When it comes to shaping your clients itineraries, you want to ensure that they have the best travel experience possible, and we believe that Nelson Tasman can deliver that. Here's just a few reasons why.

Lakes, rivers, ocean, forests, mountains and beaches. Renowned for its thriving natural surroundings, spectacular coastal and inland landscapes and high sunshine hours, it’s no surprise that the environment is an integral feature of any holiday in Nelson Tasman. Desired as a place to reconnect, revive and recharge, protection of the pristine environment is just a way of life in the Top of the South. With so many local businesses focused on minimising their environmental impact, designing a holiday with a light footprint is a breeze in Nelson Tasman.

Even on an ordinary day, we live amongst extraordinary nature. Where else are you surrounded by three National Parks within 90 minutes of the city? The Abel Tasman Coastal Walk may pull in the majority of visitors, but the Kahurangi National Park offers world-class trails through pristine ancient forests. It also includes Mt Owen, with rockscapes that are so fantastic they were featured in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings™. Where else can you ride from your door to a bike trail on a geologically significant mountain, or kayak in a marine reserve straight after work in the CBD? Living an extraordinary life is an everyday experience in Nelson Tasman.

Nelson Tasman is home to an extraordinary depth of heritage, artist and artisan businesses. Whether it's visual arts, ceramics, music or food, we like creating our own stuff. Take our craft beer, because we may as well make use of the fact we're the only place in New Zealand to grow hops on a commercial scale. And alongside some of our famous brands like McCashins and Old Mout Cider, we're also the home of artisan cuisine such as the award-winning Hogarth chocolate, and Pic's Peanut Butter, which has turned a humble spread into an extraordinary success story. 

Nelson Tasman consistently has the highest number of sunshine hours in New Zealand, receiving over 2600 hours of sunshine each year. The clear blue skies are a feature of our extraordinary climate all year round. While it is a favourite summer destination for holiday-making kiwis, the locals love the crisp, clear days of Autumn when it is often still warm enough to swim. In the winter months you’ll see snow on the mountains in the distance, but with very little wind by the coastline you can still enjoy hiking, sea kayaking and cycling. Spring is an exciting time of year too as the new life is visible in orchards and vineyards and a new array of fresh, seasonal produce adorns our weekend market stalls.

Being located at the centre of the country makes it easy to include Nelson Tasman in your itineraries. In fact, it is the ideal place to pause for a longer stay within your journey. It is easy to get here by road and there are multiple flights every day between Nelson and the main centres. As a bonus, you can enjoy a 30-minute bush walk up to the geographic Centre of New Zealand, where you'll discover 360 degree views of the region.

Cycling is an integral part of Nelson Tasman’s culture, and it’s not uncommon to see groups of bikers perched up at Mapua Wharf in the afternoon sun, exploring our boutique vineyards, tearing it up at the mountain-bike parks or taking in the spectacular sights along our coastal roads. As one of six regions in the world graded Gold Ride status by the International Mountain Bicycling Association, key highlights in our extraordinary region include The Great Taste Trail and The Coppermine Trail.

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