Brunner joined a party of six other young improvers which left England on 27 April 1841 aboard the "Whitby". During the voyage to New Zealand, the improvers received further instruction and were tested by having to prepare draft layouts for the new settlement, Brunner's plan being the best of these. On 18 September, the "Whitby" arrived at Port Nicholson, the New Zealand Company's first settlement. The approximate site for the new settlement had yet to be finalised; initially intended for Banks Peninsula, this location was vetoed by the Governor of New Zealand, William Hobson. Instead, it was to be located at the top of the South Island, at Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere. Early the following month a convoy of the company's ships, with Brunner aboard one them, crossed the Cook Strait to Tasman Bay. After scouting the area for three weeks, a site adjacent a deep and sheltered natural harbour was identified as being suitable for the settlement.