Whanganui Journey, New Zealand

Although classified as one of the Great Walks, the Whanganui Journey is down a river in the National Park in New Zealand's North Island. A river trip in a kayak.

North Island
5 days
145 km

Peak Season is October to April - Pass required

Off Season - Hut tickets required

Winding its way down to the Tasman Sea, this River passes through central North Island valleys, forests, and hills.

On average, this 45 kilometre trip down the River between Taumarunui and Pipiriki needs five days of canoeing or kayaking for completion. There is also an option of a shorter three day trip between Whakahoro to Pipiriki.

There are hiking tracks in this National Park region if you don't want to kayak down the river, or if you are with a party where your activity interests are split between river and dry land.

This region has a unique history and Māori culture is an important part of the National Park experience. In the early years, more than 600 years ago, Māori used the River to trade and communicate with other tribes at distances as far away as the Bay of Plenty, Waikato, Taupo and Taranaki regions.

Located in the middle of the North Island, the closest towns are Taumarunui to the north and Wanganui to the south, with smaller towns of Pipiriki, Ohinepane, and Whakahoro providing access to the Whanganui Journey River.

Check the Department of Conservation site to find fee guides and book huts and camp sites

Have a Story about the New Zealand Great Walks to Share?

Have you been on one of the New Zealand Great Walks? Or... do you know someone else who has hiked one of these famous tracks who would like to tell their story and share their experience?

If you have special New Zealand Great Walks stories to share we would love to hear about them. Whether you talk about the location, the track, the scenery or weather conditions, your guide or friends, or the funny moments you remember about a walk. It's great fun to share your holiday experiences with others.

Enter Your Story Title (ex, "Snow on Tongariro Northern Circuit" or "Hiking the Hepler Track")

Write your New Zealand Great Walks Story. [ ? ]

Close Help Entering your story is easy to do. Just type!... Your story will appear on a Web page exactly the way you enter it here. You can wrap a word in square brackets to make it appear bold. For example [my story] would show as my story on the Web page containing your story. TIP: Since most people scan Web pages, include your best thoughts in your first paragraph.

Upload your New Zealand Great Walks photo (optional) [ ? ]

Close Help Do you have a picture to add? Great! Click the button and find it on your computer. Then select it. Important Note: The image file should be (jpg) or (gif) and the maximum image size accepted is 800x600.

Add a Picture/Graphic Caption (optional) 

Click here to upload more images (optional)

Add a Picture/Graphic Caption (optional) 

Add a Picture/Graphic Caption (optional) 

Add a Picture/Graphic Caption (optional) 

Author Information (optional)

To receive credit as the author, enter your information below.

Your Name	(first or full name)
Your Location	(ex. City, State, Country)

Submit Your Contribution

Check box to agree to these submission guidelines.

(You can preview and edit on the next page)

Track Maps

For free track maps covering all the New Zealand Great Walks visit my page on New Zealand Track Maps and each map is provided on the dedicated track pages linked against each walk above.