The named tracks, Greenstone, Caples, Rees-Dart, Routeburn, etc, are often walked in various combinations of a loop as they are in parallel valleys with the same start and/or end points.
The Great Walk and serviced huts are generally comfortable with reasonable amenity, although they do have a winter season where the water to the inside taps is turned off, pipes are drained to avoid damage from freezing, instead you have to go to an outside tank. Any flushing toilets are also locked, you have to use a long drop.
The Great Walk huts have the summer/winter pricing difference and the requirement for summer season booking. This doesn’t apply to most other huts which have the same price all year round and are on a first-come-grabs-the-bunk basis.
Note that camping on a Great Walk is only permitted at the official campsites although it is okay to camp for free a minimum of 500 m from the track. The problem with this 500 m limit is that there are few locations where it is physically possible to whack up your tent, the country is either covered in tussock, not easy to sleep on those massive lumps, on a considerable slope, on private land or all of the above.
