Bivouac Outdoor is a New Zealand outdoor equipment retailer with nine stores across the country and an online shop at bivouac.co.nz. The business covers the full range of gear for New Zealand's most popular outdoor pursuits — camping, tramping, rock climbing, mountaineering, trail running, and travel — stocking equipment, clothing, footwear, and accessories for all conditions and ability levels.
The tramping range is extensive, covering overnight and day packs, tents, sleeping bags and mats, tramping boots and shoes for men, women, and children, cooking systems, food and hydration supplies, headlamps and locators, walking poles, compasses, and emergency gear. Bivouac is one of the few NZ retailers that also sells DOC hut tickets, making it a practical one-stop shop before a backcountry trip.
For climbers, Bivouac stocks climbing shoes, harnesses, helmets, ropes, carabiners, quickdraws, belay and ascent devices, protection, and a full mountaineering section covering crampons, ice axes, snow safety equipment, and mountaineering tents. The trail running section covers technical footwear across waterproof, technical trail, and road-to-trail categories for men and women, with matching running clothing, hydration vests, running packs, and nutrition including energy gels, bars, and hydration supplements.
The camping range includes tents from 1–3 person capacity, sleeping bags in both down and synthetic fill, air-filled and self-inflating sleeping mats, camp kitchen gear (stoves, cookware, tableware, chilly bins), camp furniture (tables, chairs, stretchers), and a broad range of accessories including maps, care products, knives, multi-tools, and emergency gear. The travel section adds duffels, wheeled luggage, travel daypacks, packing cubes, toiletry kits, adaptors, power banks, and travel security products.
Online orders qualify for free standard shipping on purchases over $150. Click & Collect is available from all nine NZ stores at no charge. A 30-day returns period applies to purchases.
The name says something about the kind of retailer Bivouac is. A bivouac — an improvised shelter in the backcountry, made with whatever you have — is a concept from serious outdoor travel. It's not a word you find on the signage of a general sports chain. It's a word that means something to people who spend real time outdoors in places where conditions matter.
Bivouac Outdoor has nine stores across New Zealand and an online shop at bivouac.co.nz. The business focuses on the gear that Kiwis actually use in New Zealand conditions: tramping, camping, climbing, mountaineering, trail running, and multi-day travel. The range is deep rather than broad — this is a specialist, not a department store.
Tramping is at the core of the offer. The packs range runs from ultralight day packs through full overnight tramping packs, child carriers, hydration packs, and multisport options. Footwear covers men's, women's, and children's tramping boots and shoes. The sleep systems cover down and synthetic sleeping bags, air-filled and self-inflating sleeping mats, closed-cell foam mats, and liners. For cooking in the backcountry, the range extends to stove systems, lightweight cookware, plates, cutlery, and drinkware. Walking poles, compasses, maps, emergency gear, and skin care round out the tramping extras.
One practical feature that sets Bivouac apart from most outdoor retailers: they sell DOC hut tickets. For anyone planning a Great Walk or an overnight route that uses backcountry huts, being able to sort tickets at the same time as picking up gear is genuinely useful.
The climbing section covers the full spectrum from gym to alpine. Climbing shoes for men, women, and children; harnesses; helmets; chalk and chalk bags; ropes; cord, webbing, and slings; carabiners and quickdraws; belay and ascent devices; pulleys; and protection. The mountaineering sub-section adds crampons, ice axes and tools, snow safety equipment, snow protection, and mountaineering-specific tents — a full kit for New Zealand's alpine routes.
Trail running has grown into its own dedicated section, with technical footwear in waterproof, technical trail, and road-to-trail categories for men and women. Running clothing covers jackets, tops, bottoms, socks, headwear, and handwear. Hydration vests, running packs, running belts, and water bottles sit alongside a nutrition range of energy gels and chews, bars, hydration supplements, and smoothies.
The camping range adds family and car-camping scale gear: 1–3 person tents, camp kitchen equipment including stoves, cookware, tableware, cutlery, and chilly bins, plus camp furniture (tables, chairs, stretchers) and the practical extras — maps, publications, knives and multi-tools, and emergency and survival gear.
For travel, Bivouac stocks duffels, wheeled luggage, satchels, backpacks, daypacks, waist packs, packing cubes, toiletry kits, adaptors, power banks, travel towels, and water purification.
Orders over $150 qualify for free standard shipping. Click & Collect is available from all nine stores at no cost, which makes it a useful option for avoiding shipping on smaller orders. A 30-day returns period applies to all purchases. An Outdoor Journal on the website provides buying guides — including guides for gear decisions like choosing the right sleeping mat.