Experience a comfortable up-close encounter with some of the most amazing wildlife and stunning coastlines around Akaroa and Banks Peninsula!
Join us for a wildlife tour that explores the spectacular volcanic coastline and abundant wildlife of Banks Peninsula and Akaroa.
Our wildlife tour numbers are kept limited, offering you a small and intimate tour that will take you where others can’t, with amazing views of New Zealand’s wildlife. Our friendly and knowledgeable crew love meeting and talking with our guests. Tony, a real Kiwi, has been exploring the waters around the Peninsula since the 1960s. He’ll entertain you with his the stories of his adventures and share his enthusiasm for this wonderful environment and stunning wildlife.
Our characterful and comfortable boat - Wairiri, is a 41-foot Kauri Launch built in 1964. Our tours specialise in small groups and enough space to move around the boat for the best wildlife viewing and photo opportunities! On your tour you’ll see gigantic cliffs, go inside sea caves and get close to all the incredible wildlife. Tony often still has a lobster pot out and we pull it up on some of our trips. We never know what we find in it: Lobster, octopus, conger eel, starfish and sand sharks are just a few of the creatures we might have caught.
Experience Akaroa and Banks Peninsula on this intimate boat tour where you’ll see stunning wildlife and extraordinary views of the coastline!
All prices are shown in NZD ($)
Hi Sue Thank you for choosing Coast up Close and this fabulous 5 star review. We love to know that our guests enjoy their time with us out there. Have a great 2024. Cheers, Tony and Mafi
Incredible tour! Saw many birds, seals, and dolphins with great stories and information from Tony and Mafi. An absolute must-see for all, especially if you like wildlife, beautiful views, and photography!
Hi Jenny Thank you for joining our cruise yesterday and this 5 star review, it was a pleasure to have you on board. Enjoy the rest of your NZ trip. All the best, Tony and Mafi
Such a great tour. Relaxing and comfortable. The tour guides give you just the right balance of privacy and conversation, the wildlife is magnificent and the views are spectacular. The boat is clean and tidy. On our tour we had our 2 year old and also an elderly woman and they accommodated both with a smile. My kid even got to captain the boat!
Hi Rebecca Thank you for choosing Coast up Close and this amazing 5 star review. It was a pleasure to have you and your family on board including your 2 year old, he was great and so well behaved. Have a fab Christmas and best wishes for 2025. Cheers, Tony and Mafi
Excellent trip around beautiful Akaroa bay and out to ocean, seeing many dolphins, some seals and waterbirds - and a small shark and large crayfish in the craypot that host Tony pulled up. Friendly, well informed commentary and good value for money
Hi Anthony Thank you for joining us yesterday and giving us five stars. It was lovely to have your family on board and maybe see you again sometime soon. Cheers, Tony and Mafi
Best boat tour in NZ!! Tony and Mafi were amazing hosts - so friendly, kind and knowledgeable. We saw SO MANY Hectors dolphins! It was clear that they felt comfortable and safe approaching our boat and they spent so much time swimming at the bow of the boat - it was MAGICAL. The group was small and there was so much room to move around to every part of the boat. We stood right at the front looking for dolphins and had so much fun!! We also saw lots of seals and even a little blue penguin and albatrosses! We can't recommend this tour highly enough. It is so affordable - we had so much time on the water and it felt so relaxed. Tony was so sweet with the little kids on board and both Mafi and Tony clearly love what they do which makes the tour so special. Thank you so much guys!! Shauna & Amelia (Ireland and U.K.)
Hi Shauna and Amelia Thank you for joining us the other day and this fabulous 5 star review. It was great fun having you on the boat and we are looking forward to seeing you again soon. Cheers, Tony and Mafi
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suew18 from New Zealand wrote on 29 December 2023
Awesome Cruise
What a fab "Coast Up Close" cruise this was⛵️ Our crew Tony & Mafi were awesome with a fantastic array of knowledge👍 We certainly did get up close to nature as it is a small boat!⛵️ We saw loads of dolphins🐬 🐬 🐬, birdlife 🐦🐦🐦, seals🦭🦭🦭 Thank you guys for a fab cruise... we would highly recommend😊