THE KAIKOURA PENINSULA WALKWAY

Considering the Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway when in Kaikoura?

With epic views and a good chance to see seals at Point Kean, you’ll have a blast on the most famous of the Kaikoura walks.

And it’s awesome as there’s the complete loop for the keen hikers, or you can do smaller sections of the walk (I recommend doing the full 12km loop).

Whether you’re going to walk the loop or just a part of it, keep reading for the ins and outs of the Kaikoura walkway from my experience.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway Details
2. Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway Map
3. How To Get There
4. My Walkway Experience
5. About The Kaikoura Peninsula Seals
6. More Photos

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1. KAIKOURA PENINSULA WALKWAY DETAILS

How long is the Kaikoura Walkway?

You’ll find that it’s about 12km give or take a few hundred metres. DOC has it listed at 11.7km at the top end.

I’d add another 1-3 km to that as it doesn’t include distance walking out to get closer to the seals and other side trips to see a view etc.

Note: There are various sections of the track you can do from a few minutes to an hour or so return.

How hard is the Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway?

Easy-medium. As long as you’re okay with the distance you should have no problem on this trail.

Is the Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway hilly?

Nope! There’s less than 100 metres of elevation gain on the ~12km loop.

How long does it take to walk the Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway?

It took me just under four hours to return to the same spot I left from (Kaikoura Visitor Centre). This was at a comfortable speed.

I was taking photos, breaks, and spent time with the seals. I think four hours is a reasonable time frame to give yourself. You can do it much quicker if need be with Google Map suggesting 2 hours and 31 minutes.

2. KAIKOURA PENINSULA WALKWAY MAP

Below is the route I took on topomap.co.nz (using this GPX file), maps.me and Google Maps. I would suggest getting a topomap app (I vouch for my favourite here). It’s not the easiest route to follow, but if you stick to the coastline you should be fine.

3. HOW TO GET THERE

If you’re walking the full loop, start from wherever your accommodation is (I’m assuming it’s in Kaikoura itself).

The Visitor Centre is a good start and finish point if you want something specific.

If you only want to do a section of the walk, most people drive to Point Kean (which is where the Google Map above starts) to see the seals and walk on top of the peninsular above the cliff.

If you’re coming from out of town, there’s parking available along the waterfront and near the visitor centre.

Unfortunately, there’s no public transport to/from Port Kean or South Bay but there are taxis about Kaikoura (including Uber).

RELATED POST: COMPARING UBER, OLA, AND YOURRIDE

4. MY KAIKOURA PENINSULA WALKWAY EXPERIENCE

I’ll break this post into various sections of the walk with bolded headers.

Kaikoura visitor centre to Point Kean car park | 50 mins | 4.4km

Before starting, make sure you have something to eat as the options en route are limited (mostly non-existant).

In town, Coopers Catch are a popular fish and chip shop, or if you need something to eat on the way there are some supermarkets around.

From the i-Site, I followed the beach along the esplanade. You can walk along the stony beach or the path, but I liked battling away in the stones, getting some photos, and enjoying life. You’ll want to visit this part of Kaikoura while you’re in town anyway so it’s two birds one stone.

I never visited Kaikoura before the big 2016 earthquake altered the coastline but having seen these before and after photos I had a reasonable idea what was and wasn’t like it was just a couple years earlier. Your mind will boggle.

Once I turned right on Avoca Street towards Point Kean (past Fyffe House which I didn’t visit) the walk was pleasant but I was definitely ready to get back on the coastline (you’re on a boardwalk for most of this stretch).

Within 100 metres of Point Kean a seal had decided to have a snooze on the boardwalk. I was daydreaming so got a massive fright when I saw him and did break the recommendations below (I was maybe 5 metres away before I noticed the seal).

Once I noticed the seal I made sure not to hang around (guilty: took a quick snap). It wasn’t possible to stay 20 metres away given where the seal was, but most people were good at not getting up close into his/her personal space.

As you now know, the seals don’t necessarily let you stay 20 metres away…do your best with good intentions. The majority of the seals are hanging out on the flat section in the circle on the map below, with the tide playing a role as to how much you can walk around.

On my visit, most of the seals were over 100 metres away from the car park, and to be honest, there weren’t as many as I expected (still two dozen or so) but it was still awesome seeing them in the wild.

They’re in Kaikoura year-round in various numbers so you’d be unlucky to visit on a day when there no seals around.

Point Kean car park to Point Kean viewpoint | 5 mins | 200m

I spent maybe 20-25 minutes with the seals before going up to the Point Kean viewpoint which is a five-minute walk from the car park. For those doing the full loop, this is the toughest section of incline you’ll have along the walkway.

Throughout the walk, you’ll find plenty of information boards and poles guiding you.

Point Kean viewpoint to Whalers Bay viewpoint | 25 mins | 1.5km

It doesn’t take long until you get epic views. You’ve got the rugged coastline, but also the Kaikoura Ranges which look incredible with a bit of snow on top. From here you follow the top of the cliff on an obvious path.

Though those walking with kids will want to keep an eye on the kids. Admire all the views and before long you’ll get to what I and many others consider the best viewpoint of them all, Whalers Bay.

Whalers Bay viewpoint to South Bay car park via South Bay viewpoint | 35 mins | 1.7km

Throughout the year different bird colonies spend time on the Kaikoura coastline. Wow, they make a lot of noise! Be respectful and walk around any nesting birds you come across.

From here you could walk down the staircase to the sugarloaf (mound of sound) and back along the rocky shoreline to Point Kean if you wanted.

But as I, and hopefully you, are continuing on the loop, we follow the path along the top that heads inland where you’ll get more epic views of the ranges.

Before you know it you’ll be back on the coastline and you’ll see South Bay in the distance, with yet more dramatic views accompanying you on the way.

South Bay to Kaikoura town centre | 1 hour 5 mins | 4.2km

South Bay is a quiet seaside town where most whale encounter tours depart from. I wandered through the town before turning into the forest leading to Tom’s Track and finally Kaikoura.

You’re sort of cutting up and over the top of the peninsula but the elevation is cruisey. And if you time it right, you’ll have an awesome sunset happening as you finish.

5. THE KAIKOURA PENINSULA SEALS: HOW TO ACT AROUND SEALS

In short, don’t be a dick and use your commonsense.

These tips have been rephrased from this DOC page, where you can learn more about seal behaviour.

• Keep 20+ metres away at all times.
• Don’t yell/shout/throw things.
• Keep your dogs and children close to you.
• Do not feed them.
• Never touch a seal.

6. MORE KAIKOURA PENINSULA WALKWAY PHOTOS

I didn’t want to put too many photos in the middle of the post, so I’ll leave a few more here.

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Kaikoura is famous for its whale watching tours, but it’s so much more than that. This walk is one of my favourite things to do in New Zealand, genuinely.

I stayed at the Dusky Lodge and Backpackers, and all the people I met there who did the Kaikoura Peninsula walk, really enjoyed it.

If you’ve got any questions etc., email me jub@churnewzealand.com or leave a comment below. I would love to hear about your experience of the Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway.

p.s. Here’s a map of all the hikes documented on Chur New Zealand. You can click the icon to see brief details, as well as a link to read more about the hike (like this post).