A place with a great atmosphere. Nice for some relaxation after walking on the glacier :) The staff is really helpful and friendly and it has great facilities. It's well located in the village, close to the tourism office. The rooms are big and clean (with TV). Laundry ok. The kitchen is also big and it has a lot of stuff you can use and manytables. The only thing is that the internet doesn't work that well ... Nice cosy places to sit and ready a book...if you're lucky with the weather, you can enjoy the great balconies and the view. Nice to meet other backpackers/travelers.

First of all: I LOVE MOUNTAINS (and snow) so I was quite excited to go to Franz Josef which is a nice little and touristy town on the Southern island. I did a one day hike/walk on the glacier. It sounds hard but it wasn't difficult at all since the glacier "starts" at about sealevel. I was very lucky with the weather, it was quite warm and the sun was shining.

The sun made that day actually very special cuz we got great blue colors on the glacier.

The offer a couple of hikes there but I can recommend to do the day walk, even for "freshman mountaineers.

A glacier visit is a must! I only did a half day on Franz Joseph but i would recommend doing a full day if you are anyway way fit! It was brilliant to see and is a Must Visit!

You can do a walking tour or a helicopter tour althought that is a little more expensive!

We had a tour guide call Troy who was pretty cool and knew his stuff!