away from their chicks.
Wildlife here needs distance
Nugget Point has fur seals and sea lions, Curio Bay has hoiho, and sea lions haul out on beaches throughout the region. New Zealand sea lions are large, fast over short distances and will charge if you get between them and the water.
Twenty metres is the minimum for seals and sea lions, and considerably more for penguins coming ashore. Never position yourself between an animal and the sea, and keep dogs away entirely.
- Twenty metres minimum from sea lions
- Never block the route to the water
- Penguins will not land if you are visible
Weather from the south
This coast faces the Southern Ocean and gets weather straight off it. It can be genuinely cold and wind-driven at any time of year, and a warm Invercargill afternoon means nothing about conditions at Slope Point an hour later.
Carry warm and windproof layers regardless of the season, and choose sheltered campsites. An exposed pitch on this coast in a southerly is not a good night.
The Otago Peninsula and Dunedin
The peninsula east of Dunedin has the world's only mainland royal albatross colony at Taiaroa Head, along with sea lions, fur seals and yellow-eyed penguins. The albatross centre is a paid tour and the birds are visible year-round, with the best flying in windy conditions.
The peninsula road is narrow, winding and slow, hugging the harbour edge with almost no shoulder. It is not a comfortable drive in a large campervan and the high road over the ridge is the easier alternative in either direction.
Dunedin itself has the Otago Museum, Speight's brewery and Baldwin Street, and it is the last full-service city before Invercargill. Restock properly here, because the Catlins have very limited shops.
Invercargill and Bluff
Invercargill is the last full-service city and the natural restock before Fiordland or the ferry to Rakiura. Bluff, half an hour south, is the signpost at the end of the country and the departure point for Stewart Island.
Bluff oysters are in season roughly March to August and are genuinely worth the detour when they are. Outside that, the town is quiet and the drive is mostly about having reached the end.
- Restock in Invercargill
- Bluff oysters run March to August
Places along the way
Take it on the road
Save the stops. Plan the whole trip.
Build an ordered route from saved places, calculate the distance and keep dates, notes and to-dos attached.