New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is the land of adventure — whether you’re after heart‑racing activities like bungee jumping, skydiving or paragliding, or prefer more relaxed experiences such as visiting iconic film locations from The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, or sampling some of the world’s best sauvignon blancs while soaking up epic mountain, lake and ocean views.
On a two‑week trip you could split your time between the North Island — from cosmopolitan Auckland to geothermal, wellness‑focused Rotorua and compact Wellington — and the South Island, with breathtaking landscapes like Milford Sound and Queenstown, the adventure capital of the world, offering endless adrenaline‑pumping activities.
NORTH ISLAND
Auckland
Auckland is known as “the City of Sails” with one of the highest rates of boat ownership per capita in the world. I was very fortunate to experience two sailing adventures in Auckland during my visit. The first was the SailGP Grand Prix races held in Auckland harbor that pit 13 nations together in high-speed, close to shore sailing races that are closer to Formula 1 car races than a leisurely sail. The boats are fast, sailing on foils, are identical F50 catamarans, and have a bit of danger about them - as the French team and the Kiwi team collided during the first day of the races. Check out some of the pics!
SAILGP GRAND PRIX
AMERICA’S CUP SAILING
The second sailing adventure was going out on the NZL 68, a 68 foot boat built for the 2003 America’s Cup. This two hour tour around Auckland harbor is great for an avid sailor or just someone wanting to have the wind in your hair and enjoy the views. I was able to skipper the boat, help with the grinding - moving the winches to change the shape of the sail, and hoist the spinnaker from inside the bow of the boat. Fast, fund and a hands-on experience that I can’t recommend enough. Take a look!
While in Auckland, I highly recommend staying at the JW Marriott for proximity to the harbor, a great gym and pool deck and spacious rooms and a convenient executive lounge. Dinner at Ahi (Asian influenced farm to table) and Amano (delicious Italian) and take the ferry to Waiheke Island for wine tastings and incredible views. The Sky Tower is the skyline defining building - so take the elevator up to the revolving restaurant Orbit at the top for excellent food and 360 degree views of the city.
Rotorua
Driving southeast a few hours, you land in the city of Rotorua - which has made a name for itself for action adventures - think Zorbing, rolling down a hill inside of a giant inflatable bubble, and health and wellness, due to the abundance of geothermal activity in the area. There are some great spas, a dense town with pedestrian friendly streets and a low key vibe after the big city. Additionally, it’s the best opportunity to experience Māori culture at the truly incredible Te Pa Tu village.
TE PA TU - MAORI VILLAGE
The Te Pa Tu village is my most highly recommended activity in New Zealand - you start with a ceremonial greeting to be granted access to their sacred land. I was honored to be chosen as ‘chief’ and participated in the ceremony by picking up a peace offering of a fern leaf, then greeting the Maori chief with two bumps of the nose and a hearty “Kia Ora!” or welcome, peace and hello similar to “aloha’ or '“shalom”.
Peace offering and Welcome with a Māori Chief
Once our group was welcomed onto the Māori sacred land, we rotated among different village activities - games, storytelling, dress, tattoo and face painting symbols, before heading into a forest tent for song, dance and the Haka - a fearsome warrior dance - before enjoying a lavish dinner of grilled meats, vegetables and other local delicacies. Again, this is a must do to get a sense of the indigenous people and their culture!
HELL’S GATE and, Waimangu Volcanic Valley Wai Ariki Hot Springs and Spa
Rotorua sits on geothermal land where you can walk among bubbling mud pools, hot springs and sulfur-scented waterways. Hell’s Gate - so named by George Bernard Shaw who visited in the 1930s for the smell of sulfur and brimstone emanating from the pools - has terrific hikes along the geothermal terrain and a mud spa with 105 degree pools to relax in. This is outdoors, rustic but a lot of fun…for a more lux experience, the Wai Ariki Spa has a two hour circuit of showers, steam and sauna, silica baths, hot springs and a mud bath. Very high end and just gorgeous, overlooking the mountains and ocean just outside. The nearby Waimangu Volcanic Valley was an excellent hike around the incredible landscape formed by eruptions millions of years ago. Check out these spots!
Hobbiton
The #1 tourist attraction in all of New Zealand is Hobbiton - the movie set for the Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit movies. Built into the hillside on a sheep farm on the North Island, Hobbiton gives you up close and personal access to the Shire and key venues in the movies. This 1,250 acre sheep farm comes to life as Sir Peter Jackson directs JRR Tolkien’s classic works of fantasy. You’re able to walk the lanes of the Shire, enter two reconstructed Hobbit houses and have a drink at the busiest bar in all of NZ - the Green Dragon Inn! For any fan of the movies, this is a must see.
Hobbiton - home to Bagshot Row, the Green Dragon Inn and Bilbo Baggins’ home!
Kaituna White Water Rafting
A little adventure before leaving the North Island - white water rafting on the Kaituna River. This experience is amazing because it is the highest commercially navigable waterfall at over 21 feet (the raft itself is only 7 feet!) and some intense class V rapids. This was such a rush - beautiful river winding through canyons overgrown with vegetation, a huge waterfall drop and some tricky currents and backeddies from boulders and rocks along the way. Super fun group activity and the guides were terrific!
SOUTH ISLAND
QUEENSTOWN
A quick flight to the South Island get you to Queenstown - the adrenaline capital of the world. From the home of bungee jumping, to paragliding, ziplining and luging - there is no shortage of extreme sports here. With less than 25% of the population, the South Island looks and feels much more remote, with dramatic landscapes and natural wonders that enhance the proximity and power of Nature…especially when you’re jumping off a mountain.
From the center of Queenstown, you can hike 1 + hours up Bob’s Peak via the Tiki Trail to get to the top of the mountain. This is for serious hikers only - it’s only an hour but the gain is over 1,200 feet…so it’s pretty strenuous but well worth it! Alternatively, there’s a gondola that runs to the top of the mountain in under 10 minutes. Either way, the views are epic. All that is needed to get down is to strap on a kite and paraglide down!
Other adventures include high speed boats on the rivers and inlets; a submarine boats in lake Waktipu and the views up the trail on Bob’s Peak.
One way to get above it all is to take the 10 minute helicopter ride to the top of the Remarkables Mountains!
MILFORD SOUND
Milford Sound is New Zealand’s most iconic fiord — a dramatic slice of wilderness where sheer granite cliffs, plunging waterfalls and glacier-carved valleys meet the Tasman Sea.
Rudyard Kipling named Milford Sound the “8th wonder of the world” - it is pretty epic!
Doing Milford Sound as a day trip from Queenstown by bus, cruise and scenic prop plane combines epic road scenery, intimate wildlife encounters on the water, and jaw-dropping aerial views for a single, unforgettable day.
Why this combo works
Coach: The Milford Road through Fiordland is spectacular; the coach lets you relax, take photos, and learn from guides.
Cruise: Get close to waterfalls, cliffs and wildlife — seals, dolphins and birdlife — on a sheltered fiord cruise.
Scenic plane: Flying back reveals the full scale of the fiord network, glaciers and rugged coastline and saves time.
