Best National Parks in New Zealand: The Complete Guide to All 13
New Zealand has 13 national parks protecting around 10% of the country's total land area — covering active volcanoes, fiords, glaciers, ancient kauri forests, alpine peaks, river systems, and hundreds of kilometres of coastal track. From Fiordland's fjords in the far south to Tongariro's volcanic plateau in the central North Island, each park is distinct. This guide covers all 13 national parks, what makes each one exceptional, which Great Walks pass through them, how DOC huts and booking work, and what you need to plan a trip to each.
All 13 National Parks at a Glance
| Park | Island | Key Feature | Great Walk(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiordland | South | Milford and Doubtful Sounds, fiords | Milford, Routeburn, Kepler |
| Aoraki/Mount Cook | South | Highest peak (3,724m), Tasman Glacier | — |
| Tongariro | North | Active volcanoes, World Heritage | Tongariro Northern Circuit |
| Abel Tasman | South | Coastal track, golden beaches | Abel Tasman Coast Track |
| Westland Tai Poutini | South | Franz Josef & Fox glaciers | — |
| Mount Aspiring / Tititea | South | Alpine wilderness, Routeburn Track | Routeburn (shared) |
| Arthur's Pass | South | Mountain pass, Devil's Punchbowl | — |
| Kahurangi | South | Heaphy Track, marble karst, caves | Heaphy Track |
| Nelson Lakes | South | Lakes Rotoiti and Rotoroa, beech forest | — |
| Paparoa | South | Pancake Rocks, Paparoa Track | Paparoa Track |
| Egmont / Taranaki | North | Volcanic cone, 360° coastal views | — |
| Rakiura | Stewart Island | Kiwi, remote wilderness | Rakiura Track |
| Whanganui | North | River journey, Māori river culture | Whanganui Journey (canoe) |
South Island National Parks
Fiordland National Park
Fiordland is New Zealand's largest national park and one of the largest in the world. It protects the fiords of the southwestern South Island — Milford Sound, Doubtful Sound, Dusky Sound, and more than ten others — carved by glaciers over millions of years. The park holds three of New Zealand's Great Walks: the Milford Track (often called the world's finest walk, 54km over 4 days), the Routeburn Track (32km, 2–4 days, shared with Mount Aspiring NP), and the Kepler Track (60km loop, 3–4 days from Te Anau). Our full guide to Milford Sound and Fiordland covers the fiord in depth. For tour options, the best Milford Sound tours from Queenstown covers all transport and cruise options.
Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park
Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park protects New Zealand's highest peak and the surrounding Southern Alps. The park contains more than 140 peaks over 2,000 metres and 72 named glaciers, including the Tasman Glacier — New Zealand's longest glacier — at approximately 23km in length. The Hooker Valley Track (3 hours return) is the most popular day walk, leading to glacier viewpoints and Hooker Lake with its floating icebergs. The park is the southern hemisphere's premier alpine climbing destination and the place where Sir Edmund Hillary trained before the 1953 Everest ascent. Full details in our Aoraki/Mount Cook and Tasman Glacier guide.
Westland Tai Poutini National Park
Westland Tai Poutini National Park is jointly listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site with Aoraki/Mount Cook and two other adjacent parks, forming the Te Wāhipounamu (South West New Zealand) World Heritage Area. The park is best known for Franz Josef Glacier (Kā Roimata o Hine Hukatere) and Fox Glacier — both descending from the Southern Alps to within close proximity of temperate rainforest, one of the world's rarest glacial-forest combinations. Helicopter and guided ice walks are the primary ways to access the glaciers; the lower valley walks offer views of the ice face from below. Our Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers guide covers both glaciers and access in detail.
Mount Aspiring / Tititea National Park
Mount Aspiring/Tititea National Park protects the upper Otago and Southland mountains immediately north and east of Fiordland. The park's namesake peak, Mount Aspiring/Tititea (3,033m), is the highest peak outside the Aoraki/Mount Cook group and is a significant alpine climbing objective. The Routeburn Track passes through this park on its way between Glenorchy (near Queenstown) and the Fiordland boundary — it is one of New Zealand's most celebrated multi-day walks. The Matukituki Valley east of Wānaka is accessible by road to the Rob Roy Glacier track (4–5 hours return), one of the best day walks in the South Island.
Abel Tasman National Park
Abel Tasman is New Zealand's smallest national park by area but one of the most visited, thanks to its golden granite beaches, clear turquoise water, and the Abel Tasman Coast Track — a 60km Great Walk (3–5 days) that can be walked in sections, with water taxis available to shorten or vary the route. Sea kayaking along the coast with overnight camping is a popular alternative. The park also contains the Inland Track, which passes through higher native bush country with far fewer visitors. Fur seals are resident at the northern end of the park near Separation Point.
Kahurangi National Park
Kahurangi is the second-largest national park in New Zealand and the largest on the South Island after Fiordland. It protects a diverse landscape of marble karst, ancient beech and podocarp forest, and the Karamea coastline. The Heaphy Track (78km, 4–6 days) is the most popular walk — it crosses from Golden Bay to the West Coast through some of the finest native bush in New Zealand, including stands of nikau palm growing unusually far south of their typical range. Honeycomb Hill Caves, one of New Zealand's most significant fossil cave systems, is in the northwest of the park near Karamea (see our caves guide).
Arthur's Pass National Park
Arthur's Pass National Park straddles the Main Divide of the Southern Alps on State Highway 73 between Christchurch and the West Coast. The village of Arthur's Pass within the park is a mountain base with a DOC visitor centre, and several excellent day walks depart from the village including the Devil's Punchbowl Falls track (131m waterfall, 1 hour return — see our waterfalls guide). The park is home to the kea — the world's only alpine parrot — which is famously curious and may investigate your car, pack, or any unattended food. The Avalanche Peak track (3–4 hours return) is the most rewarding day summit in the park.
Nelson Lakes National Park
Nelson Lakes National Park protects two large beech-forest lakes — Rotoiti and Rotoroa — and the surrounding mountains at the northern end of the Southern Alps. The park is less visited than Fiordland or Abel Tasman, making it excellent for anyone seeking quieter backcountry. Lake Rotoiti's shores are accessible from St Arnaud village on SH63. The park has excellent trout fishing — both lakes hold large rainbow and brown trout. A pest control fence around part of the Rotoiti shoreline (Rotoiti Nature Recovery Project) has helped bird populations recover significantly, making the bush above the lake unusually bird-rich.
Paparoa National Park
Paparoa National Park protects the limestone country of the West Coast between Westport and Greymouth. The park is best known for the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks and blowholes — see our full Punakaiki Pancake Rocks guide for geology and visiting details. The Paparoa Track Great Walk (55km, 2–3 days), added to DOC's network in 2019, traverses the Paparoa Range above the coast and offers dramatic ridge-top walking with views across the Tasman Sea. The track is also open to mountain bikers, making it one of the few Great Walks accessible by bike.
North Island National Parks
Tongariro National Park
Tongariro National Park holds dual UNESCO World Heritage status — recognised for both its volcanic landscape (Ruapehu, Ngāuruhoe, and Tongariro) and its cultural significance to Ngāti Tūwharetoa, who gifted the mountains to the Crown in 1887, making Tongariro New Zealand's first national park. The Tongariro Alpine Crossing (19.4km, one way, 6–8 hours) is the most-walked day route in New Zealand — it crosses active volcanic terrain, lava fields, and the extraordinary Emerald Lakes in the summit crater zone. Volcanic activity at Ruapehu and Tongariro is ongoing; check GeoNet and DOC alerts before visiting. The Tongariro Northern Circuit (Great Walk, 43km, 3–4 days) includes the Alpine Crossing terrain.
Egmont / Te Papakura o Taranaki National Park
Egmont/Taranaki National Park surrounds the near-perfectly symmetrical volcanic cone of Mount Taranaki (2,518m), which rises in isolation from the surrounding farmland of the Taranaki region. The mountain is sacred to the Taranaki iwi. The summit is achievable in a long day from the Egmont National Park visitor centre in good weather, but conditions change rapidly and the mountain should be treated with serious alpine respect — people have died on it in poor conditions. The Around the Mountain Circuit (3–5 days) is a full circuit of the cone through varied bush and alpine terrain. The summit panorama on a clear day extends across most of the North Island.
Whanganui National Park
Whanganui National Park protects the Whanganui River and its forested catchment — a river of deep cultural significance to the Whanganui iwi, who in 2017 gained legal personhood for the river under a groundbreaking New Zealand law. The Whanganui Journey Great Walk is a 5-day canoe or kayak trip down 145km of the river between Taumarunui and Whanganui, staying in DOC huts along the way. It is the only Great Walk that is paddled rather than walked. The landscape is bush-covered hills and gorges with no road access — all supplies and equipment come by canoe. The Bridge to Nowhere (an unfinished concrete bridge from a failed 1940s settlement scheme, accessible only by walking or canoe) is the park's most famous landmark.
Rakiura National Park, Stewart Island
Rakiura National Park covers most of Stewart Island — New Zealand's third-largest island, reached by ferry or plane from Bluff/Invercargill. The park is one of the best places in New Zealand to see wild kiwi; Stewart Island has a relatively high density of Tokoeka (brown kiwi) and guided night walks from Oban township regularly produce sightings. The Rakiura Track Great Walk is a 32km loop (3 days) through coastal forest and estuary. More remote are the North West Circuit and Southern Circuit — serious multi-day backcountry tracks requiring experience and self-sufficiency. The southern lights (aurora australis) are sometimes visible on clear nights from Rakiura due to its southern latitude.
When to Visit and What to Bring
New Zealand's national parks are open year-round. The main tramping season is October–April (Southern Hemisphere spring through autumn), when Great Walk huts are staffed, tracks are fully open, and weather is most settled. Winter (June–August) closes some high-altitude routes and Great Walks; ski areas in Tongariro (Whakapapa, Tūroa) operate in winter on the slopes of Ruapehu. The West Coast parks (Westland, Paparoa) receive high rainfall year-round and are often rewarding even in "poor" weather because waterfall volume increases. Always check DOC track conditions before departure, especially in the shoulder seasons.
Standard national park day-walk kit: broken-in footwear with ankle support, waterproof jacket, warm mid layer, sunscreen, water (1L minimum), first aid basics, and a way to call for help (cell coverage is poor in most national parks — a personal locator beacon (PLB) is strongly recommended for any route taking you more than an hour from the trailhead). For Great Walks: full tramping kit including hut-weight sleeping bag, food, stove, and equipment specified in the DOC hut booking confirmation.
Book Guided National Park Tours
Guided day walks, multi-day treks, scenic flights, and kayak tours across New Zealand's national parks — verified local operators.
Browse Hiking and Nature Tours →Frequently Asked Questions
How many national parks does New Zealand have?
New Zealand has 13 national parks covering approximately 10% of the country's land area. The largest is Fiordland (approximately 1.26 million hectares); the smallest is Abel Tasman (approximately 22,530 hectares). All are managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC). Entry to the parks is free.
Which Great Walks need to be booked furthest in advance?
The Milford Track is the hardest to book — it fills within hours of the annual booking window opening (usually June) for the October–April season. The Routeburn and Kepler tracks also fill within days. The Heaphy, Paparoa, and Rakiura tracks are easier to book but still require advance planning for peak season. All Great Walk bookings are through the DOC website (doc.govt.nz).
Can I visit Fiordland without doing a multi-day walk?
Yes — a Milford Sound cruise is the most popular way to experience Fiordland and takes only a day from Queenstown or Te Anau. The road to Milford Sound through the park is itself a spectacular scenic drive. The Milford Sound Homer Tunnel, the Chasm walk (30 minutes), and the Mirror Lakes stop are all accessible on the same day trip. Doubtful Sound is reached by boat from Manapouri and requires a guided tour but no tramping. See our Milford Sound tours guide for day trip options.