Routeburn Track

In the Great Walks season (late October to late April) every night on the Routeburn must be booked in advance through DOC, and your hut bunks are part of that booking. A standard trip is two nights: most walkers stay one night at Routeburn Flats or Routeburn Falls and one night at Lake Mackenzie, in whichever order suits their direction. (Lake Howden Hut, once the fourth hut, has been out of service since the 2020 fire.)

The popular dates sell out fast. When bookings open (usually around the middle of the year for the coming season), summer weekends and the settled spells in February and March go within minutes. Because a trip needs two huts to line up on consecutive nights, a single freed bunk at the right hut can be the difference between a confirmed walk and a "sold out" page.

Here's the thing though: the track is rarely actually full. Plans change, groups shrink, and the forecast turns, so cancellations trickle back into the system constantly. And because the Routeburn goes both ways, a freed bunk in either direction can quietly reopen a date that looked booked out for months.

If the track looks full, it's worth watching. That's what Spotbagger does: we check the DOC Great Walks booking page every few minutes and alert you the moment a complete two-night trip (in either direction) opens up for your party, so you can grab it before anyone else sees it.

The Great Walks season runs from late October to late April, when the huts are staffed, the bridges are in, and the track is managed for less-experienced walkers. Outside those dates the Routeburn becomes a serious alpine route, avalanche-prone and without hut wardens, and is not recommended for most.

The Harris Saddle and the open tops are exposed and can be cold, windy, and white-out even in summer; snow is possible early and late in the season. This is also wet country, sitting on the edge of Fiordland: side creeks rise quickly, Earland Falls can become impassable in heavy rain, and the views you came for can vanish into cloud for days. Sandflies are constant at the bush huts; bring repellent.

November and December bring long days and alpine flowers, with lingering snow up high. January and February are the warmest and busiest. March and April are quieter and crisp, with lower rivers but shorter, colder days. Whenever you go, a genuinely waterproof rain jacket is the most important thing in your pack.

There are three Great Walk huts on the track: Routeburn Flats Hut, in the river flats an easy first day from the Routeburn Shelter; Routeburn Falls Hut, perched at the bushline below the climb to Harris Saddle; and Lake Mackenzie Hut, beside the lake on the Fiordland side. Each has bunk rooms with mattresses, gas cookers, cold running water, and toilets, but no showers, no shops, and no power.

Your bunks are part of your booking, and which huts you stay in depends on your direction and pace. Walking from the Routeburn side you'll typically take Flats or Falls first, then Mackenzie; walking from The Divide you'll do the reverse. There are campsites at Routeburn Flats and Lake Mackenzie, but the huts are the usual Great Walk booking.

The track is well-formed and well-marked, but the alpine weather does the testing. The short list:

• Rain jacket: a proper hard-shell, fully waterproof, not water-resistant
• Warm layers: fleece or down mid-layer, even in midsummer, for Harris Saddle
• Waterproof boots: broken-in, with good tread for wet rock and roots
• Sleeping bag: the huts have mattresses but no bedding; bring a bag rated to at least 5°C
• Quick-dry clothing: you will get wet; cotton stays wet
• Insect repellent: serious sandfly defence at the bush huts

DOC publish a detailed gear list for the Great Walks; read it before you finalise your pack.

Both ends of the Routeburn are well away from the main towns, so transport is part of the trip and needs booking ahead. The Routeburn Shelter trailhead is about 45 minutes' drive beyond Glenorchy, itself an hour from Queenstown; The Divide sits on the Milford Road, roughly halfway between Te Anau and Milford Sound.

Because you finish a long way from where you started, most walkers use a track-transport operator rather than a car. Scheduled buses connect Queenstown and Te Anau to both trailheads, and many people combine the Routeburn with the Milford or the Greenstone–Caples. Sort your transport as soon as your hut booking is confirmed; in peak season the connections fill up too.

When do Routeburn Track bookings open?

DOC usually opens bookings for the coming season around the middle of the year. Summer weekends and the settled spells in February and March go within minutes.

The Routeburn is booked out. Can I still get a spot?

Often, yes. Plans change and bunks trickle back into the system constantly, and because the track is walked in both directions, a freed bunk in either one can reopen your dates. Set up a watch and we'll alert you the moment a complete trip opens for your party.

Which direction should I walk?

Either works. Start at the Routeburn Shelter (the Queenstown side) or at The Divide on the Milford Road; the scenery is the same and the hut order simply reverses. Direction usually comes down to which transport connections suit your trip.

Can I camp on the Routeburn?

There are campsites at Routeburn Flats and Lake Mackenzie, booked separately from the huts, but the huts are the usual Great Walk booking.