West Coast

The West Coast of the South Island is 600km long but no wider than 70km at any point.
It is home to 5 of New Zealand’s National Parks, Kahurangi, Paparoa and Mount Aspiring the most prominent. 40 glaciers flow down from the Southern Alps with two Fox and Franz Josef penetrating as far as the lower rainforests, just 250m above sea level.You will find some of New Zealand's best luxury boutique accommodation in this area and a particular emphasis on conservation and the appreciation of the wild,natural beuaty of the area is a focus.
Defined on one side by the Alps and by a wild dramatic coastline on the other the region has unique flora and fauna, lush forest, fur seal colonies, dolphins and penguins and the only white heron breeding colony in the country.
Valued by the Maori for its deposits of Pounamu (greenstone) settlement dates back centuries, with Europeans attracted to the area by precious resources such as gold coal and timber.