Nelson Lakes is the third of the three parks, less than two hours south of the city around the small alpine village of St Arnaud. It is quieter and more obviously alpine than Abel Tasman or Kahurangi: beech forest, two long lakes, and the first ranks of the Southern Alps rising behind.
The Travers-Sabine circuit is the multi-day classic — four to six days with huts and an alpine pass. For a day walk, Mount Robert above the lake gives a long, breezy ridge with views back to Tasman Bay on clear days. In winter there is small-scale skiing at the Rainbow ski field nearby.