Tour the western end of Queen Charlotte Sound on a half-day paddling adventure from Picton. Settle into your sea kayak and follow an expert guide from the waterfront to sheltered coves and remote beaches. Search the waters for eagles rays, cormorants, little blue penguins, New Zealand fur seals and dolphins while you learn about the natural history of the Marlborough Sounds. Numbers are limited to ensure a small-group experience.

Half-day sea kayak tour of the Marlborough Sounds
Paddle from the Picton waterfront to Queen Charlotte Sound
Keep an eye out for dolphins, fur seals and little blue penguins
Learn about the area’s natural history from an expert guide
Small-group tour ensures personalized attention

What's Included

Local guide
All necessary equipment provided

Food and drinks

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

1 London Quay, Picton 7220, New Zealand
Our office is located at the Picton Waterfront on the corner of London Quay and Wellington Street

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
Not recommended for travelers with back problems

Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
Children must be accompanied by an adult (minimum age of 8 years old)
A minimum of 2 people per departure is required
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 24 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Featured review

James_A

Thank you for the great kayaking adventure. Our guides were very good and the weather was spectacular. The length was about right (3.5 hours) for us. Some of the group had to leave early, but one guide stayed with us for another hour or so of fun. It would have been nice to see some more wildlife (we saw a seal), but this is outside your control. Very good value and I would recommend your organization to visitors in the Picton area.

Reviews

5.0

99 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

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Showing 1-10 of 99 reviews

Relaxed, informative tour

Barbara_H, Mar 2024

Relaxed informative tour. Saw a variety of bird and sea life. As an older couple we didn't feel out of place with a couple of young men.

A wonderful workout

Nicole_S, Mar 2024

The experience of kayaking around Queen Charlotte Sound was truly incredible. The half day tour is the perfect length for anyone who may not regularly go kayaking and gives you quite the workout with the added benefit of incredible views and wild life (Jellyfish, Eagle rays, and various sea birds). Our guide was highly knowledgeable on all aspects and made me and my brother (a first time kayaker) more than comfortable in our adventure.

The perfect way to see Marlborough Sounds!

Tyler_S, Feb 2024

Well-paced and peaceful trip out to Marlborough Sounds from Picton. It was the perfect length. We've taken a couple of other kayak tours, and this was the first one that included guards to keep us dry. We appreciated that. The instruction from our guides was great to get us comfortable with our kayaks. On the tour, Jenna provided us with a tremendous amount of history about the landscape and how it has changed over the years. We got to see jellyfish and even some rays near the end of the trip. My one point of advice would be to make sure you have sunscreen! A hat would also be a good idea. It's a long time to be on the water.

Rewarding and enlightening workout

Cyndee_L, Feb 2024

Great day. Saw some sting rays, birds, and stories. Guides were knowledgeable and friendly. Queen Charlotte Sound is stunning.

Live and let learn

Teena_S, Feb 2024

Getting back to shore alive hahaha Seeing the eagle ray, bird wildlife and moon jellyfish The views were amazing

Our guide, Emma, was so...

Annabella_L, Jan 2024

Our guide, Emma, was so knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly! She made our trip so wonderful, and we enjoyed seeing wildlife like eagle rays and jellyfish, as well as the beautiful water and landscape of the sounds, from our kayaks!

Well with it!

Carson_B, Jan 2024

The sting rays were amazing! Chris was a great guide and was very informed and supportive. The kayaks were in good shape.

Awesome, awesome, awesome!!

Nga_V, Dec 2023

Great day out with our tour guides Jake and Kayla from start to finish. We arrived late from our delayed cruise and they had already messaged earlier that they’re aware of the situation which was a huge relief. The weather was perfect and being first time kayakers, our family of 4 had a blast (17 and 9 year old girls). After a short drive from the city, we were then provided with safety gear and an induction to kayaking. Jake was very knowledgeable of the surrounds and nature and Kayla was very kind and patient as we were the laggards of the group. We saw wonderful scenery, numerous stingrays and lots of starfish. Overall an awesome day and would highly recommend to anyone.

Great kayak tour of Queen Charlotte Sound

Katie_F, Dec 2023

We had a great tour and our tour guide was very helpful and kind. We loved it and would gladly go again.

Absolutely amazing experience

Emily_M, Oct 2023

This was an incredible experience. Such a beautiful setting and saw so much wildlife, including dolphins that swam under our kayak. It was a relatively quiet time of year so we basically had a private tour that was very special. Our guides Alex and Maia were so knowledgeable and truly made the whole experience. I would 100% recommended this activity and wouldn't hesitate to do it again if I am ever lucky enough to visit again.

Back to nature

Garry_M, Apr 2023

Great location, great weather and great tour guide. 9km of coastline kayaking with beautiful scenery. Well worth it and not too hard on the old body.

Wonderful exoerinxe

Karen_G, Apr 2023

We have kayaked across the world. Our guide, Jake(I think), made this the best experience we’ve had on our trip to New Zealand. Yes, take the tour for to the sites. We saw seals, star fishes, ray, jelly fish and many, many birds. And take the tour because of Jake. He made sure to spend one on one time with all the couples. I learned more about kayaking from him than all other guides summed up.

Great new experience

Kenneth_S, Mar 2023

We had a great morning it was our first experience of kayaking & we loved it our guide had a big focus on safety which we appreciated. Our guide was friendly interested & helpful. We saw some stingrays & garnets which were interesting. We would have liked someone taking a photo when we took our kayak through the hole in the rock which was fun thanks for a great morning Sue

A great experience

RICHARD_M, Mar 2023

Jamie was a great guide! The weather was beautiful although the current and wind were against us. All of us in the group had some kayak experience, I can't imagine how first timers would have fared on this trip. Tip- bring water shoes, the launching and recovery beaches are not barefoot friendly.

A great opportunity to see NZ from a different perspective

Pete_T, Feb 2023

This was good fun. I think it’s fair to say you should be fairly fit as you needed to row a good distance. The kayaks are two persons and stable. It’s well organised and was supported by staff in two kayaks. There’s plenty of updates and information and opportunities to take photos. Word of warning though. I burnt. It was rainy, cloudy weather the whole trip and still I burnt! I’m told the ozone is thin in NZ so wear a hat and sunscreen! Other than that, the trip is well worth considering and good fun.

Amazing time

Lindsley_T, Feb 2023

Amazing views and Martin was an absolute star- so knowledgeable and friendly! Really looked after us. Highly recommend this tour

Awesome kayaking day!!

Gina_P, Jan 2023

Awesome day and a very knowledgeable and friendly guide! Loved seeing the beautiful views and also the starfish and stingrays!!

Wonderful adventure

Winnie_L, Jan 2023

It was a wonderful adventure and experience. Our guide is thorough in explaining the use of equipment and expectations on the journey. The best day in the water of Queen Charlotte sound. Highly recommended.

Kansan (land locked state) kayaking in the sea! Unheard of!! YES!!

Michele_S, Dec 2022

Very limited experience kayaking especially in the sea?! No worries!! Beautiful and quiet tour. Highly recommend!!

We loved kayaking the...

Daniel_F, Nov 2022

We loved kayaking the beautiful coastline in New Zealand. It couldn’t have been better. Seeing natural habitats of some amazing wildlife will be a favorite memory for a long time.

Likely to Sell Out