3 Reasons Why You Should Visit Lake Tekapo in New Zealand

New Zealand is incredibly beautiful. Seriously. You drive around and you think you have now seen a fair amount of stunning nature, continue driving. There is so much more to come. We visited New Zealand to see untouched nature and epic landscapes. But I didn’t expect to see THAT level of beauty. Totally fell in love with that part of the world.

Lake Tekapo is a beautiful lake around 700m above sea level in the South Island of New Zealand. It’s located between Queenstown, Fox Glacier and Christchurch and therefore a great stop on the way from or to any of these destinations. And this is why you should visit Lake Tekapo:

3 Reasons Why You Should Visit Lake Tekapo

Clear Night Sky

Lake Tekapo is known for having one of the most spectacular night skies in the world. You can either join one of the night sky gazing tours that are offered in Lake Tekapo or just venture out yourself. We arrived in Lake Tekapo after dark and stopped at a viewpoint on the road just before the town. There was nobody around, no cars passing by, and totally quiet. It was a pitch black night with a clear night sky and lots and lots of stars. Incredibly beautiful. If you want to feel one with nature, stay in Lake Tekapo overnight and just look up to the stars.

Incredibly Beautiful Lake

Lake Tekapo is not only beautiful during the night but also stunning during the day. There are lots of walking tours and also various options for people short on time who want to continue their road trip on the same day (like us).

Perfect Stop During Roadtrip

You don’t really have to go out of your way to visit Lake Tekapo. If you are planning to head down to Queenstown (which you definitely should do!) or Fox Glacier (do visit!), Lake Tekapo is a great overnight stop. Arrive late at night to see the beautiful night sky, do a little walking tour on the lake in the morning and then continue exploring the rest of New Zealand.

We arrived at Lake Tekapo during the evening after a long drive from the scenic route between Milford Sounds and Te Anau. After spending the rest of the evening gazing at the stars, we decided to do the Peninsula Walk during the morning. This walk does a little loop around the peninsula to the north of Mount John and gives a great view of Lake Tekapo.

Ok, so we wanted to do the Peninsula Walkway but then decided to drive a bit further by car to the second parking spot (the one above the first one that you see on the map). We were of course again a bit short on time and had planned a total of around 2-3 hours for our little walk along Lake Tekapo. Given there was just no one else on that part of the lake that day, and therefore no cars, we actually missed the parking spot and drove way too far. But then we didn’t come for an adventurous hike, we came to see incredible nature. So we just took the car and drove a bit further down to the lake where we then spent a couple of hours. Did I mention that nobody else was there? It was so incredible quiet. So beautiful. The only fellows that joined were three black swans that were happily enjoying the day swimming on the lake.

And nature’s beauty doesn’t stop once you have left Lake Tekapo. See the road below? That’s what a road trip through New Zealand looks like: stunning nature, peacefulness and freedom :)