Christchurch - Arthurs Pass - Greymouth
on the "TranzAlpine"
train...
It's perhaps the most scenic train
ride in New Zealand, and one of the most scenic train trips
anywhere in the world. The TranzAlpine, run by
New Zealand train operator Tranz Scenic, runs once
daily between Christchurch, Arthur's Pass and Greymouth on the
South Island's west coast, through the amazing misty mountain
scenery of the Southern Alps. The journey takes 4½
hours, and if you like you can go there and back in a
day with an hour in Greymouth. Or take the TranzAlpine
one-way, and connect with buses down the west coast to Franz
Josef Glacier. Although I rate the North Island's Overlander
from Auckland to Wellington as a far more historic and epic
route, and in many ways almost equally scenic, you certainly won't regret buying a ticket for
the TranzAlpine! This
page explains the TranzAlpine's timetable, fares, how to buy
the cheapest tickets, and what there is to see on the journey.
The TranzAlpine is the most successful of all the Tranz
Scenic train services, as it's very popular with tour groups
because of the spectacular scenery through the Southern Alps
between Christchurch and the South Island's west coast at
Greymouth. It's a fantastic trip that lives up to its
reputation, though in many ways the TranzAlpine is not as epic
or historic as the Auckland-Wellington Overlander.
Christchurch ► Greymouth
Greymouth ►
Christchurch
"The Tranz-Alpine" train
Daily
The Tranz-Alpine" train
Daily
Depart
Christchurch
08:15
Depart Greymouth
13:45
Arthur's Pass arrive/depart
10:42
Arthur's Pass arrive/depart
15:57
Arrive Greymouth
12:45
Arrive Christchurch
18:05
The
TranzAlpine runs daily. One-class seating, cafe-bar &
open air viewing platform. The journey is 223.8km.
Normally, the cheapest way to buy tickets
for the TranzAlpine is online direct from the operator,
Tranz Scenic, at www.tranzscenic.co.nz.
You pay by credit card and simply print out your own ticket,
wherever you are in the world.
Or you can call 0800
TRAINS(0800
872467) when you're in New Zealand, calls are
free. From outside New Zealand
you can call 00
64 4 495 0775. There are discounts for anyone
over 60 and for students on the TranzAlpine, but to get
these you need to book by phone.
Booking tip: Several
reports suggest that you can get cheaper fares by phone than
online. So if you don't see any cheap promotional deals
available online, only the full fare, try calling
Christchurch i-SITE Visitor Centre on +64 3 379 9629
or Christchurch railway station on +64 4 341 2588 or
try +64 3379 9629 as
discounted tickets might still be available through them.
If you have any feedback on this issue, do
let me know!
Comfortable
seating: The TranzAlpine has comfortable
seats, mostly arranged in bays of four around tables, but
there's some unidirectional seating. All seats line up
with wide panoramic windows. Seat numbers are not
allocated at booking, but at check-in.
Cafe-bar:
The TranzAlpine has a cafe bar serving snacks, drinks,
tea, coffee, wine, beer, spirits and light microwaveable
meals, at reasonable prices. I can recommend the
breakfast roll in the morning (NZ$7.50) and the Devonshire
cream tea in the afternoon (NZ$6).
Viewing
platform: There is a full-length open air viewing
platform in the centre of the train, ideal for taking photographs or just watching the
scenery, with nothing between you and the view.
The
TranzAlpine's coaches have been re-built from traditional
New Zealand Railways coaches, built to a design which first
appeared in 1938. That's why they may appear
antiquated from the outside, apart from their new panoramic
windows, but inside the coaches have been refurbished to a
very high standard.
Free shuttle bus for Tranz
Alpine departures from Christchurch: Heading
out from Christchurch to Greymouth, a free
Tranz-Scenic shuttle (shuttle = shared minibus taxi) operates to a set
timetable from most hotels and guesthouses in central
Christchurch out to the railway station to meet the
Tranz-Alpine departure for Greymouth.
There's no need to book, just ask your guesthouse (or freephone and ask Tranz Scenic) what time the shuttle leaves
which hotel. It departs between 07:00 and 07:40, for example, it leaves the
Croydon B&B on
Armagh Road at 07:13 to connect with the Tranz-Alpine's
08:15 departure for Greymouth. Heading back from Greymouth, there is no free shuttle meeting train arrivals
in Christchurch, but a fleet of normal shuttles to the city
centre will be waiting for the train and cost about NZ$6 per person.
Make a seating request: Seats are not allocated at
booking, but on departure. If you book by phone (or
book online and then call Tranz Scenic's freephone number when you get
to NZ at least the day before travel, quoting your booking
reference) you can make a seating
request. Seats on
the right-hand side of the train going to Greymouth probably
get the best views, or
the left-hand side returning to Christchurch. Keen photographers
could also request
seats close to the viewing
platform. Families or small groups may prefer a bay
of 4 seats around a table to unidirectional seats. Requests can't be guaranteed, of course,
but it doesn't hurt to ask!
The TranzAlpine stops briefly at Springfield in the
Canterbury Plain. The Southern Alps lie dead ahead...
The scenery on this route is world-class, and it's easy to take
great photo's from the open-air viewing car.
The Waimakiriri Gorge, seen from the TranzAlpine as it
starts its climb into the Southern Alps...
The Tranz-Alpine train ascends into the Southern Alps over
a series of girder bridges and tunnels...
Arthur's Pass, just before the Otira Tunnel...
Beyond Otira, the train
follows a broad river valley...
You should check in at least 20
minutes before departure at Christchurch's Tranz Scenic
railway station. This small modern rail terminal opened in 1993 in
the suburb of Addington, about 3 km (1.5 miles) southwest of
Christchurch city centre. You check-in at the desks in
the main entrance hall, where you are allocated your seat
numbers. Heavy baggage
must be checked in to the baggage car. The station
stands in the middle of an unremarkable industrial estate,
but this whole area was once the massive Addington
railway works where many of New Zealand Railways'
locomotives and rolling stock were made. There's
little left to show for it now! Christchurch's
original railway station was located on Moorhouse Avenue
immediately to the south of the city centre. The
old station building, completed in 1960 to a design
first published in 1938, still stands and is now the 'Science Alive'
entertainment centre. If you take the free shuttle
taxi to the station, you may drive past it.
The TranzAlpine leaves
Christchurch at 08:15, and within ten minutes the Addington cement works and freight yards give way to
small wooden suburban bungalows. Minutes later the
train is crossing flat open farmland, doing 60mph across the
Canterbury plain heading
relentlessly towards the snow-capped Southern Alps on the
horizon.
The train passes fields of sheep,
cattle, and red deer, passes the small commuter town of Darfield,
and the first tentative foothills appear. At around
9am the train calls at Springfield, where fresh muffins are
loaded aboard for the cafe-bar...
At around 09:20 the TranzAlpine starts
its climb into the Southern Alps, with views of the stunning Waimakiriri River gorge to the right.
As it climbs, the train crosses a
series of steel girder bridges over deep gorges and through a series of short
tunnels. The highest viaduct is the famous
'Staircase', 73 metres above the river. The scenery
here is spectacular.
By about 09.40, the train reaches
a grassy plateau dotted with hills. Hills give way to
more mountains, liberally hung with mist.
At 10:15 the TranzAlpine stops at Arthurs Pass station, surrounded by
yet more mist-laden
mountains, and there's time to get out , stretch your legs and take photographs.
Almost immediately after leaving
Arthurs Pass the train enters the Otira Tunnel. At 8.6
kilometres (5.3 miles) long, it's one of the longest tunnels
in New Zealand. It was only completed in 1923,
allowing direct train travel from east to west across the
South Island. This section of line was once
electrified, but now a door closes behind each train,
allowing the train to act as a huge piston, forcing the
diesel fumes out.
Just the other side of the tunnel
is Otira itself, where the TranzAlpine makes a very brief
call. Otira was a railway town, running the railway
that kept the coal flowing from the west coast coalfields to
Christchurch and the rest of New Zealand.
The train now follows a deep
valley containing a broad shallow river. It crosses
that river on a low bridge several times. Ever more
mist-laden mountains flank the valley, a wonderful part of
the journey. Watch out for
waterfalls...
At around 12:00 the TranzAlpine passes
the site of the Old Brunner Mine, just across the valley on
the other side of the Grey River. This was the site of
New Zealand's
worst mining disaster in 1896. An
ancient suspension bridge links the railway side of the
river with the mine.
The train passes Dobson, an old
coal-mining town though all the mines are now closed.
The TranzAlpine reaches Greymouth, a small town even by New Zealand standards, but
it's the west coast's main centre.
Even if it was warm and sunny in Christchurch, don't be
surprised if you need your umbrella in Greymouth..! Greymouth's
wooden station building now houses an extensive gift shop and travel
centre. Buses leave from just outside the station for
destinations down the west coast, including Franz Josef
Glacier. If you're returning to Christchurch the same
day you have an hour to explore the town or find some food - try the
Cafe 124, on the main road just along from the station.
The town clock is on the river bank, originally housed in the
tower of the impressive colonial post office. The post
office and its tower were demolished as they were thought to
be an earthquake risk, and the
clock now stands in its own short wooden tower. Next
to it on the river bank is a sign which warns against eating
fish caught next to the nearby sewer outlet. Welcome
to Greymouth..!
The train snakes its way through the Misty Mountains....
Enjoying a Devonshire cream tea from the cafe-bar...
The TranzAlpine runs along a broad valley flanked by
mist-laden mountains, crossing and re-crossing the river
several times...
Nearing Greymouth, the TranzAlpine passes the Brunner
Mine, site of New Zealand's worst mining disaster in
1896...
Journey's
end: The TranzAlpine arrived at Greymouth station on
the rainy west coast of NZ's south island.
The town clock at
Greymouth. The sign on the right warns you not to
eat
fish caught next to the sewer outlet!
Watch the
video - A journey on the Tranzalpine...
This video gives an excellent idea of just how good the
TranzAlpine train ride can be!
There is an
excellent Tranz Scenic Railpass giving unlimited travel on
all Tranz-Scenic trains including the TranzAlpine, and (if
you buy the ferry-inclusive version), the Interislander
Ferry between Wellington and Picton. If you're going
to travel on all 3 trains from Auckland to Wellington,
across on the ferry, down to Christchurch and on to
Greymouth, the 7-day pass is cheaper than buying normal
tickets. To buy online in the UK, see
www.internationalrail.com. For more information, see
www.tranzscenic.co.nz.
Once you have a railpass, it's easy to make seat
reservations to go with it simply by calling Tranz Scenic on 0800
TRAINS(0800
872467) when you're in New Zealand, or in
advance from outside New Zealand by calling 00
64 4 495 0775.
Thomas
Cook Overseas Timetable
It's probably
the most adventurous timetable ever produced... The famous Thomas Cook
Overseas Timetable has train, bus and shipping services for all of New
Zealand, Australia, Asia, America and Africa. It is published
every two months. No serious traveller should be without it..!
It costs £13.99 from the bureau de change section of any branch of Thomas
Cook, or it can be order by phone on 01733 416477 (+44 1733 416477
from outside the UK).
Make
sure you take a good guidebook. The Lonely Planets
and Rough Guides are easily the best out there for the independent traveller.
Both guides provide an excellent level of practical information and historical
and cultural background. You won't regret buying one of these
guides..!
Never travel overseas without travel insurance from a reliable
insurer, with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover. It should also cover
cancellation and loss of cash (up to a limit) and belongings.
An annual
multi-trip policy is usually cheaper than several single-trip
policies even for just 2 or 3 trips
a year (I have an annual policy myself). Here are some suggested insurers.
Seat61 gets a small commission if you buy through these
links.
If you live in the UK, get quotes from
Columbus Direct or
Go Travel Insurance, or go to
Confused.com to run a price comparison on a whole range of
travel insurance providers for your dates of travel, seeing
their policy's features at a glance..
Get a pre-paid currency MasterCard from Caxton FX...
You can save money on ATM charges and exchange rates using a
Caxton FX currency card, available in euros, dollars or the
multi-currency 'Global Traveller' card.
Find out about these cards & sign up here.
Get an international SIM card...
Mobile phones can cost a fortune to use abroad, and if you're
not careful you can return home to find some huge bills
waiting for you. I've known people run up a £1,000 bill
in data charges just by leaving their iPhone connected during a
simple trip to Europe. However, if you
buy a global SIM card for your mobile phone from a company
such as
www.Go-Sim.com you can slash the cost by up to 85% and
limit any damage to the amount you have pre-paid. It
cuts call costs in 175 countries worldwide,
and you can receive incoming calls and texts for free in 75 countries. It's pay-as-you-go, so no nasty bills
when you get home. It also works for laptop or PDA data
access. A Go-Sim account and any credit on it doesn't
expire if it's not between trips, unlike some
others, so a Go-Sim phone number becomes your 'global phone
number' for life.
If you live in the UK, get quotes from
If
you're resident in
Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the EU, try
If you're resident in the USA or Canada, try
