The best summer Great Walks for a last-minute place on the network

They say the early bird gets on the Routeburn. So, if you’re still asking “when do Great Walk bookings open” this close to Christmas, you may have missed your choice of bunks. The Department of Conservation (DoC) says that huts on the Great Walks are at 93 per cent capacity this summer. The Kepler and Milford tracks in Fiordland are completely booked out between now and the middle of January, with New Zealand’s favourite huts more than 99 per cent full for summer.

With the next year’s Great Walk booking window not expected for another six months (bunks are normally released by DoC between April and June) it would appear that late arrivals have missed their chance.

But for trampers who have been dragging their feet, there’s still a chance to make a Great Walk this summer, if you know where to look.

Which is the easiest Great Walk to get a place on this summer?

Despite a delayed start to the 2023/24 Great Walk booking window, some of the most popular huts are almost entirely full.

On trails like the Paparoa and Milford - which do not have tented options - there’s very little wiggle room for latecomers.

However, if you’re willing to bring a tent, that opens up a lot more options for walkers.

As sure as one foot follows the other, the Great Walk season is preceded by a rush for bunks. Photo / Thomas Bywater

While there are only 1400 bunks left between now and January 14, there are an additional 11,200 spaces in campsites. This opens up an additional 3000 spaces on the popular Abel Tasman Coastal Track, with beachside tent spots on the summer favourite tramping route. This also frees up 600 tented spots on the Kepler in Fiordland, for those willing to tough it out under canvas on the beautiful alpine route.

However, latecomers don’t have to rough it.

The Heaphy Track on the West Coast, which only recently reopened, has plenty of space to cater for latecomers.

Booking Services Manager for DoC, Cameron Hyland, said that the Heaphy is currently 44 per cent booked between now and January 14 - having “recently reopened as an end-to-end walk after storm damage in 2022 cut the track in two”.

The Whanganui River is his second tip for trampers looking for a last-minute adventure. The 145-kilometre river journey from Taumarunui to Pipiriki is only 55 per cent booked.

“While there are plenty of spaces remaining, this is due to capacity rather than popularity - in fact the Whanganui Journey has the second-highest number of bed nights booked of all the Great Walks,” Hyland said.

Hikers pause at Lake Waikaremoana, one of the highlights of Te Urewera National Park. Photo / Amos Chapple

How many Great Walks are open?

Another late re-addition to the network is the Lake Waikaremoana Trail. After almost a year of disruption, the network of 10 Great Walks are set to all be open by the end of summer.

The three-night journey through Te Urewera is nearing completion on 11-month-long storm repairs following Cyclone Gabrielle. Waikaremoana aims to welcome its first walkers from January 10.

Kirsti Luke, CEO for Tūhoe Te Uru Taumatua, the tribal authority which manages the forest trails for Ngāi Tūhoe says that - subject to weather - they hope to see the first overnight walkers return from the beginning of next year.

“The Tuhoe and Te Urewera boards made a call to get as much as possible open in order that our regional communities and wider get to enjoy,” says Luke.

If you want a preview of the next Great Walk, the Hump Ridge track out of Tuatapere has delayed being awarded Great Walk status for another year, but is open for walkers despite ongoing works.

The new Mintaro Hut on the Milford Track Great Walk. Photo / Thomas Bywater

Can I still book the Milford Sound track?

The Milford Track’s coveted 3200 bunks were all taken in under an hour when the trail opened for booking in April this year.

Your only hope this side of summer is a cancellation - which are not unheard of, but not worth betting on.

DoC says cancellation rates for all tracks sit between 10 to 25 per cent of bookings, which are subsequently rereleased to the Great Walks system.

However it’s worth noting that this data is skewed by closures and extreme weather events, when nobody is going to be able to use the huts.

If you’ve got your heart set on walking to Piopiotahi/Milford Sound, there’s no harm in checking the booking website.

The best chance of getting onto the Milford is to be up with the first release, when these open six months before the coming Great Walk season.

Or, if you’re not a purist and you have some money to spend, Ultimate Hikes run a guided option in private huts. However, demand for these is equally high, with only three single spaces left over the summer high-season - at $2595 per tramper. This is not guaranteed either.