By hour six of a day through the alps, the vehicle is most of the experience. What our Mercedes-Benz Sprinters and two Tesla EVs are actually like to travel in.
Nobody books a journey because of the vehicle. By hour six of a day through the alps, though, the vehicle is most of what you are experiencing, and the gap between a good one and an ordinary one is the gap between arriving rested and arriving relieved.
Our private and tailored journeys are built around a fleet of around 20 vehicles, mostly Mercedes-Benz, including new luxury Sprinters and two Tesla electric vehicles. This is an honest account of what that means for your day, rather than what it looks like on a specification sheet.
The seat is the whole argument
Our new luxury Sprinters are fitted with seven individual reclining leather seats in the rear, plus a guest seat up front alongside the guide. Individual is the operative word. No bench, no shared armrest, no quiet negotiation over elbow room.
The result is that every guest has a window, an armrest on each side, a cup holder within reach and a seat back that reclines when the road straightens and the conversation drops away. Being able to tilt back and watch the country pass somewhere beyond Burkes Pass is why people arrive at Tekapo still genuinely interested in Tekapo.
Ride quality on alpine roads
Canterbury's finest roads are also its most demanding. The climb through the Waimakariri gorge, the descent past the Ōtira Viaduct, the long sweeping camber of the Lindis. A light vehicle telegraphs every one of those into the back row.
The Sprinters are long, heavy and well damped, which sounds dull until you have travelled a winding road in one. Corners arrive as a gentle lean rather than a lurch. The other half of it is the driving: our guides run these routes constantly, so they know which corners tighten and which crest hides a view, and they set the vehicle up early rather than correcting late. Guests who can read in a car can usually read in ours, which is the practical test.
Windows, and the mountain problem
Mountains are a framing problem. From inside most vehicles the Southern Alps arrive as a strip of rock between the window line and the roof, and the summit, the part you came for, sits above the glass where you cannot see it without folding yourself sideways.
The Sprinter's glass is deep, and because the seats are individual, nobody is looking across a companion to reach it. On the plains it is the sky that benefits: the enormous nor'west arch that builds over the alps on a warm afternoon. Your guide will usually see it coming and find somewhere worth stopping.
The small things over a nine hour day
- Climate control that is comfortable in the back row, not just at the front. Canterbury can be at freezing in the Mackenzie and mild in Christchurch on the same day.
- Luggage travels inside and is loaded once. On multi-day journeys it stays in the same vehicle the whole way.
- A manageable step height and a grab handle at the door, which matters more with every passing year of travelling.
- A quiet cabin, so commentary does not have to be delivered at volume and a conversation in the back row stays there.
- Somewhere to leave a jacket, a camera and a water bottle without them living on your lap all day.
Two Teslas, and where they earn their place
Two of the fleet are Tesla electric vehicles, and they are not there as a gesture. On city days and on the run over the hill to Akaroa they are simply the better tool: silent, smooth through stop start streets, and effortless on the climbs above Lyttelton and along the Summit Road.
Quiet changes a day more than you would expect. Without engine noise, a guide can talk normally from the front while you look out at the harbour, and the pauses stay pauses. For a smaller party spending a day on Banks Peninsula at Akaroa or a half day around Ōtautahi Christchurch, that is noticeably better than a larger vehicle would give.
Carbon Positive, not carbon neutral
We are Carbon Positive, which means going past offsetting what we produce rather than stopping at balance. It sits alongside our Qualmark Gold rating, and it is a large part of why the electric vehicles get used wherever a route allows.
There is no point pretending that driving a diesel vehicle through the alps is a low emission activity. What we can do is run the newest and cleanest vehicles available, choose electric where electric genuinely works, and account honestly for the rest. Our Carbon Positive commitment and our broader sustainability approach set out the detail.
Why the vehicle changes the guiding
The vehicle is also where your guide works, and a good one changes how they do it. When the cabin is quiet and everyone can see, commentary becomes conversation rather than a broadcast. When there is space to pull over safely, the guide pulls over.
That is why the fleet and our one guide for the whole journey approach belong together. One person, one vehicle, one continuous experience from the first morning to the last. You can see every vehicle on our luxury fleet page.
Common questions
What vehicles does Canterbury Trails use?
The fleet is around 20 vehicles, mostly Mercedes-Benz, including new luxury Sprinters and two Tesla electric vehicles. The Sprinter fitout has seven individual reclining leather rear seats plus a front guest seat.
Does everyone get a window seat?
Yes. The rear seats are individual and arranged so nobody sits next to a stranger, which means every guest has their own window, their own armrests and their own cup holder for the whole day.
Are the vehicles suitable for alpine roads?
Yes. The Sprinters are long wheelbase and heavy enough to sit steadily through the corners on roads such as Arthur's Pass and the Lindis, and our guides drive those routes constantly, so the pace stays smooth rather than reactive.
What does Carbon Positive mean?
Carbon Positive means going beyond offsetting the emissions we create rather than stopping at neutral. It sits alongside our Qualmark Gold rating and shapes decisions such as running electric vehicles on city and harbour days.
If you are comparing operators, ask what you will actually be travelling in and how the seats are arranged. It is the least glamorous question and the one that shapes the day most. Our Christchurch luxury tours all run in this fleet, and if you have a particular requirement, mobility, a child seat, a specific seating arrangement, tell us and we will put the right vehicle on it.
