The defending Super rugby champion is missing 10 players away on international duty and injuries are also still plaguing the squad.
The side will play the Crusaders in Oamaru tomorrow week in a training game and will then head to South Africa and Argentina for its next two matches.
The team will leave for South Africa on June 25, the same day as the test between the All Blacks and Wales at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
The Highlanders have eight All Blacks on test duty and also have halfback Fumiaki Tanaka (Japan) and winger Patrick Osborne (Fiji) away on international engagements.
Highlanders coach Jamie Joseph said yesterday it had not been decided yet when the international players would head to South Africa. It would depend on the condition they were in and the workloads they had had with their national sides.
The franchise will be taking 27 players to play the Kings on July 3 (NZ time) in Port Elizabeth and then the Jaguares in Buenos Aires on July 10 (NZ time).
The side then returns to Dunedin to play the Chiefs in the final game of the regular season on July 16.
Having eight players with the All Blacks may be a headache in terms of player availability when Super rugby resumes but Joseph said it was great for the side to get players in national teams.
"That is what your job is about. About getting these players into being the best in the world,'' he said.
The team is not sure whether prop Craig Millar (ankle) and hooker Liam Coltman (toe) will be right for the tour as they are still recovering from injuries picked up in games before the international break.
Lock Alex Ainley suffered a tight calf in the last match against the Hurricanes but should be right for the tour while second five-eighth Tei Walden picked up a knee injury in a club game last Saturday and was forced off the field.
With halfbacks Tanaka and Aaron Smith away on international duty and Josh Renton out for the season with a knee injury, the No9 cupboard is bare.
Bay of Plenty halfback Te Aihe Toma is training with the team while Southland halfback Liam Howley has picked up an injury and is not available.
Joseph said the side wanted to get the basics right in the next week and a-half to be ready to hit the ground running when the competition resumed.
The game in Oamaru next Thursday was a good opportunity for players to put themselves into consideration for a spot in the touring squad. The Crusaders would also be without their internationals.
Although the trip to Africa, Argentina and then back home was a long time in a plane it was still an experience which players would enjoy, Joseph said.
The Highlanders announced yesterday they have re-signed hooker Ash Dixon for another year.