Haast Highway: 140 km in West Coast / Otago
The Haast Highway is a named touring highway in West Coast / Otago. The governing figure used here is 140 km (NZTA SH6 Haast Pass), not a straight line between towns.
Typical time on the route is 1 day. Grade: Alpine pass. Season window: Year-round; ice in winter.
Haast Pass is 563 m — not as high as Arthur’s, still alpine weather. The Gates of Haast and Thunder Creek Falls are the road stops. Fox and Franz are north of Haast township, not on the pass itself.
The itinerary on this page is the published stop sequence: Wānaka, Haast, Fox Glacier, Franz Josef. Cabins and holiday homes load live around each stop; hut and trailhead pins without a town page still search by radius.
Book DOC huts and Great Walks on the DOC system where that applies. Town beds are what this site lists. Carry the day’s food on remote legs — several of these routes have no shop between ends.
Stop by stop
Wānaka — Otago side. Haast — West Coast township. Fox Glacier — glacier village north of Haast. Franz Josef — the other glacier town.
Distances, grades and seasons above follow NZTA SH6 Haast Pass. Confirm opening dates, slips and hut bookings on the operator or DOC page before you travel; alpine and West Coast tracks close or reroute after weather.
