Sail South to New Zealand

Sail South to New Zealand © Island Cruising NZ

The tropical South Pacific Islands are incredibly diverse. Don't rush your trip! We highly recommend you slow down and take your time to stop and enjoy each one as you make your way across the Pacific.

View our information webinar here:

Pacific cyclone season officially runs from November to April each year, so you will want to make some plans for where to stay safe during this time, and New Zealand is a great choice! This is summertime, and you'll be well south and away from the cyclone risk.

New Zealand is a stunning cruising destination and is a must stop on your South Pacific voyage. From the gorgeous Bay of Islands in the Northland region to the rugged beauty and wildlife in Stewart Island in the south, New Zealand has some excellent cruising grounds. There are a wide variety of marine facilities where international vessels can take advantage of tax-free repairs and maintenance. There are marinas where you can park the boat and fly home, or alternatively, sail or drive South to the stunning South Island and enjoy the remote and spectacular beauty of Fiordland, Stewart Island and Marlborough in the South Island.

You are also then perfectly positioned to head back up to the South Pacific again the following year, to take advantage of the SE tradewinds as you head further west.

Read more about sailing in New Zealand here

Why join Sail South to New Zealand?

Navigating your way through the paperwork, biosecurity regulations, visas and changeable weather, can be time-consuming and confusing, so we have put together a Sail South Support package to assist you at every step of the way and ensure a safe, easy and enjoyable arrival in New Zealand along with some great discounts and other awesome inclusions.

New Zealand is home for us, and local knowledge goes a long way in this part of the world. We can help answer any questions you may have about sailing in this part of the world and connect you with the best marine services or other locals.

Inclusions

• Membership of Island Cruising - access to all the cruising resources on our website.
• Some excellent discounts from our wide range of rally partners.
• Advice on weather systems in the South Pacific.
• Access to a professional meteorologist weather router for guidance on picking a weather window and daily updates while on passage (when departing with the main groups leaving Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu or New Caledonia on the best weather window after 15 October) or we can connect you with a meteorologist for 1:1 support if you'd prefer to sail at another time.
• All the departure paperwork for the Pacific Island you are leaving from.
• All the entry paperwork for arrival in New Zealand.
• Tips on which New Zealand visa to apply for.
• Detailed information on the Biosecurity Regulations including a template for you to create a Biofouling Management Plan
• Invitations to cruising events in the South Pacific
• Connection to all the other sailors heading south
• Invitations to cruising welcome events when you arrive in New Zealand
• A welcome pack on arrival with lots of safety and information for your stay in New Zealand.
• A detailed guide book outlining all our tips about enjoying your stay and our favourite places to cruise in New Zealand
• A New Zealand chart
• All your questions answered if you need any help during your stay.

Price

The cost to join the Sail South to New Zealand is NZD$600.00 per vessel. (This is around USD$370.00)

Other options

Sail South to New Zealand covers the one leg to sail south from any point in the Pacific into New Zealand.

If you are planning on cruising through Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu & New Caledonia before sailing to New Zealand - I recommend you join our more comprehensive Pacific Rally which includes a lot more information for cruising in the Islands. We can tailor a package to suit your requirements. You can find all the details here.

Departure points

You can join the Sail South to New Zealand from any island in the Pacific. If you prefer to cruise in company we will have groups departing from Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu or New Caledonia to New Zealand on the best weather window after 15 October.

From each of these points it is around a 1000nm trip that will take you about a week.

You can also sail to your own schedule or join us from Australia, French Polynesia, Cook Islands, Samoa & Niue - however weather support is not included from those islands.

Dates

During Pacific Cyclone season, prudent cruisers and insurance policies require you to be south of a certain latitude by 1 November.

You are welcome to sail to New Zealand whenever you wish. If you would like weather routing to assist with your passage, you can join our main group departures which will be looking to leave from either Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia on the best weather window after 15 October.

What's on in the Pacific?

There are some fun key events for cruisers happening throughout the Pacific, and when you join we will keep you up to date with everything going on in the Pacific.

11-15 September 2024 - Musket Cove Regatta - Fiji
21-27 September 2024 - Bluewater Festival - Vava'u, Tonga
Mid October - Party at Big Mama's Yacht Club - Tongatapu, Tonga
20 November 2024 - Bay of Islands Cruisers Festival - Opua Marina

Weather

Picking the right weather window to sail south to New Zealand is a critical part of having an enjoyable passage. We give you lots of information about the weather systems and strategies for this part of the world and also engage the services of a professional meteorologist to help us select the best time to depart, and you get email updates from them each day on passage. The weather routing service is available on the group departure which leaves on the best weather window from 15 October onwards. We aim to have everyone safely in New Zealand by around 1 November.

You can sail at another date too if you wish, and we can recommend a weather router for you to engage directly for 1:1 support (at your own cost).

On passage

We also have a daily sched on SSB Radio with Gulf Harbour Radio while you are on passage, and we also recommend the services of Passage Guardian for daily check-ins.

When you arrive

On arrival in New Zealand we will invite you to some special welcome events, give you tips on the best places to undertake repairs, and if you'd like to head further south - you can join our South Island Rally.

Then the following year, join us to sail back up to the Pacific and continue your adventures west! You can join our Pacific Rally to head north back to Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu, New Caledonia and then on to Australia or back to New Zealand.

Our Pacific Rally includes the Sail South and Go West - Down Under Rally to Australia content as well.

Join us!

If you'd like to join us to Sail South to New Zealand - please register here. We will then send you the invoice (which can be paid by credit card) set you up in our membership system so you can join our cruising community and give you access to all the preparation content. You'll also get regular email updates with everything going on in the South Pacific and New Zealand and everything you need to know for planning your voyage south.

We look forward to welcoming you!