Travel Guide of Lake Pukaki in New Zealand by Influencers and Travelers

Lake Pukaki is the largest of three roughly parallel alpine lakes running north–south along the northern edge of the Mackenzie Basin on New Zealand's South Island. The others are Lakes Tekapo and Ohau.

Pictures and Stories of Lake Pukaki from Influencers

20 pictures of Lake Pukaki from Casey Horner, Jean-Pierre Brungs, Yoal Desurmont and other travelers

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The Best Things to Do and Visit around Lake Pukaki

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1 - Ben Ohau Range

   19 km away

Ben Ohau Range is a mountain range in Canterbury Region, South Island, New Zealand. It lies west of Lake Pukaki, at 44°S 170°E and east of the Dobson river and Lake Ohau. The Ben Ohau range is dominated at the southern end by Ben Ohau.

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2 - Lake Tekapo

   26 km away

Lake Tekapo is a small township located at the southern end of the lake of the same name in the inland South Island of New Zealand. It had 558 residents according to the 2018 census, being one of five settlements in the sparsely populated Mackenzie Basin. State Highway 8 runs directly through the township – 227 kilometres from Christchurch and 256 kilometres from Queenstown. Daily shuttle services link Lake Tekapo to Christchurch and Queenstown. The lake is a popular tourist destination, and several resort hotels are located at the township. Lake Tekapo Airport is located 5 kilometres west of the town where local tourism operator Air Safaris is based. Twizel lies 60 km south of Lake Tekapo via Lake Pukaki and Burkes Pass lies 21 km west along State Highway 8.

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3 - Helicopter tours in Aoraki / Mount Cook

   18 km away

Adventure into Mount Cook National Park and heli hike across Tasman Glacier. Witness the beauty of the Tasman Glacier lake and the stunning ice formations from the helicopter as you fly over the spectacular Tasman Glacier. Once you descend and step f...

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4 - Church of the Good Shepherd

   26 km away
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5 - Tekapo

   27 km away

Lake Tekapo is a small town located at the southern end of the lake of the same name in the inland South Island of New Zealand. It had 369 residents according to the 2013 census, being one of five settlements in the sparsely populated Mackenzie Basin. SH 8 runs directly through the township – 227 km from Christchurch and 256 km from Queenstown. Daily shuttle services link Lake Tekapo to Christchurch and Queenstown. The lake is a popular tourist destination, and several resort hotels are located at the township. Lake Tekapo Airport is located 5 km west of the town. Chartered flights are available at locally based Air Safaris. Twizel lies 60km south of Lake Tekapo via Lake Pukaki and Burkes Pass lies 21km west along state highway 8.

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6 - Lake Ohau

   29 km away

Lake Ōhau is a lake in the Mackenzie Basin in the South Island of New Zealand. The Hopkins and Dobson rivers fed into the northern end of Lake Ōhau. These rivers have their headwaters in the Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana.

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7 - Lake Alexandrina

   29 km away

Lake Alexandrina is a lake located in the Mackenzie Basin of New Zealand's South Island. It lies immediately to the west of the much larger Lake Tekapo and further to the east of Lake Pukaki, located to the north of Lake Tekapo township.

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8 - Southern Alps

   35 km away

The Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the range's western side.

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9 - Aoraki/Mount Cook

   40 km away

Aoraki / Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand. Its height, as of 2014, is listed as 3,724 metres. It lies in the Southern Alps, the mountain range which runs the length of the South Island.

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10 - Hooker Valley track

   40 km away
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11 - Hooker Lake

   44 km away

Hooker Lake is a proglacial lake that started to form in the late 1970s by the recent retreat of the Hooker Glacier. It is in the Hooker Valley, in the Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park in New Zealand's South Island, just south of Aoraki / Mount Cook.

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12 - Omarama

   49 km away

Omarama is a small town at the junction of State Highways 8 and 83, near the southern end of the Mackenzie Basin, in the South Island of New Zealand. Omarama is in the Waitaki District, in the southern Canterbury region. The Ahuriri River is a short distance to the north of the township.

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Learn More about Lake Pukaki

This lake leading to Mount Cook village is incredible. Its barely imaginable blue colour is a source of wonder to all who pass by. The road that runs along the lake for about thirty kilometres is one of the most beautiful roads in the country and one can't count the number of photo stops that one makes there, as each kilometre covered seems to offer an even more magical panorama than the previous one. Lake Pukaki, like its neighbour Lake Tekapo, is a real postcard landscape. It is a must-see if you are heading to Mount Cook. The turquoise water of the lake and the mountains in the background form a magnificent landscape. This amazing colour is perfectly natural: it comes from micro particles of rock suspended in the water. These come from the glaciers that feed Lake Pukaki upstream. The result is striking. Once here, all you have to do is enjoy and relax. You can take a short walk along the water's edge, but remember that this lake is about 30 kilometres long and 6 kilometres wide. If the evening aperitif is rather pleasant with the view of the surroundings, imagine waking up in the morning, with the landscape offered by the glaciers

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