Sunrise over the Okarito Lagoon

Our new Early Bird Tour departs the Okarito Wharf at 7:30 am and returns at 8:45 am.  (bookings essential please!) Cost is $60/adult and $35 for youths (8-16)   (All Okarito Boat Tours are free for children under 8 when accompanied by an adult.)

We have always advocated the morning trips as being the best at Okarito  -  Conditions are typically brilliant for interested photographers and nature lovers who are keen to get up a little earlier to experience this beautiful time of day.

Spoonbills feeding on the tidal flats of Okarito Lagoon

The 9:00 AM departure is a more casual start, but superb morning conditions and usually plenty of birds to see feeding on the tidal flats. The plunger coffee and Swade’s home baked cookies are always a surprise and what a treat up in the rainforest!

The 11:30 trip is also a great option, especially if you are arriving from further afield (25 minutes from Franz Josef and 1-1.15 hours from Fox Glacier or 1.5 hours from Hokitika)  One hour afternoon trips are at 2:30 and 4 PM.

We have NO minimum numbers for our 2 hour tours and just 2 people minimum for our 1 hour tours. Check in is at Okarito Nature Tours – watch for our sign at the entranceway – just a few minutes before departure.  We meet you there and it’s just a 2 minute walk to the wharf.  (Note: the Early Bird Tour only meets right at the Wharf – plenty of parking there now with the improvements made this season)

White Heron in Okarito Village

Bird update!  We are just coming into the best time of year to view birds on the Okarito Lagoon!

The white herons have had a remarkable breeding season and the young will now be leaving the nests and arriving on the Lagoon to feed alongside the adults and the Royal Spoonbills.  We have a good number of Bar Tailed Godwits (they come here from Alaska & Siberia!), Pied Stilts and even the occasional shy Bittern.  We can typically see about 20-25 different species of birds on a two hour tour.

The views!of the mountains have been spectacular – we’ve probably had more Mount Cook and Tasman views from the water this year than usual – again the morning tours are best.

Okarito Mountain Views

Okarito Accommodation – we offer a package price for cottage rentals with a morning boat tour – please call for availability.  Prices start at $255 for 2 adults – accommodation & 2 Hour Nature Tour.

And! we have just added our Kiwi Sizzler BBQ to the boat for an added feature – available for small tour groups, families or charters with advance notice (min 24 hours) we can offer an optional BBQ lunch. Prices and times available on request.

Hope you are enjoying  a fabulous summer! see you soon in Okarito!

Boat tour on a sunny morning on the Okarito Lagoon

(National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research) have been attributing this to La Nina – read more about why you want to be here this summer!

Seasonal Climate Outlook Jan-March 2012

The white herons are raising more chicks than usual with perfect breeding conditions and plenty of food in the Okarito Lagoon.  The banded dotterels have had a great season of successful hatches, with some on their second round.  The caspian and white fronted terns have been seen in a frenzy of fishing alongside the boat – amazing to watch as they plummet straight into the water!

Hope to see you here in the sunshine this summer – we have accommodation available in cottages or the community campground – for more information please contact us or visit our accommodation page on this website.

Okarito Accommodation

Discovering this idyllic place, we find ourselves filled with a yearning to linger here, where time stands still and beauty overwhelms. ___Anonymous

Happy Holidays from Okarito

Thank you Steve for the photos – what a great morning!

The white herons had an incredibly successful breeding season and by early January we had juvenile birds joining the adults on the lagoon.  Swade took this marvelous photo of an adult bird with a small eel while on a morning trip.

Royal spoonbills were also around in huge numbers and entertaining as always with their animated feeding habits.  We also had spotted shags, good numbers of pied stilts and oystercatchers, white fronted terns, caspian terns and some lesser knots. 

The godwits arrived early in the spring, then vanished for a few weeks when the lagoon water levels were quite high.  They returned as the water levels retreated and then all summer we saw them feeding on the tidal flats.  They looked rounded and rosy before heading back to Alaska for their breeding season just a few weeks ago – we wish them well on their arduous journey.  There remains a grouping of juvenile godwits here for the winter.

We are now having a “mast” year with fruiting of many trees including the tall kahikatea trees which are absolutely loaded with bright orange berries.  These are very sweet and another great source of food for tui’s and bellbirds.  We also have a large number of fantails around right now and have had some incredibly good sightings of Australasian bitterns! very exciting to have these birds around, both in the village and up the Okarito River.

Our tours will be operating with regular hours until the end of May when we will be readying to leave for Canada for the next few months (June-August)  and will resume our trips in September.

We’ve had some outstanding bird sightings on the lagoon with the white herons, royal spoonbills, godwits, south island pied oyster catchers, dotterals, pied stilts and more.  It’s been a great year for the terns, both Caspian and white fronted terns.  Swade caught this one on camera drifting past on a morning trip – just posing for him! 

Although we have been predominantly viewing herons on the lagoon feeding, this one has found it’s favorite perch in the rainforest and we often see it here.  The colour contrast is amazing with the clear blue skies, rainforest and the incredible white of the herons feathers.

And of course, the early risers are always in for a treat.  We are happy to do early morning departures on request which are often for keen birders, or photographers.  This one was for a photographer who really lucked out with dramatic morning colours – Swade took this from the Wharf where the tours depart at about 6:30 AM – beautiful!

Being small operators, we rarely take time away during these busier summer months, but having a boat has its advantages!  The other night we headed off up the northwest side of the lagoon to the secluded North Beach of Okarito and camped out for the night.  After a meal cooked over the coals of a fire (salmon, grilled vegies and couscous and corn on the cob – yum!), we watched the sky fill with stars and saw the Southern Cross and Orion. 

Early morning we headed back in time for breakfast and to meet our 9 AM guests.  With slightly overcast skies, Mount Cook and Tasman rose up above the clouds and it was another stunningly beautiful morning on Okarito Lagoon.

Warmer temperatures are finally here and it does feel like summer.  There has been plenty of bird activity not only on the lagoon but right around the village of Okarito.  A short stroll down the main street and around on the beach will probably reward you with some great close up photo opportunites for young paradise ducklings and banded dotterals.  See you at the beach!

Swade of Okarito Boat Tours and A Day at the Beach festivities

A Day at the Beach
25/09/09 3:15 PM

A Day at the Beach Festival is the inspiration of Coasters Louis Brown and Guy Ryan. Late September Louis finished a solo walk from Karamea to Franz Josef – walking along the West Coast and inspiring other West Coasters to engage in educational and fun activities along the way.

He arrived in Okarito on Tuesday Sept 23 in great spirits. We met him on the North Beach of Okarito and after a good nights rest he joined a group of local school kids from Franz Josef and interested adults too who took part in A Day at the Beach Festival at Okarito. Sarah Bond from the Department of Conservaiton and Karen Mayhew of the Blue Penguin Trust put on a great slideshow and talk in Donovan’s Historic Store in Okarito.

As the grey skies cleared to brilliant sunshine, Okarito Boat Tours ferried everyone across the mouth of the Okarito Lagoon to the North Beach. Paula took everyone for a walk up the beach to a hidden cemetery and gave an impromptu talk on the human history of the area. It was great to mix the ecology of this unique environment with the human history and eco-tourism of today in an educational format. Thanks to Louis and Guy for their great festival which has inspired so many others to come out and appreciate the incredible environment we are so fortunate to live in.

For more information and some great photos on the festival visit www.adayatthebeach.org.nz.

The birdlife is great as many of the forest birds come down to lower areas as the snow and colder weather creeps down the mountains.  There is a lot of fantail and fernbird activity in and around the village and in the forest waterways of Okarito Lagoon, as well as bellbirds and countless silvereyes.

On the water we are seeing white herons feeding – these birds will likely be with us year round now.  One in particular is a regular around the historic Wharf where our trips depart from.  He seems quite happy to have his photo taken!

Winter in Okarito is a blissfully quiet and serene time to visit.  Our regularly scheduled trips can be customized to suit your itinerary, so feel free to drop a line or inquire about accommodation and boat tour specials as well.  We look forward to your company in Okarito!