Today marks the start of our South Traverse independent tour with Scenic Pacific. The so-called independent tour simply means that we get to travel independently on specific planned routes by coaches. This package is perfect for a hassle free travel where accommodations are also included.
We started the journey with an amazing ride via the internationally famed Tranzalphine Train that goes from coast to coast from Christchurch to Greymouth. Touted as one of the best scenic train rides in the world, this is definitely a must-do for us.
As this is a scenic train, the windows are big and clean, with monitors hanging from the roof showing the current location of the train on a map. The train provides headphones for those who required audio commentary. There's a small cafe on the train where you can bought some snacks along the way. All the way at the front, an open -air carriage allows the passengers to take photographs without a glass window between your camera and the landscape. This is really a bonus point for us because the mountainous landscapes with meandering rivers toppled with yellow blooming flowers were truly spectacular. Overall, the carriages are comfortable and modern.
As the train arrived at Arthur Pass Train Station, we were able to get off the train for a short break. As far as the scenery goes, only the pictures can speak for itself.
We then proceed on with our journey and soon arrived at GreyMouth Station where we boarded our Intercity bus and headed off to the town of Franz Joseph.
The bus journey to Franz Josef took us approximately 2 hours. The scenic landscape along the way was too beautiful for us to fall asleep. Our eyes were glued to the window at all time. The glacier river and the valleys made a paranormal view.
As we arrived at Franz Josef, we wasted no time checking into our hotel @ Franz Josef Glacier Hotel. This property is amazing with rooms facing Franz Josef mountain and centrally located within the village. Perfect for a relaxing retreat!
Franz Josef is really quite a small town with not many places to shop. There were however quite a number of restaurants and bars. People actually came all the way here to visit the spectacular glacier valley or even take a heli-hike to the top of the glacier. We had booked a heli-hike to the glacier however, due to bad weather, the organizer had cancelled the trip. Since we only one day left, we were not able to wait for another day for the heli-hike. This would be the deepest regret of my trip. We were left with no choice but to participate in the glacier valley walk, which is a pretty enjoyable hike as well. However, we can only catch a glimpse of the glacier form far which looked pretty tiny and not at all magnificent.
The glacier valley walk can be easily completed within 3 hrs and hence we decided to relax ourselves with a dip in the glacier hot pool. There were a total of three different pool of varying temperatures. I very much enjoy the dip in the 40 degree Celsius pool. Heavenly luxury at its best! This pretty much sum up my trip @ Franz Josef. Given that the glacier is retreating fast, I was told that there would not be any glacier left in the years to come. Hence, I might not visit again if my aim is really to do a heli-glacier hike.
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