Budget travel: Six of New Zealand’s most beautiful bus journeys

The bus is the underdog of travel transport.

We endure hours in traffic jams and fork out for pricey air and train fares, often failing to consider the humble bus for anything but short trips within our local communities.

We’re missing out: from the tip of the North Island to the bottom of the South, New Zealand’s bus routes take in some of our most stunning scenery, from snow-capped mountains and beautiful beaches to cute towns and wine districts. And often for the fraction of the price you’d pay for more popular forms of transport. We drew upon suggestions from Stuff Travel’s Neighbourly community to help us compile the list below.

Take a food and wine tour on the 200 bus, Wairarapa

For an affordable day trip or weekender from Wellington, catch the train to Masterton and board the number 200 bus to the wine mecca of Martinborough.

Do you know of a particularly beautiful bus route? Email [email protected].

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Slicing your way between Wairarapa vineyards, you’ll stop off in cute country towns such as Greytown, where historic buildings have aged like the fine local wines, and artsy Carterton.

I’d recommend getting off in Greytown to grab a bite (family-run Pinocchio has twice featured in Cuisine magazine’s “top 100” restaurants list), a drink on the deck of the White Swan, or an artisan chocolate fix at Schoc.

Once in Martinborough, check out one or more of the 20-odd vineyards within walking or cycling distance of the village square (bikes are available for hire) or, if you’re more of a beer fan, make a beeline to Martinborough Brewery.

If you’d prefer not to venture too far afield, Karahui Wine Bar & Eatery in the old BNZ building and Union Square, a French-style bar and bistro at the Martinborough Hotel, are among the many excellent places to wine and dine.

To return to Wellington, catch the number 200 bus back to Featherston, where you can board a train back to the capital.

If buses are replacing the Wairarapa line, Stephen Bell of Upper Hutt recommends catching one from Wellington to Masterton for a stellar view of the Remutaka Range – particularly if you take a seat on the top level.

Glacial lakes and a dramatic pass on InterCity’s Christchurch to Queenstown service

Lindis Pass and baby blue Lake Tekapo are highlights of Intercity’s eight-hour odyssey from Christchurch to Queenstown.

Crossing the Rakaia River, you’ll pass through the pretty county town of Geraldine with its boutique arts, craft and giftware shops and gin distillery, arriving at Lake Tekapo, where the famous stone Church of the Good Shepherd looks across the water to seasonally snow-capped mountains, about an hour later. The bus stops for a break at Tekapo, so you’ll have time to snap a selfie if you wish.

After passing through Ōmarama, where visitors marvel at Mackenzie country’s super star-studded skies at the town hot tubs, you’ll head through the dramatic Lindis Pass through tussock-covered mountains which have a tendency to put life’s daily toils into perspective.

Arriving in Central Otago, you’ll pass mountain-backed vineyards and orchards en route to Cromwell and Frankton.

Arriving in the adventure capital at 4:30pm, you should have just enough time to catch the sun setting over Lake Wakatipu, depending on the time of year. But even if you miss it, you have Queenstown’s famous bar and foodie scene to keep you amused.

Discover secrets of the Otago peninsula on the number 18 bus

Beginning in central Dunedin, the number 18 bus offers a whirlwind tour of the northern coast of the Otago Peninsula, taking in some of its most underrated attractions.

You’ll follow the rocky volcanic coastline past a series of peaceful bays, many of which make for sheltered swimming, to Te Rauone Beach, where local resident Des Smith said wildlife such as penguins, seals and sea lions are starting to settle.

From there, it’s a short walk to private conservation reserve Penguin Place – the world’s first entirely tourism-funded conservation programme. The 90-minute tours include a visit to a yellow-eyed penguin (hoiho) rehab facility and a reserve, where you might also spot fur seals and blue penguins.

Alternatively, continue up the road on foot for about 30 minutes to the Harrington Point Gun Emplacements, an abandoned military complex built to prepare for a potential Russian invasion; the little blue penguin colony at Pilots Beach; and the Royal Albatross Centre.

If you’d rather put your feet up, pull up a pew (or picnic blanket) on the waterfront and drink in the views across the water to Aramoana.

As Smith said, the cruise ships often look so close it “feels like you can reach out and touch them”.

If you have kids in tow, you might like to get off at the stop on the corner of Portobello and Seaton Roads. The coastline there is a mini explorer’s delight, with caves and rock pools galore. At low tide, it’s possible to walk to the scenic reserve of Titeremoana (Pudding Island).

Get a taste of the wild West Coast on GreatSights’ Franz Josef to Queenstown service

Starting in the town named after 12km-long Franz Josef Glacier, you’ll watch some of the West Coast’s most dramatic scenery whizz by as you slice your way between the Southern Alps and the Tasman Sea.

Passing hidden lakes and remote, wave-battered beaches, you’ll head over Haast Pass toward mirror-like lakes Hāwea and Wānaka. Continuing south, you’ll pass Lake Dunstan, another watery wonder, en route to Cromwell via the vineyards and orchards of Central Otago, arriving in Queenstown by 4:30pm. You can start in Queenstown and end in Franz Josef if you prefer.

Take an epic North Island tour on InterCity’s Auckland to Wellington service

One of Intercity’s longest routes is also one of its best, offering a 11-hour overview of the North Island. Highlights include Tīrau, the so-called “corrugated capital of the world”; Taupō with its Singapore-sized lake; and the Desert Road, from which Mt Ruapehu rises from rippling plains of brown tussock.

You could take an overnight bus if you prefer, but that would defeat the purpose of a scenic tour.

Beach hop Auckland’s East Coast Bays on the number 856

Offering a scenic tour of Auckland’s East Coast bays, the number 856 bus makes for a perfect summer’s day out.

Setting off from the Takapuna train station, the bus skirts Lake Pupuke before following the well-named Beach Road past Castor, Campbells, Mairangi, Murrays, Rothesay and Browns bays and Torbay. Make it a day of beach hopping by stopping off at whichever take your fancy for a swim or a stroll.

Return to Takapuna, where you can catch the train back to central Auckland, or continue on to Albany, where you can do the same.

Aucklander Fiona Edgar described it as “lovely” and “very scenic”.

Visit the ‘eighth wonder of the world’ on a Milford Sound coach tour

No list of beautiful bus routes in Aotearoa would be complete without the ones to what the late English author Rudyard Kipling once described as the “eighth wonder of the world”.

Several companies, including Kiwi Experience, GreatSights and Realnz, organise bus tours to Milford Sound from Queenstown and Te Anau, with commentary and photo stops. Some even have glass roofs to make the most of the majestic mountain scenery.

Winding its way through Fiordland National Park, Milford Road is like a Lord of the Rings movie reel minus the characters from a moving bus.

The first pit stop on my 2017 Realnz (then known as Southern Discoveries) day tour was the Eglinton Valley whose movie star good looks have made it a favourite with the Hollywood set (it featured in Lord of the Rings and, more recently, Mission: Impossible 6).

Mirror Lakes, which reflect the snow-capped Earl Mountains, are another highlight, as are Monkey Creek, with its glacier-fed spring and resident kea, and the raging waterfalls that make up The Chasm.

Jump on a scenic cruise of the sound at the other end for a non-driving adventure that is undoubtedly world-class.