Let me tell you more about this incredible place, Fran Josef.
It’s true that living here can be boring for some. There is no cinema, no place for shopping (unless you buy things in the two souvenir shops it’s got), only one supermarket, one petrol station, a couple internet cafes and two pubs.
You have a lot of hotels (including a 5 stars one), motels, campervan parking and around 4/5 hostels. Some really nice restaurants offering good food, from venison casserole, lamb shanks to veggie burgers.
The main reason why people come here is because of the activities you can do at the glacier and around town.
Let me tell you a bit more about accommodation. The only place I can really recommend you is the motel where I worked. The motel has a total of 16 units, 5 different types of rooms that go from 2 people up to 6 in the nice two bedroom one. The garden is amazing, the view is spectacular and you have a laundry room and a nice sitting area where you can have a barbecue. You are going to have an amazing customer service and they would most definitely help you with any tours and activities you want to do and with your next destination too. This is just one of the reasons why 58 on Cron is one of the top places to stay in Fran Josef according to TripAdvisor’s list.
Something that people forget or don’t know about this town is that it is located in a rainforest. Oh and guess what? As the name says, it rains A LOT, especially during summer. Not the little annoying rain but the “I’ll blow away a chair” kind. However, this is not a bad thing, everything is close together so you don’t get THAT wet. If you like how everything looks so green you should thank the water too and everyday you have a sunny day you will appreciate it a million times more.
Now, let’s go back to what you can do here, some I’ve done, some my friends done it.
The main activity is the Glacier, of course. I walked there and it was just beautiful (the walk and the glacier). Most people go by car to the parking lot and then walk around 20 minutes to it. The glacier is magnificent, you have waterfall around, more rainforest and that gigantic piece of ice with that blue/green colour.
You can do a few things here. You can book Valley walk (they just take you to the Glacier and tell you about the history and what you’ve got around); or you could go on a helicopter that will take you to the Glacier and then hike for 3 hours; a heli hike where you can enjoy the panoramic view of the mountains and then you can check some ice caves; and a air safari scenic flight on a small plane (I really don’t know how is it called, sorry).
I did the heli flight and it was amazing. I was working and my bosses asked me if I wanted to go and a said yes, no time to change, no time to charge my camera. Flying in a helicopter is cool; I want to do it again. They take you up and show you this beautiful landscape, the river, the waterfall, the mountains covered in snow and of course that glacier. Then we landed on a mountain, we walked around and took some pictures. Lucky for me Genalin, a Filipina girl that worked with me, came too and she had a camera, so now thanks to her I can share my experience with you guys.
You have more activities around town, is not just that. You can go kayaking on Lake Matheson, go bird watching or on a horse trek, as well as hunting or fishing, it all depends what you like. There are walks/treks that start from the town and will take you up mountains and a long rivers just ask at the reception where you are staying. You can also go see the glow worms.
One more thing that makes this place interesting is that you can go to the West Coast Wild Life CentreWest Coast Wild Life Centre, where you can find some of the rarest kind of kiwi birds, the Rowi and Haast tokoeka (I went there when they opened, they are so cute and fluffy).
But there is more, you can go on a quad bike tour (the only one in New Zealand with Glacier views) around the rainforest and rivers; or you can drive a buggy on a circuit track in the rainforest where there is a big chance of you end up covered in mud and they need to hose you down at the end; or you can also go rafting. But for the more adventurous there is something for you too, you can skydive from up to 18000ft with a spectacular view of all the things I’ve told you before.
And after a crazy day of activities what better than relaxing on the Glacier Hot Pools. They’ve got three public pools with water around 36/40 degrees, where you can chill and relax with the rainforest around you. If you want more privacy you can go to one of the private pools, a little bit more romantic and you can also book a massage if you like. I went to both pools and I loved it, so relaxing and so good, especially when it’s raining outside and its cold, best thing to do.
Because of all of this and all the amazing people that I met that I already told you about, I will always recommend this town. A lot to offer, a lot to see and one of the best service you are going to get. So just added to your list, I promise you are not going to be disappointed.