I lived in New Zealand for seven years, and during that entire time I hadn’t even heard of the Blue Pools track.
Fast forward to 2023, when I was living in Australia and taking a trip across the ditch (an Aussie term for “visiting New Zealand”); I saw this incredible photo of gloriously clear, brilliantly-colored pools surrounded by lush greenery, and I knew with a certainty that I had to get there.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t open.
The Blue Pools were closed from 2023 to 2025 for major safety repairs and upgrades. During that time, a few people still visited them, but it involved crossing the river on foot in lieu of a functional bridge — something that I won’t do and will very much not recommend.
They reopened in May 2025, just in time for my most recent trip to New Zealand! I immediately changed my itinerary to include it, and in August 2025 I finally found my way to these gorgeous pools (with brand new boardwalk and bridges!) for the first time.
Located 12km north of Wanaka, the Blue Pools were formed from glacial meltwater flowing down from the Blue River into the Makarora River.
While the Makarora River is fast-flowing, the water in the Blue Pools is calm and clear, and the light refracting through the clear glacial water gives it its characteristic blue color. It’s a popular swimming spot in the summer, and a lovely place to just relax all year round.
If you’re interested in doing the Blue Pools track this year, here’s everything you need to know about the track itself, as well as where to base yourself in.
Walking the Blue Pools track
The Blue Pools track is a 3 km return track (1.5 km one way), and it’s extremely easy, flat and well-maintained. The DOC website recommends 1 hour for the return journey, but I’d say give yourself an extra 30 minutes to relax by the pools, or maybe take a swim in the warmer months.
There’s plenty of free car parking next to the trailhead, and a toilet as well (although it looks, umm, pretty grim). If you did want to use the toilet, I’d recommend using the Makarora Public Toilets instead, which are a short drive away.
The carpark has phenomenal views of the surrounding valley and mountain ranges, by the way — definitely worth taking a couple of photos before you start your walk.
Unlike other famous Kiwi short walks like the Hooker Valley track, there aren’t really any good views between the carpark and the end of the walk. For most of the way, you’ll just be looking at forest, with a few obstructed views of the Makarora River.
It’s a nice peaceful stroll, though, and not nearly as packed as the aforementioned Hooker Valley. Much of the time, it’ll just be you and the birds.
Near the end of the track, you’ll cross two swing bridges. These bridges were rebuilt during the recent closure, so they are now nice and sturdy and modern.
As you walk over the second bridge, you’ll get your first glimpse of the Blue Pools!
The pools are so beautifully clear that it feels like you can just reach out and touch the bottom, even though the section under the bridge is pretty deep. We also saw lots of fairly large fish swimming in them — rainbow and brown trout, according to the sign nearby.
While the Blue Pools had a gorgeous vibrant color, they looked turquoise or teal to me, rather than “blue”. This might have been partly due to the time of the day, as we visited in the late afternoon.
Maybe they would have been blue earlier in the day? At least they weren’t muddy and brown, which can apparently happen sometimes when the river is flooding.
After crossing the second swing bridge, you’ll reach a fork. On one side is the continuation of the track to Young River, whereas the other path takes you down to the Blue Pools itself.
It’s really important to pay attention to the signs here, as the Young River mouth is a good 5.5 km away!
The path down to the Blue Pools is the roughest part of the track, with pebbles replacing the flat smooth trail surface. Some mobility assistance devices can potentially get to the fork after the second swing bridge, but not all the way down to the pools. There’s also a fence that you’ll need to climb over.
Continue down the short path, and here you are. What a view!
The Blue Pools are apparently quite popular for swimming, but I didn’t see anyone in the water when we were there, and for good reason too.
We visited in August, which is winter in New Zealand, but even though the air temperature was a balmy 15C on that day, the water was nearly freezing! I actually stuck my water bottle in between the pebbles for a bit so that the pools would cool it down to a nice icy temperature.
Swimming might be nice in the summertime. Some sections are very shallow, but the area under the swing bridge runs deep. Please exercise your own judgement if you choose to swim, as there are rocks all around you.
The Blue Pools track is not a loop, so you’ll return the way you came.
Getting to the Blue Pools track
The Blue Pools track is located in Makarora, a remote area in the Otago region. The trailhead is right next to State Highway 6, however, so it’s very easy to access. The two nearest towns are Wanaka and Franz Josef.
There is no public transport to the Blue Pools, so you need to either drive or book a private tour.
Driving from Wanaka (1 hour)
From Wanaka, the Blue Pools is a fairly easy hour-long drive up State Highway 6. The views along the way are stunning, so I’d recommend giving yourself some extra time to stop at the viewpoints!
There are several viewpoints along Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka, looking out over the respective lakes to the mountain ranges beyond.
Driving from Franz Josef (3 hours)
Driving from Franz Josef on the West Coast is significantly further, taking 3 hours if you drive non-stop.
However, if you are doing the South Island road trip loop, you will have to drive down State Highway 6 from the West Coast to Wanaka anyway. In that case, you could do the Blue Pools track on the way, although it would make for a fairly long day.
The views on this drive are also phenomenal, as you’ll drive past the towering cliffs and waterfalls that the West Coast of New Zealand is known for.
Prepare for it to be foggy and rainy, though — or snowy, if you’re visiting in the winter as we did. It’s also a very winding road with a lot of blind corners, which isn’t a great combination with fog, rain or snow. Make sure you are alert and awake, and take it slow.
There are a lot of scenic viewpoints between Franz Josef and the Blue Pools, but if I had to pick one to recommend, it would be the Thunder Creek Falls! The stop is right on the highway, and the walk to the falls is so short, it takes barely any time at all.
Where to stay when visiting the Blue Pools
Makarora
It’s possible to stay in Makarora itself, where the Blue Pools trailhead will only be a 10 minute drive away. I wouldn’t recommend it though, unless you are specifically looking for a very remote stay.
It’s sometimes difficult for people who are used to vacationing in, say, the European alps, to understand what “remote” in New Zealand truly means.
There are no grocery stores, not even a small one. You will have to bring everything you need with you, otherwise the nearest store will be an hour’s drive away at Wanaka or Lake Hawea.
There are two restaurants in Makarora. Makarora Country Cafe & Camp is open daily for lunch or brunch, but they only open for dinner on Fridays, where they serve bar snacks. The other one is Blue Pools Cafe & Bar, which is only open seasonally, and they were closed for the winter when we were there.
There also isn’t that much else to do there (for amateur hikers like myself, anyway). The only other easy track in the area is the Makarora Bush Walk.
If you are comfortable with this level of remoteness, however, you could certainly have a wonderful (and very quiet!) stay in Makarora. There are a couple of hotels and B&Bs that you can choose from — you should book in advance and make sure that they are open during the time of your stay.
Wanaka
Wanaka is the nearest major town, it’s where we stayed when we walked the Blue Pools track, and I highly recommend it!
When you stay in Wanaka, the Blue Pools are only an hour-long scenic drive away. You can spend the morning or afternoon going to the pools, and then spend the rest of your day enjoying all the other things that Wanaka has to offer.
Stroll along the lakeside, look at “that Wanaka tree”, or go wine-tasting at Rippon Winery. In the summer, Wanaka lavender farm is bursting with purple blossoms, and they have cute farm animals to feed and pet. If it’s rainy, Puzzling World is a great indoor option, although I wouldn’t bother with that if outdoor activities are an option.
This place has come a very long way from the sleepy town it used to be in the 2010s. There’s a ton of options available for each meal — you can have Indian takeout at Bombay Palace, Italian food at Francesca’s, barbequed meat at Kai Kikokiko… And if you feel like cooking, there’s a number of independent grocers, plus a New World and a Woolworths.
This development is good in some ways, but it does come with a few unfortunate downsides. When we visited in 2025, we found ourselves stuck in the first traffic jam we have ever experienced in Wanaka, and the main strip and the famous tree can get a bit crowded.
You just need to go beyond the main tourist area, though. Once we got past the tree, hardly anyone was there and we had the lakeside to ourselves, just like in the good ol’ days.
We stayed at an AirBnB flat that was situated on a hill, and it had the most beautiful panoramic views! It’s located just above the main house where the owners live — they are locals and were so friendly and helpful.
There’s a ton of accommodation options in Wanaka, ranging from hostels to luxury boutique stays, so you’ll have no problems finding one to suit your budget.
Franz Josef
Another possibility is to do the Blue Pools during the drive from Franz Josef to Wanaka, if you are going from one coast to the other anyway. So you would stay in Franz Josef the night before, drive to Wanaka while stopping by the Blue Pools, then spend that night in Wanaka.
Franz Josef is a small town, even by Kiwi standards. It’s also a bit touristy, because very few locals live here, and most of the population are either tourists or staff on working holidays.
It still has everything you’ll need, though. There’s a small Four Square for groceries, and a bunch of restaurants. There used to be hot pools which were lovely after a day out in the cold and rain, but they haven’t reopened after Covid.
The obvious thing to do when you are in Franz Josef is to take a helicopter to the Franz Josef Glacier. The glacier has unfortunately receded so much that you cannot hike directly onto it any longer, like I did in 2010.
However, if you don’t want to spend the $$$ or just don’t like taking helicopters, there are lots of really beautiful free walks to do in Franz Josef. I’ll write another post on them, hopefully soon!
We stayed at Alpine Escapes when we were in Franz Josef, and it was one of the best stays of our trip. Our cabin had floor-to-ceiling windows that open up into the surrounding farmlands, and one of the nearby pens had horses! We could watch them galloping around and grazing, from the comfort of our heated room.
Haast
Haast on the West Coast is significantly closer to the Blue Pools than Franz Josef. It’s about an hour’s drive away, similar to Wanaka.
In my opinion, though, unless there’s something else that you want to do in Haast, there isn’t any point in staying there to access the Blue Pools. It’s only slightly less remote than Makarora, and there’s much less to do in Haast than in Wanaka.
So, is it worth visiting the Blue Pools?
I mean, I changed our entire New Zealand itinerary so we could visit them, when I heard about their reopening in 2025, so I’m not exactly the most unbiased reviewer.
In all honesty, though… having visited it, I wouldn’t say that the Blue Pools is a must-do if you have very limited time in New Zealand. I would rate it slightly behind the Hooker Valley walk and the Tasman Glacier walks in Mount Cook.
I’d give it, say… 8 out of 10?
The main reason why I wouldn’t rate it a solid 10 is because all of the payoff is at the end of the walk. It’s not a long walk, so that’s not a huge problem, but it’s hard to recommend it over the walks that have incredible views from start to finish.
Also, the views at the end of the track are beautiful, but they won’t make your jaw drop like Milford Sound does.
So don’t rejiggle your entire trip just to fit it in. But if you’re going to be in Wanaka or traveling from the West Coast anyway, I would say it’s 100% worth it.
Looking for more easy, short walks to do in the South Island of New Zealand? Check out my guides on the Hooker Valley track and the Tasman Glacier tracks!
