Discover Garston: River, Trails and History

Garston is considered the settlement in New Zealand furthest from the sea. The town brings together a connection to the river, regional history and various opportunities for active exploration. The Mataura River runs right past Garston, while a cycle trail passes through the town and the Northern Southland Heritage Trail connects visitors with its history. If you’re looking for holiday accommodation in Garston, you can decide whether culture, fishing or outdoor activities will be the focus of your trip.

The river and distinctive local connections

The Mataura River near Garston is considered a destination for trout fishing. For travellers interested in this type of fishing, the river is a distinct reason to choose the area. Those with other interests will also find historical and cultural themes in Garston. For example, the Peter Rabbit™ memorial seat connects the village’s Peter Rabbit™ with Garston Cemetery. This local connection brings together two very different names and is a distinctive aspect of Garston.

History and collections

Garston is one of 15 sites along the 110 km Northern Southland Heritage Trail, which stretches from Kingston to Josephville Hill. Naylor House is part of this historical story: the house is on the trail and is the original homestead, built from local slate in the 1870s. Alongside the trail’s long route, there is therefore a specific historic building that offers its own insight into local history through its age and materials.

Garston Stables offers a different way to explore the area. It showcases collections of furniture, art and collectibles gathered from around the world. Those interested in designed objects and collectibles will find a cultural experience here that differs from the history of Naylor House. For trip planning, this means Garston offers more than one historical story: alongside the Heritage Trail and the homestead, there are also the collections at Garston Stables.

Cycling and Welcome Rock

The 186 km Around the Mountains Cycle Trail passes through Garston. If you’d like to include cycling in your trip, you can consider the town as part of this longer route. The 186 km refers to the entire cycle trail, not the section within Garston. This makes the trail a different way to explore the area than the historic sites: here the focus is on a cycle route, while those sites highlight regional history.

Welcome Rock Trails is 3 km east of Garston. On a private high-country farm, visitors can enjoy hiking and cycling, as well as accommodation. Another location detail concerns the Welcome Rock walking trail: its starting point is 8 km along Nevis Road from Garston, just beyond the Historic Southland Ski Hut. The two distances refer to different points: one describes the location of Welcome Rock Trails, the other the start of the walking trail. When planning your trip, you can therefore decide whether to focus more on Garston itself or on the activities at Welcome Rock Trails.

These different themes can each take centre stage without needing to be combined into a single outing or shared route.

For more ideas of places to visit, you can also discover Milford Sound, Monowai, Te Anau, Otautau, Tokanui, Mossburn, Tuatapere and Wyndham.

For the broader travel overview: Southland District.