Find out what it’s like to travel on New Zealand’s newest passenger train, Te Huia, which operates between the country’s fourth biggest city Hamilton and its most populous city, Auckland.
In this video, I take you on a tour of the train, highlighting some of the trains’s key features. I try some of the food and drink options from the onboard cafe and show you the beautiful scenery along the way.
Te Huia runs return services from Frankton (Hamilton) to the Strand (Auckland) twice a day during the week, and once on Saturdays.
The service is a five-year trial with subsidies from the NZ Transport Agency and Waikato local authorities. The service began on 6 April 2021. It stops at Frankton, Rotokauri (The Base), Huntly, Papakura, Puhinui and The Strand.
Te Huia timetable, fares and travel information:
hhttps://www.tehuiatrain.co.nz/
🚉 Train: Te Huia
🚉 Operator: KiwiRail on behalf of Waikato Regional Council
🚉 Locomotives: DFB 7295 and 7077
🚉 Seat: Various (no allocated seating) in refurbished SA and SD carriages
🚉 Route: Hamilton Frankton – The Strand (Auckland)
🚉 Distance: 138km
🚉 Travel time: 2 hours 40 minutes (scheduled)
🚉 Class: Economy (one class)
🚉 Travel date: 25 October 2022
EQUIPMENT:
🚉 Cameras: GoPro Hero 10, GoPro Hero 8, iPhone 12 Pro Max, Panasonic HC-VX1, DJI Mini 3 Pro
Chapters
00:00 – Introduction
01:10 – Frankton Station (Hamilton)
01:46 – Te Huia locos and consist
03:30 – Frankton to Rotokauri (Hamilton)
05:42 – Route map and following the Waikato River
07:42 – Raahui Pookeka (Huntly)
08:45 – Exploring the train
10:26 – Cafe (lunch)
12:16 – Pukekohe and seat review
13:20 – Papakura
14:18 – Wine time and Puhinui
17:26 – Scenic route into Auckland
18:57 – Fares and arrival into Auckland
20:26 – Final thoughts
Music
I use Artlist for high quality, licensed audio. If you sign up using my referral link below, you will get two extra months for free.
https://artlist.io/Adam-3542584
Credits and sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Te_Huia
https://www.tehuiatrain.co.nz/
Official KiwiRail map:
https://www.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=556c4a9c73914fe1983529ddf9ae5099
North Island rail map:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/NorthIsland_rrMap_v02.svg
Manu3d at English Wikipedia(Original text: Emanuele D’Arrigo), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo attributions:
Huia (bird)
An illustration of a pair of Huia, a bird which went extinct in 1907 (approx).
J. G. Keulemans, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Huia_Buller.jpg
British Rail Mk2 coach
Hugh Llewelyn, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BR_Mk.IIf_TSO_No.M6001_(7169855368).jpg
Video of wheelchair hoist in tweet by Michael Pulman.
https://twitter.com/realmikepulman/status/1374888341972217859?s=20&t=ekTovB4p6zNW9ZMO68bJ9A
OpenRailwayMap:
https://www.openrailwaymap.org
Follow me on social media:
https://www.instagram.com/_fromthewindowseat/
https://twitter.com/adamgjoyce
https://facebook.com/adamjoycetravels
#KiwiRail #tripreport #trainreview
source
The slower track speeds Te Huia is experiencing is due to the major upgrade of the Auckland metro rail network in preparation for increase AT Metro train services when the City Rail Link opens in 2025. Unfortunately Te Huia is near the bottom of train priority list on the Auckland metro train network. That said, there are some train controllers will give Te Huia priority on the network but usually Te Huia has to follow AT Metro Trains which is frustrating.
Thank you.
Well , That would have to be the best video presentation that we have seen for the Te-Huia.and we have seen a lot of them…bleeding well done..cheers..
Fantastic. Love your editing and commentary, very professional. 👏
when i use the train in the uk the ramp for the disabled is portable, and trying to find someone to help me on and off is sometimes difficult
it's like traveling in the 1960s a complete disaster , waste of money
Very informative. Thanks .. it looks like a nice service.
Mk2 coaches, I am surprised. We had loads of Mk3 coaches to give away after the HSTs were replaced the new IETs, particularly on the GWR kine here in the UK. Might have been a good idea to nab those since their ride quality is far superior. Its also far safer being a monotube construction, as opposed to a separate body and chassis on the Mk2.
Twin loco is a bit overkill though. Hopefully the driving car comes into use soon. This will make the trainset more efficient, not only in terms of fuel but also from an operational standpoint. In fact, I'd ditch the GM locomotives and use Siemens Vectron dual-mode locomotives. I notice you have OLE lines on some sections.
Next time,try a steak and cheese from a Bakery,much better.
Love to watch your train journey. Beautiful scenery.👍💛
👍👍tune in from Australia, thanks for the lovely short trip
This was a wonderful and informative video! It was so nostalgic watching the route I would take to get to uni every morning. Thanks for doing what you do 😀
Excellent video, but alas this train is unlikely to survive. It costs $34,000 a day to run, but only brings in about $1200 a day in fares. The vast majority has to be paid for with a subsidy, and when the government changes it is unlikely the new government will pay more than a 50% or so in subsidy. The train's operator will either need to slash their costs or stop running.
I'm so surprised with the quality of this video. Really informative and I could see great care in the making.
Hi Adam, is that an internal combustion engine as a passenger carriage in the middle?
I'm very surprised that you can't book/purchase tickets in advance.
Hope the carriages don't get destroyed by graffiti like the fence line.
My commiserations to anyone who lives in that swamp called Hamilton I did for two years 34 years ago and it convinced me to leave New Zealand and that was the smartest move I ever made
Which country is better to stay nz or aus.
I went on before. It was good.
Still CRAP..NZ still behind the rest if the world even on this service!
Hope you made it out of Auckland safely with current flood issues
Great video and very interesting commentary , thank you .
2 hours and 40 minutes to cover 140 kms. Wow. So FAST…. NOT.
Great video! Just a shame this service doesn't run between Auckland and Hamilton more often every day. I live in Auckland and have friends in Hamilton, and would love to be able to jump on the train and spend the day visiting them. Being a non-driver, and having to rely on public transport makes it challenging to get to some places. Not all areas in Auckland are close to a trainline. It's a shame the Te Huia train doesn't go right into Britomart in Auckland City. Would make it so much easier for people to get to. Glad you enjoyed your train trip!
About 20 years ago did the overlander from Auckland to Wellington. Awesome scenery. Over on the ferry to picton and train to Christchurch past the seals on the beach. Bus to Invercargill, no train south of Christchurch. Friend took me to Te Anau, saw Milford Sounds, awesome. Bus to Queenstown. Wow. Bus back to Christchurch and Trans Alpine train to greymouth. Buses to Nelson and picton. Ferry back to Wellington and overlander back to Auckland. All this for 8 days travel in 16 days for $350, using bus, trains and ferries. Only bit I paid extra was for Milford Sounds. Well worth it.
My cousin works for kiwi rail and when he's not working he's driving trains on the polbra
Excellent job mate, very well researched. Sadly you missed the old Fiat twin-set railcar rides to wellington, Tauranga etc and round the south island in the 60s. it was just like hopping on a bus, and super cheap. Not flash, but they got you there, and got up to 70mph in places.
New subscriber here, great video and very informative. Also great pronunciation of the Maori words! 10/10 review
Ripping train review, thanks for covering something quite original!
Think the station should be open for all services, come on Hamilton, Kiwi rail
2 huge locos for 4 coaches on basically flat track. Why not use a modern UK 4 coach diesel electric without any dedicated locomotives and then upgrade the line as budgets and time allow to overhead pick-up electric? This would also allow an upgrade to a high speed service once the electrification was complete. Start the electrification at the Auckland end and reduce emissions and noise in the densely populates area straight away.
Great pleasing doco mate.
I haven't been on any train since 1974, but for the price of 15 bucks its well worth it just for a ride.
Even 30 bucks is still cheep when one compares that with their current RUC and the price of fuel these days.
If I lived anywhere near Hams I'd surly use this as a means just to go for a ride let alone visit the big smoke which I never have since the days of my parents….
Pleasing to not see that rubbish people like to scribble on walls around such places as railway stations too.
Thank you once again nice to see other parts of Aotearoa out side the bush I'm used too.
Rose wine? How could you?
I wish NZ would just hurry up and invest in high speed inter city rail. It’ll easily take 10 years or more to plan and build, and we’re going to definitely need it by then if we want to go any.
This was very enjoyable as well as informative. Thank you very much. If I ever get there, I certainly will have this trip on my itinerary.
A pity though that the electrification is progressing so slowly, but I’m convinced you get there. In the long run, a catenary is still more economical and environmentally friendly than burning diesel.
Greetings from Sweden!