Hi Fellow Travelers,
The pacing of the trip is very good. Don't change a thing for Queenstown, Milford Sound and the glaciers. Perfect time of the year, too - with a bit of luck the trees will just starting to turn color when you're in Queenstown/Arrowtown, which always looks lovely there. (And then you drive over the great divide, and arrive in rainforest land around the glaciers, and wonder what happened to the seasons.)
As for Greymouth and Hanmer Springs: I like them, but they're not that interesting/spectacular. You already mention Mt. Cook yourself, and near to there is Lake Tekapo, my absolute favorite place in New Zealand, and an utter delight for photography, with the sunset light always being amazing. Christchurch used to be amazing, but after the earthquake it's still mostly in ruins. Might be that by the time of your trip next year it'll be better, but might be not. In which case, how's this for the end of the trip:
March 31 -Depart early to Arthur's Pass
April 1 - Depart Arthur's Pass to Lake Tekapo
April 2 - Stay at Lake Tekapo; eye the clouds, and if they're light, head over to Mt. Cook (1 hour drive; after 30 minutes you're at Lake Pukaki and can see if you can see Mt. Cook itself at the far end of the lake; if not, just turn back), otherwise explore around Lake Tekapo
April 3 - idem (so with a bit of luck you have one day at Mt. Cook, and one day at Lake Tekapo itself); late departure to Christchurch (or Queenstown; you're about halfway between the two, so flights could go from either)
April 4 - Home to Australia
I'm running out of time for writing, but see for a bit more about Lake Tekapo, or .
[ 31-Jul-2013, at 01:25 by Sander ]
I'll echo Sander - Hanmer Springs isn't a wow when you're tight on time.
You may end up spending less time at the glaciers than you're planning - they 're great but a three hour heli hike or a walk up to the snout and you may be done.
Andy
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