The Avon River runs through central Christchurch in wide, willow-lined curves, and punting on it has been a tradition since the city's earliest English settlers decided to recreate their Cambridge and Oxford river pleasures in the antipodes. The punts depart from the Antigua Boat Sheds — a lovely wooden boathouse built in 1882 and one of the oldest buildings left in central Christchurch — and glide for thirty minutes through the gardens under the guidance of a poler in Edwardian costume.
It sounds touristy because it is, but it is also genuinely lovely. The river level is steady, the willows are dense, and looking up from a flat-bottomed punt with Hagley Park drifting past overhead, the city almost disappears. You can also hire rowboats, kayaks, and paddleboards independently from the same boathouse. The Antigua Boat Sheds café is one of the more pleasant places in the city for breakfast or lunch. Punting operates year-round; the experience is arguably better in autumn when the willows turn.