Join Southern Wanderer for an unforgettable early morning or midday cruise along Akaroa's picturesque Banks Peninsula coast!
A haven for wildlife and boasting wonderful photography opportunities, Banks Peninsula is an absolute must-see for anyone in the region. Our vessel is comfortable, safe and fast, allowing us to get down the harbour quickly to spend more time in the marine reserve and beyond - when conditions allow.
We’ll uncover dramatic views of the peninsula’s volcanic formations, spectacular cliffs, caves and coastal scenery. Throughout the cruise, we’ll pass sites of national historic significance and discuss events that helped shape New Zealand as a British colony in the 19th century.
We carry a maximum of 8 passengers, ensuring your trip is a personalised and uncrowded experience. Your friendly and highly experienced skipper and guide have an abundance of knowledge about the area and will share this with you along the way.
If you have any specific points of interest please let us know as we do our best to tailor the trips to suit the interests of our passengers.
You won't want to leave Akaroa without doing this cruise!
Meeting Location: Main Wharf, Beach Road, Akaroa, Canterbury
Departures: Morning departure is at 9.30am, afternoon departure is at 12pm (the later trip allows connection with shuttle services for a day-trip from Christchurch).
Check-In Time: Please make sure to arrive at the boat beside the main wharf at least 5 minutes prior to departure.
We went out on a very calm, overcast day and were lucky enough to sight about 5 or 6 pods of dolphins, including one swimming straight under the boat near the surface. Loved the small group, very knowledgeable and friendly guides. It felt more like friends were taking us out for a few hours. Would highly recommend to anyone thinking of a wildlife cruise.
John and Ollie were great hosts, very knowledgeable and friendly. The size of the boat means a more personalised experience than the the larger alternative tours and it was great to support a local family business. Lots of beautiful birds (you go further out into the water) and lovely frolicking dolphins.
Amazing day to be on the water, the crew were warm and welcoming where they offered a pretty unique experience where we got to see lot's of dolphins and some blue penguins along the way. It was a smaller boat which meant less people and that was quite nice as you were able to see more and get the full commentary from the crew during the trip. Thanks for an awesome trip and we will definitely be back. Highly recommended!!
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Jenna from Canada wrote on 26 February 2020
Fun Boat Tour, Super Nice Staff
We had so much fun on this tour and the family that runs it is so friendly and makes you feel very welcomed! They were very informative of all the species and animals we saw! I was a super fun time and we saw lots of penguins which was super cool! Would highly recommend this tour as there can only be a few passengers so you get to see and experience a lot more than on a bigger boat!