13-Nights Naturally New Zealand

The South Island's most renowned explorer and geologist, Julius von Haast, named Franz Josef Glacier after the Emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Franz Josef Glacier is a remnant of a much older, larger glacier which flowed from the alpine snowfields right to the sea. The glacier is over 7.5 miles long extending into the rainforest just 3 miles from the Franz Josef township, making it easy to visit. Walk to viewpoints and the terminal face or, for a close-up view of the spectacular ice formations, take a guided glacier walk, helihike or scenic flight.

This is a provincial town with a difference. A city center long ago claimed from a wayward river has resulted in a street layout with spirit and character abounding with quirky lanes and sunny gathering places. On the clear, spring-fed Taylor River sightseeing riverboats retrace the route of steamboats that once carried produce. A miniature railway runs alongside the river to Brayshaw Park. Central focus of Blenheim is The Forum, with its historic bandstand watching over the shops and street markets below. The Forum also provides an occasional amphitheatre for the performing arts. The modern shops and cafés that surround The Forum are a sample of a town deserving of praise it receives from visitors. Blenheim is blessed with many attractive parks, such as Seymour Square and Pollard Park. On the outskirts of town, Brayshow Historic Park preserves the province's pioneering endeavour. Relocated colonial buildings in a recreated turn-of-the-century street keep company with a modern building housing archives and a vintage farm machinery museum.