Signature tool
Plan your days
This is the same tool from the homepage, with more room to actually use it. Pick a length, then read the reasoning behind why each day is ordered the way it is below.
How many days have you actually got?
The split respects two hard constraints: the Hole in the Rock cruise needs a full day, and Waitangi deserves a half-day minimum, not a rushed hour.
The logic behind the order
Waitangi goes first because it's a flexible half-to-full day you can shorten if you're tired from travel. The Hole in the Rock cruise gets its own full day everywhere it appears, because morning departures are the calmer-water slot and you don't want to be rushing to a wharf. Russell and the outer islands are the flexible back half — swap them, or extend either one, depending on whether history or water is the actual priority for your trip.
Two days compresses everything into the essentials. Four days is the version that leaves room for an actual island-hopping day rather than a rushed add-on.