Loo With a View

Around New Zealand in six scenic toilet spots.

1. LIVERPOOL HUT: Aspiring National Park

There are more popular huts in the park but that’s the beauty of Liverpool Hut; it’s just a little red shack sitting serenely along the six-hour Liverpool Track. The views are not so little. Perched on the throne on the mountainside above the almighty Matukituki Valley, you’re dwarfed by a gigantic all-encompassing landscape.

GET THERE: The Liverpool Track, starting out from Raspberry Creek car park: five to six hours (15km).

2. MACKINNON PASS: Milford Track

The MacKinnon Pass toilet on the Milford Track has a large rectangular window from where you can gawk at snow-capped mountain ranges hovering in a blanket of clouds.

GET THERE: Part of the 53.5 km/ four-day Milford Track Great Walk. The Mackinnon Pass (and its shelter) is found on day three.

Mackinnon Pass toilet, Milford Track © John Strother, www.panafoot.com

3. HANGING VALLEY EMERGENCY SHELTER: Fiordland National Park

Craggy mountain spines for as far as the eye can see. This small hut provides respite during your fourday assault of the Kepler Track and its toilet is one of the most dramatic places in New Zealand to spend a penny.

GET THERE: At 1390 metres – the highest point on the three to fourday Kepler Track and immediately prior to the descent into the Iris Burn on your second day.

4. HIGHLANDS MOTORSPORT PARK: Cromwell

When you’re not whizzing around the track on a go kart or Ferrari 488, you may as well be ‘whizzing’ in one of the race park’s unique toilets. From gold panelled bathrooms to musical urinals, each WC has one-way glass for stunning views of the race-track.

GET THERE: Book in for a driving experience at Highlands Motorsport Park, just 45 minutes from Queenstown. With fast laps in a Ferrari on the agenda, the excitement will call for a trip to the…

Bathrooms at Highlands Motorsport Park, Cromwell © Highlands Motorsport Park

HUNDERTWASSER TOILETS: Kawakawa

World-famous artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser spent his final years in Kawakawa, designing the Hundertwasser toilet block. The WC showcases his signature psychedelic style, multicoloured tiles and bold jerky shapes.

GET THERE: Right in the heart of Kawakawa township. Look out for the striking (and unmissable) Te Hononga – Hundertwasser Memorial Park; the toilets are right next door.

Hundertwasser Toilets, Kawakawa © NorthlandNZ

SYME HUT: Egmont National Park

Swing open the door and drink up the view. Syme Hut is at the end of a four-hour uphill grunt, so guests are few and far between. Directly below you are clouds (and 1950 metres) and directly above you are the steep slopes of Mt Taranaki, so close you can almost touch the scree.

GET THERE: Departing Dawson’s Falls Visitor Centre, conquer the demanding Fanthams Peak/ Panihati and Syme Hut Track: three to four hours to the top/the hut, another three to four hours back down.

Syme Hut, Egmont National Park © DOC / Sean Thompson