A wonderfully relaxing cruise on a beautiful ship. The guide was a little too fast for my liking (it was hard for some of the group memembers to keep up with him), but he was very knowledgeable on the flora and fauna of the island. There were even tea and busicuits on the way back to Wanaka. On the whole, a very enjoyable way to discover more about the lake and its islands.
The captain and first mate were great! Could walk around the boat, buy a drink at the on-boat bar, and enjoy the sites on the ride over. Disembarked and took a short walk up to a view point. Back on the boat for complementary biscuits and tea for the ride back. Would recommend.
Booked online, then the next day hopped on the boat, looking forward to a peaceful cruise on Lake Wanaka. The weather was perfect, sun, blue skies, water reflecting the sky, great visibility. It’s a fairly small catamaran, think there were a max of 18 of us and we all found a place to sit and enjoy the rays and tranquillity. After 45 mins we alighted at Stevensons Island, and followed the guide up to the top of the hill. It’s a pretty easy 15 min walk, gentle slope up, with only a couple of rocky/steepish parts that I needed a stable husband to support me with. Lovely view from the top, so worth the short hike. There’s a loo onboard and on the return trip we were served a cuppa and biscuits. Perfect. A lovely two hour excursion which l would highly recommend.
Practically, just boat ride. No history while en route. Walked at the claim is just a short walk and our guide had no knowledge of the vegetation around us. He did try to explain Manuka and Kanuka trees, but did not know much, and he admitted that. Tea and biscuits on the way back were ok, regular butter cookies and nothing special about that. No need to spend the kind of money on this boat ride. I’m writing review for that cruise and nature walk. No need to spend so much money on this boat ride.
Weather was perfect - sea was very calm. Our sea captain and tour guide were very friendly and knowledgeable. Idyllic 45 minute trip each way to the island, with time on the island for a comfortable walk to a lookout. Drink and biscuits were supplied on the way back to the marina