New on the West Coast for 2025
Seven great new reasons to explore the West Coast
New experiences, new activities and new destinations — the West Coast is looking exceptionally bright.
While any time is good, there’s probably never been a better time to visit the West Coast with the opening or completion of seven major new developments — highlighting the region’s fascinating art, culture, history, geology and natural environment.
DISCOVER THE POUNAMU PATHWAY
A unique new visitor attraction — the Pounamu Pathway — is emerging all along the West Coast.
The Pounamu Pathway is a series of storytelling hubs using immersive multi-sensory technology to explore the land and people of the Coast. It has been brought to life through rich creative collaborations between local Ngāti Waewae and master digital storytellers Wētā Workshop.
When fully completed, it will feature four complementary visitor centres weaving together legends and tales of early Māori, the search for pounamu, the evolution of the identity and spirit of Te Tai o Poutini.
In Māwhera Greymouth, an eye-catching new building designed to resemble a pokeka — the traditional Māori rain cape — forms the flagship and gateway to the Pounamu Pathway.
The second visitor centre in Kawatiri Westport has an important collection of Māori artefacts dating back to the earliest West Coast Māori settlement and stories related to the region’s natural abundance: flora and fauna, pounamu, gold and coal. Two more exhibitions are scheduled for development in Franz Josef and Hokitika.
EXPERIENCE THE PIKE29 MEMORIAL TRACK
Much anticipated the Pike29 Memorial Track is a fantastic new dual mountain biking and walking trail, which opened in February 2024.
Starting northeast of Blackball, the 11.6 km trail — connecting the Paparoa Track Great Walk to the Pike River valley — is a challenging walk or ride through a spectacular landscape. The track rises 880m from the valley to the Paparoa Range ridgeline through luxuriant forest and alpine scrub.
The track was conceived as an enduring memory to the 29 men who died as a result of the 2010 Pike River mine disaster. As it winds between the valley floor and the tops of the range, it introduces visitors to the story of what happened at the Pike River Mine.
Not wanting to tackle the whole Pike29 track? An easy 15-minute walk from the Pike Valley car park leads to twin bridges within the forest.
TE KOPIKOPIKO O TE WAKA, FOX GLACIER
A major new work of art depicting a capsized Māori waka — Te Kopikopiko o te Waka — reveals an ancient legend and some of the most commanding views of Fox Glacier/Te Moeka o Tuawe.
The installation tells the traditional Ngāi Tahu story of how the ancestor Aoraki and his brothers failed in their mission to meet their new stepmother, Papatūānuku (the god of the earth), capsizing their canoe which transformed into the South Island and New Zealand’s tallest mountains. Today the South Island is known as Te Waipounamu (greenstone waters), but an older name is Te Waka o Aoraki.
Between Fox Glacier village and Gillespies Beach, Te Kopikopiko o te Waka is a pleasant lunch spot. The landscaped, accessible walkways around the larger-than-life carved Māori waka, draw the visitor’s eyes towards the glacier and Aoraki/Mt Cook.
Te Kopikopiko o te Waka belongs to the Tohu Whenua collection of significant historical and cultural sites managed by the Department of Conservation and Heritage New Zealand. Discover other Tohu Whenua sites on the West Coast.
BIKING THE KAWATIRI TRAIL
Perfect for year-round cycling, the Kawatiri Coastal Trail — completed in early 2025 — is designed with families and leisurely cyclists in mind. The 42-km 8-section trail connects Westport with the historic gold mining settlement of Charleston.
Running alongside the rugged Tasman Sea with the majestic Paparoa Range as the backdrop, the trail offers stunning coastal views, wetlands and wildlife wonders. Boardwalks and suspension bridges add to the fun.
It’s easy to dip in for a day as the trail is split into sections, and there’s plenty of fun to be had off the bike too. Take a surf lesson at Tauranga Bay, spot seals on the Cape Foulwind Walkway and rare bats at dusk on the Ōkari Lagoon, or go underground for glow-worm grottoes in a fascinating cave system near Charleston.
REOPENED HEAPHY TRACK
Fully reopened after a major upgrade, the iconic 78-km Heaphy Track through Kahurangi National Park is better than it’s ever been with two impressive new suspension bridges for walkers and bikers doing the full journey.
From tussock-covered alpine downs to golden-sand coves fringed with nīkau palms, the Heaphy offers the greatest geographical contrasts of all the Great Walks. Not a hardcore hiker? Good news — you can still enjoy some of its treasures with easy short or day walks from the western trail head at Kohaihai Beach.
From sunny Karamea, it’s a short scenic drive to Kohaihai where you can take a two-hour return rainforest walk to a deserted, golden-sand beach — the perfect Great Walk taster. Hospitable Karamea has great little eateries, hotels, a resort and campgrounds. There are 26 walking tracks within easy reach of town.
Further south, Gentle Annie’s coastal camping beside the mighty Mokihinui River, has wood-fired hot tubs and a pizza oven.
DISCOVER THE SECRETS OF ŌPARARA ARCHES
Another Karamea beauty, the primaeval rainforests of the nearby Ōpārara Basin shelter some of Aotearoa’s most fascinating natural treasures, some hidden deep within a 35-million-year-old cave-system.
The waters of the Ōpārara River have gradually eroded the soft limestone, leaving behind giant arches and a vast network of caves. A short walk through bird-filled rainforest emerges at the largest of these natural sculptures – the Ōpārara Arch – towering 43 metres above the river.
But it’s not just the fern-filled forest that gives the Ōpārara Basin a distinctly pre-historic feel – fossilised remains of several species of moa and the fabled giant hōkioi (Haast’s eagle) ‘litter’ the extraordinary underworld of the Honeycomb Hill Caves. Take a guided tour from Karamea to rediscover these treasures.
Significant upgrades on the old logging road into the Ōpārara Basin mean visitors can now drive in to access the arches any day of the week.
Visitor EXPERIENCE CENTRE, PUNAKAIKI
Follow the Great Coast Road – among the world’s most beautiful coastal drives – to the natural spectacle of the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and Blowholes. Watch powerful waves from the Tasman Sea blast, boom and spray their way through blowholes and underground arches beneath the pancake-stacked limestone rocks, sculpted by the elements over thousands of years.
A well-maintained walkway around the rocks makes it easy to explore nature’s dramatic display, which is now complemented by an impressive new visitor centre just across the road.
Developed by DOC but owned and managed by local iwi Ngāti Waewae, the outstanding, sustainably-built experience centre includes a spectacular visitor experience featuring state-of-the-art technology to tell stories of Punakaiki and its people. A virtual wahine toa (female warrior) welcomes visitors to The Paparoa Experience before they enter a world of immersive displays illuminating the region’s fascinating geological features, unique wildlife and cultural heritage.
The Department of Conservation Paparoa National Park Visitor Centre and the Paparoa Eatery share the building with The Paparoa Experience.
