Queen Charlotte Track hiking guide: route map, stages & where to stay

The Queen Charlotte Track is a 73.5 km coastal walk in the Marlborough Sounds, at the top of New Zealand's South Island. It runs from Meretoto/Ship Cove, at the mouth of Queen Charlotte Sound (Tōtaranui), to Anakiwa at its head, along bays, beech forest and a long ridge between Queen Charlotte and Kenepuru Sounds. There is no road to the start, so a boat from Picton drops you at Ship Cove. Most walkers take 3 to 5 days and sleep in lodges, resorts and cabins on the water, or in six DOC campsites. Water taxis can carry your pack from one night's stop to the next, so many people walk with a day pack.

The route

From Ship Cove the track climbs through old forest to a saddle with views over the outer sound, drops to Resolution Bay and follows an old bridle path over a ridge into Endeavour Inlet, where the first lodges sit on the shore. Day 2 follows the coast round Big Bay to Camp Bay and Punga Cove. From Kenepuru Saddle the track climbs onto the ridge and stays high for most of two days, with views down to both sounds, past Bay of Many Coves and Black Rock to Torea Saddle above Portage. The last day keeps to the ridge to Te Mahia Saddle and Mistletoe Bay, then follows old bridle paths above the water to Davies Bay and through mature beech forest to the jetty at Anakiwa.

This guide follows the route mapped on OpenStreetMap and splits it into 4 stages, about 17.2 km each: the classic 4-day plan with nights at Endeavour Inlet, Camp Bay and Torea Saddle. The OSM line is about 69 km, a little shorter than the official 73.5 km, mainly because it takes the direct track past Camp Bay. The highest point is about 475 m on the ridge above Bay of Many Coves, and the total climb is about 2,300 m.

Highlights

• Meretoto/Ship Cove: the only place James Cook visited on all three of his Pacific voyages, with Cook monuments and carved pouwhenua
• The first saddle: views over the inner and outer sound about an hour from the start
• Endeavour Inlet: a sheltered inlet with historic Furneaux Lodge and the remains of antimony mining
• The Kenepuru ridge: day 3, with both sounds below you for hours and campsites in the bush at Bay of Many Coves and Black Rock
• Onahau Lookout: a short side walk near Te Mahia Saddle with wide views over the inner sound
• Anakiwa: the end of the track, beside the Outward Bound school, with a café and a jetty

When to walk the Queen Charlotte Track

The track is open all year. December to February is warm, busy and best for swimming: book early. Mountain bikes are banned from Ship Cove to Kenepuru Saddle from 1 December to 28 February, so the first two days are quieter for walkers. March to May and October to November are often the nicest: settled weather, fewer people and lower prices, though wasps are common in late summer and autumn. In winter (June to August) the days are short and the clay is slippery, and some lodges close for the season, so check before you book.

How many days do you need?

The 4 stages here are the classic 4 days: Ship Cove to Endeavour Inlet (about 17 km), Endeavour Inlet to Camp Bay (11.5 km), Camp Bay to Torea Saddle (24.5 km, the longest day) and Torea Saddle to Anakiwa (20.5 km). For an easier 5 days, split the long ridge day at Bay of Many Coves or Black Rock, or split the last day at Te Mahia, Mistletoe Bay or Lochmara Lodge. Fit walkers do it in 3 days by skipping Camp Bay.

Permits and booking

The first two days are on public conservation land, and walking is free. From Kenepuru Saddle to Anakiwa the track crosses private land, and every walker and rider needs a QCTLC pass from the Queen Charlotte Track Land Cooperative: $25 for one day, $50 for five consecutive days or $75 for a season in 2026 (school children free). Buy it online, in the QCTLC app, at the Picton, Blenheim or Havelock i-SITE, or from boat operators and lodges. It does not cover campsite fees.

The six DOC campsites (Schoolhouse Bay, Camp Bay, Bay of Many Coves, Black Rock, Cowshed Bay and Davies Bay) must be booked online at any time of year: $10 per adult per night ($15 at Cowshed Bay) and $5 for children. They have toilets and water but no cooking facilities, and you cannot camp at Ship Cove. Book lodges well ahead for summer and public holidays.

Getting there and logistics

Picton is the base: it is the South Island port for the Cook Strait ferries from Wellington and is about 30 minutes by road from Blenheim and Marlborough Airport. Boat operators such as Cougar Line and Beachcomber Cruises run scheduled trips to Ship Cove (about an hour) and to the jetties at Endeavour Inlet, Camp Bay, Portage and Mistletoe Bay; they also carry packs each day and pick you up at Anakiwa. Book the boat, pack transfer and rooms together. Kenepuru Road to Portage has weekday roadworks and closures through 2026 because of storm repairs, so do not plan to drive in.

Money and phone signal: there are no ATMs or shops on the track apart from small lodge stores and cafés. Most lodges take cards, but carry some cash. Mobile coverage is unreliable from Ship Cove to Camp Bay; the ridge on days 3 and 4 has good signal.

What to pack

If a boat carries your bag, you need only a day pack with rain jacket, warm layer, sun hat, sunscreen, lunch and at least 2 litres of water: the ridge between Kenepuru Saddle and Te Mahia Saddle has little water. Campers need a tent, stove, food and a way to treat water, and must carry out all rubbish. Wear shoes with good grip for wet clay, and bring insect repellent and, if you react to wasp stings, antihistamines.

Difficulty and safety

The track is graded easy to intermediate. The path is wide and well formed, but the ridge days are long, with many short climbs, and walking times of 4 to 8 hours a day. Rain turns the clay slippery, and some rebuilt sections are still soft and narrow, with repair machinery working in places in 2026. The track is shared with mountain bikers: keep left, listen on blind corners and step aside for riders. Treat all water, including campsite taps. Fires are banned. In an emergency call 111; carry a personal locator beacon for days 1 and 2.

History

Māori have lived in the Sounds for centuries; Ngāti Apa, Ngāti Kuia and Rangitāne were the early iwi, and Te Ātiawa are the guardians today. James Cook anchored at Meretoto/Ship Cove on all three of his voyages in the 1770s and spent 170 of his 328 days in New Zealand there. Later settlers farmed the bays and mined antimony in Endeavour Inlet. Today the track crosses DOC reserves and private farmland and forms part of Te Araroa, New Zealand's long trail.