With its incredible scenery, boundless wining and dining and endless selection of boutique properties to reside in, New Zealand might be just a couple hours away, but you will feel like you are in another world. It is a perfect getaway where you can tap into whatever gets you both excited, whether that is long nights by a fire or white water rafting.
Here are some of our favourite properties:
Helicopter-only access is the first clue that you’re in for an epic stay at Minaret Station Alpine Lodge. Adding to the body of exclusive experiences are all-inclusive gourmet meals and individually crafted itineraries that run the heli-adventure gamut. Touch down in an Alpine meadow for a picnic, or atop a peak, to bike or ski down; take a jet boat across remote lakes and fish for rainbow trout in crystalline rivers. Set at the head of a glacial valley within the Southern Alps, the lodge comprises four sheepskin-carpeted chalets with on-deck hot tubs; unwind in the main lodge’s cozy library and lounge.
Active travellers who enjoy the finer things in life are right at home at Kauri Cliffs, set on 6,000 acres near Matauri Bay. The resort boasts jaw-dropping views of Cape Brett and the Cavalli Islands. Settle into your lavish suite with golf course and ocean views, private porch and open fireplace, then explore your surroundings. Golfers will want to check out the course, designed by David Harman and offering 15 Pacific-view holes, while sybarites will flock to the spa, where treatments are customized to your needs and a massage essence or oil is blended just for you.
Cape Kidnappers, discovered by Captain James Cook in 1769, features some of the most dramatic coastline in New Zealand. Worldly travellers know it as the home of The Farm at Cape Kidnappers, a 6,500-acre working sheep and cattle farm on land that ends at cliffs plunging 800 feet straight into the sea. Cottage suite accommodations open to stunning Pacific views and feature every creature comfort one could wish for. When you’re not traipsing the grounds on foot, by bicycle or by four-wheel drive, tee off on the award-winning golf course, where each hole offers ocean views — promising to thrill golfers of all levels.
