Glentanner Park Centre

The place is clean and really nice, with a great view and nice toilets. The poor rating is only because of the cafe staff. It took them 15 minutes to make a coffee, and we saw them being rude to other customers who had waited even longer. It wasn’t very crowded. If we hadn’t reminded them about our order, we probably would’ve waited longer still. Worth stopping by, but don’t order at the cafe unless you have time to hang around.

The campground is first come, first served based on availability, with no assigned spots, even for Powered Sites. If you’re placed toward the back, the bathroom can be a long, very dark walk away. Still, with so little light pollution, the stars are beautiful on a midnight trip there. It was a great place to stay after a full day at Mt Cook. The campground was clean and had decent facilities, including a BBQ, showers, and kitchen. The showers weren’t very powerful, but did the job, and I appreciated the heating.

The scenery is beautiful, and that’s easily the best part of the place. The campsite has real potential, but management and upkeep let the experience down. Sites aren’t numbered or assigned, so it felt disorganized compared with other campgrounds I’ve stayed at. If you arrive late to check in, there’s no help or support at all. In that situation, I’m not sure what you’re paying for when free campsites offer a similar level of self-management. The overall experience didn’t feel worth the cost.

A special thanks to Caroline, who helped us with a last-minute booking for our second stay and was so kind and helpful. She responded quickly to emails, even over Christmas. I stayed at this campsite twice over the last two weeks, and both visits were excellent. The sheltered pitches had plenty of room, with very clean shared toilets and showers, a great communal kitchen, dining and living spaces, and an outdoor kitchen area. It was especially good when it rained. The contained unit was also lovely: very clean, with a separate bedroom, kitchen and bathroom, a great shower, useful kitchen utensils, and towels provided. I can’t fault the site or staff. I’d highly recommend it and come back.