If you’d told me a year ago that our Maungatapu Murders self‑guided 4WD transport adventure would become one of Scottish Express Adventure Transport’s most popular and accessible trips, I wouldn’t have believed you. As a local to Nelson, New Zealand, I knew the Murders were a grim chapter in the region’s history. But I hadn’t really looked under […]
The business story
Balancing ethics and business- Supporting local communities: Our 5% Fund & Outdoor Access Advocacy
Most of you know Scottish Express as an adventure transport company — and you’d be right. We spend our days shuttling riders, hikers, and explorers to some of the most stunning corners of Aotearoa (New Zealand). But what you might not know is that we also make time to give back to the community that […]
Nelson’s best kept walking secrets- Nelson Skycrest Route
I still remember the first time I stood on the skyline behind Nelson, New Zealand and thought, “There has to be a better way for more people to experience this in a single day.” That’s where the idea for the Nelson Skycrest Route first sparked. Nelson’s overlooked backyard I’ve been shuttling people out on hiking adventures all […]
Seeking Friluftsliv: A Winter Journey in the Howard Valley- Nelson Lakes National Park
The day was still dim through the Landcruiser windows when we pulled into Wakefield. A quick breakfast stop at the “Wakey Bakey” (Wakefield Bakery, famous across Nelson, New Zealand for its pies) gave us warmth and fuel for the day ahead. Rosie usually joins me on these wilderness trips, but this time I was heading […]
John Reid Hut Circuit- Kahurangi National Park
Winter Adventures into John Reid Hut – Wangapeka Catchment The frost was still clinging to the grass when we rolled out of Nelson for this winters monthly special. Every winter, we like to pick destinations close enough for a weekend escape—but just far enough to feel like another world. These specials are for locals, smaller […]
Nelson lakes Gravel riding Weekend
Gravel Road cycling Just Beyond Nelson – Adventure Seats for All If you’d asked me a couple of years ago which trips would become our most popular, I don’t think I could have predicted just how much people love exploring the hidden roads right on Nelson’s doorstep. There’s something magic about finding adventure so close […]
Why we love Bike packing
If you spend time with outdoor enthusiasts, you’ll notice the language changes over the years, but the spirit stays the same. Right now, “bike packing” is the buzzword—but at its heart, it’s simply about enjoying multi-day journeys by bike, exploring a mix of landscapes and terrains. Here in New Zealand, we’ve always been at the […]
The Kahurangi Express – Weekend Hiking Transport
An easy getaway Discover Kahurangi: Adventure, History, and Wild Beauty in Nelson Tasman We’re pretty lucky here in the Nelson Tasman region. Surrounded by national and forest parks, we’re spoilt for choice when it comes to wild places to explore. But if we had to pick a favourite, Kahurangi National Park would be right up there—especially the […]
The 5% strategy – Charitable donations
Giving Back: The Heart of Our Business At Scottish Express we believe giving back to the community should be an essential part of any business. It creates goodwill and shines a light on the incredible work local organisations are doing. As a small business, we don’t always have the cash flow for big donations—but as […]
Kahurangi 500 trip report
Back in early September we set our sites on riding a variation of the amazing Kahurangi 500 bikepacking route with a friend to look at possibilities of offering transport packages and support packages for this route, allowing larger groups and individuals the ability to resupply and also swap bikes at specific locations. You can see […]
Kahurangi 500 -Bike packing – Gearing up for Gearing down
As you can probably guess… we love bikes, and we love bikes for a multitude of reasons, first and foremost are the many freedoms that a bike can give you. They’re small and very strong so you get a lot more freedom in terms of where you can take them both on road and off!! […]
What makes Scottish Express transport different for Adventurers?
The main thing as that we are adventurers too, so we we ooze with passion for what we do!!! We started the business just prior to the outbreak of the Pandemic and we saw an opportunity to create a service for adventurers by adventurers…. It was getting pretty hard to get to some of the […]
Sustainable Tourism
We’ve been continuing to ensure that we are making ethical decisions for the enviroment and our customers as part of our sustainable tourism model. We measure and offset our Carbon with EKOS New Zealand, and are happy to say that we have reduced our Carbon offset by 13% this year while increasing our sales by […]
Volunteering with the Nelson MTB Community
Super happy to get some volunteering activities under way at Scotttish Express this month, we started off on friday by giving the hard working volunteers who had been tickling up “Loam Ranger” a shuttle up to the top of keyboard warrior. It’s been awesome to utilise the unique Scottish Express sponsorship fund to give back […]
Just a wee yarn about the Wairoa Gorge
Summer is on the way. And I just want to give everyone a gentle reminder about awesome things to do and why you should do them. The Gorge Bike park is located on a public recreational reserve and without the support of the Nelson mountainbike club and the greater NZ mountain bike community it simply […]
