It’s difficult to beat Westport’s setting - on South Island’s rugged coast, at the mouth of the Buller River, below New Zealand’s breathtaking Southern Alps, and surrounded by indigenous bush, lakes, and beautiful beaches. Established as a gold mining town in the 1800s, the town has subsequently become a coal mining hub; a legacy that still lasts today and can be explored at the Coaltown Museum. Explore the area’s caves on foot or go rafting on their subterranean waterways, hike through forests or along the shoreline, visit the fur seal colony at Cape Foulwind, or take a day trip to Kahurangi or Paparoa national parks.