These scenic trains are becoming increasingly popular and they play an important role in taking tourists into some of New Zealand's less accessible regions
Scenic Coastal Pacific Train Operating to Kaikoura
One of New Zealand's great rail journeys – KiwiRail’s iconic Coastal Pacific scenic journey – will begin rolling again on December 1, 2018, two years after the service was put on hold as the railway line was rebuilt following the devastating November 14, 2016 Kaikoura earthquake.
The rail journey between Picton, at the northern end of the South Island, and Christchurch, on the eastern coast, is a spectacular journey. Beginning (or ending) in Picton, in the Marlborough Sounds, the train passes through the Marlborough wine region and follows the dramatic coastline south to Christchurch.