Tag Archives: Waiheke Island

Waiheke Evokes Fond Memories for Emilia Wickstead

Waiheke Evokes Fond Memories for Emilia Wickstead

New Zealand’s most famous fashion export, the Duchess of Cambridge’s go-to designer Emilia Wickstead tells The Telegraph how this “relaxed and beautiful part of the world” evokes happy childhood memories. “There is something special for…

Waiheke’s Man O’ War Vineyards is Otherworldly

Waiheke’s Man O’ War Vineyards is Otherworldly

Luxury and lifestyle magazine Condé Nast Traveler is “currently obsessed” with Man O’ War Vineyards on Waiheke Island. “When I was planning a vacation to New Zealand earlier this year, Traveler’s resident Kiwi expert Erin…

Getting Close to Perfect on the North Island

Getting Close to Perfect on the North Island

“Countless travellers fantasise about New Zealand as a place untouched by much of the world’s bustle and strain,” Jim Farber writes for the New York Daily News. Farber tours the North Island to see…

Waiheke Commute One of the More Unusual

Waiheke Commute One of the More Unusual

Whether it’s skiing, snowboarding or skating, Guardian readers from around the world, who opt to take an alternative route to work, share their stories, including Aucklander James Scroggins who commutes daily from Waiheke Island…

Secret Swims with Karen Walker on Waiheke

Secret Swims with Karen Walker on Waiheke

Designer and native New Zealander Karen Walker, who spends her holidays on Waiheke Island, gives Condé Nast Traveler her “summer hit list” for the magazine’s weekly edition of Summer Fridays – a weekly series…

Vine Old Time On Waiheke Island

Vine Old Time On Waiheke Island

“(Waiheke Island) has its own microclimate – it’s drier and warmer than Auckland, 20km away – which is why it’s so good at growing grapes and attracting thousands of day-trippers,” Katrina Lolley writes for…

5 Offbeat New Zealand Destinations

5 Offbeat New Zealand Destinations

As tempting as “running off to the tropics or backpacking through the tourist destinations of Europe” are, “the hidden gem of getaways is absolutely New Zealand,” writes Shenkeri in an article on

A Toast to New Zealand’s Wine

A Toast to New Zealand’s Wine

“New Zealand wine regions are at their most spectacular in fall, when the days are long and bathed in late sunshine,” as reported in an article in the Canada Free Press, which features some…

Waiheke Island and Great Barrier Island

Waiheke Island and Great Barrier Island

New Zealand’s “Great Barrier Island is a gorgeous unspoilt spot where native forest runs down steep slopes to beautiful isolated beaches and walking trails interconnect the paved road to a paradise of hot mineral…

‘Pete’s Dragon’ Stars Love New Zealand Locations

‘Pete’s Dragon’ Stars Love New Zealand Locations

Chances are that by the time you leave the theatre after watching “Pete’s Dragon” you have not only fallen in love with Elliott the dragon, but also New Zealand, where the movie was filmed,…

Waiheke One of World’s Best Islands

Waiheke One of World’s Best Islands

Waiheke has placed forth in Travel + Leisure magazine’s annual top ten best islands in the world survey for 2016, ahead of Bali, Hawaii and the Greek islands. It was also named the top…

Jeweller Jessica McCormack Packs for Waiheke

Jeweller Jessica McCormack Packs for Waiheke

Christchurch-born London-based jewellery designer Jessica McCormack talks with Harper’s Bazaar UK for the magazine’s monthly “Travel Notebook” column about what she packs and her favourite places to stay when she heads homeward to Waiheke…

On a Culinary Discovery in New Zealand

On a Culinary Discovery in New Zealand

New Zealand has much more to offer than lamb and seafood, according to Straits Times food critic Wong Ah Yoke, who travels to Auckland, Waiheke Island, Hawkes Bay and Wellington sampling food cooked in…

A New Breed of Syrah

A New Breed of Syrah

In 2015 New Zealand wine sales were up nearly 20 percent in the United States. New Zealand famously is known for its white wines – at the moment, however, Syrah is the latest craze. Once a…

New Zealand’s Food and Drink Make It A Land of Plenty

New Zealand’s Food and Drink Make It A Land of Plenty

With their “Zingy “sauv blanc”, rich flat-white coffee and citrusy hops which now flavours British craft beers, “Kiwis have been making much more impact on our tastes than simply supplying lamb and butter,” as…

On the Waiheke Wine Trail

On the Waiheke Wine Trail

When you land in New Zealand, the wine is closer than you think according to Lori Rackl, a freelance journalist writing for the Los Angeles Times. Rackl begins her vineyard tour on Waiheke Island…

Things To Do In Auckland

Things To Do In Auckland

100% Pure New Zealand presents Things To Do In Auckland. New Zealand’s largest and most culturally diverse city, Auckland is located next to the idyllic Hauraki Gulf Marine Park….

The Best of Waiheke Island

The Best of Waiheke Island

On Waiheke Island “old-school beach shacks share the same stunning views as architect-designed mansions, and their millionaire inhabitants are usually indistinguishable from the vineyard workers and retired hippies who all call this island home,”…

Waiheke Ranked Fourth Best Island

Waiheke Ranked Fourth Best Island

Waiheke has been ranked the fourth best island in the world outside of the U.S in the 2015 Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards. “A mix of Nantucket and Sonoma, with New Zealand charm,…

A Guide to Wine Tasting in New Zealand

A Guide to Wine Tasting in New Zealand

“New Zealand isn’t just a place for thrill-seekers. Over the past 30 years, New Zealand has been earning its place as a tastemaker in the wine world”, writes Jenn Brown for The…

Condé Nast Editor Plans Your 12-Day Tour

Condé Nast Editor Plans Your 12-Day Tour

New Zealand – “where the island of Waiheke offers great food and even better wine”, features in the latest issue of Condé Nast Traveler as a 12-day “Editor’s Itinerary”. The tour covers both islands, with…

What the Royals Are Taking in on Their NZ Tour

What the Royals Are Taking in on Their NZ Tour

As Prince William, Kate Middleton – and Prince George – head to New Zealand on an official tour, the Telegraph looks at all the places they are visiting asking their own experts, as well…

Waiheke Island a Paradise for Art Lovers

Waiheke Island a Paradise for Art Lovers

“Waiheke Island is upscale Auckland’s offshore beach resort of choice – but its thriving creative community means it’s also a paradise for art lovers of all types,” according to Time Out Dubai. In an…

New Zealand Designer among world’s best

New Zealand Designer among world’s best

New Zealand-born designer Veere Grenney is included on the 2014 Architectural Digest’s AD100 list as one of the world’s top architects and designers. With his interiors shaped by three fundamental qualities – harmony, clarity and…

Taylor Swift Posts Dreamy NZ Holiday on Instagram

Taylor Swift Posts Dreamy NZ Holiday on Instagram

In between shows on her Red tour in New Zealand, American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift posted Instagrams of herself busy at “aesthetically pleasing activities … like driving a boat, gazing off into the…

Island Paradise Enticing Auckland Urbanites

Island Paradise Enticing Auckland Urbanites

“Waiheke Island is now the go-to holiday home destination for wealthy New Zealand urbanites … with the west coast draw the most punters, in particular the beaches near the island’s main town Oneroa and…

Musket Room Cellar Tips for Future NZ Classics

Musket Room Cellar Tips for Future NZ Classics

23 October 2013 – The sommelier at New York’s first restaurant showcasing haute New Zealand cuisine, The Musket Room suggests we start cellaring future New Zealand classics before the rest of the world catches on. Erin…

As If You Needed Another Reason to Go Down Under

As If You Needed Another Reason to Go Down Under

Waiheke Island’s “stylish hotel” Oyster Inn has its own selection of fashionable Waihetian beach accessories available on site at their shop; souvenirs worth the trip to New Zealand, according to Condé Nast Traveler. “We’ve always…

Waiheke Island’s World’s Oldest Dance Crew Performs at World Championship

Waiheke Island’s World’s Oldest Dance Crew Performs at World Championship

New Zealand hip-hop dance crew, Hip Op-eration, have arrived in Las Vegas and performed as part of the World Hip Hop Championship. The world’s oldest hip-hip dance crew, Hip-Operation members range between the ages…

Shucks, it’s a Hit

Shucks, it’s a Hit

Waiheke Island’s The Oyster Inn, “is a charming project that opened late last year, set up by Andrew Glenn and Jonathan Rutherfurd Best,” Simon Farrell-Green writes for Monocle in an article about “How to:…

Everyone’ll be Here Next Year

Everyone’ll be Here Next Year

Waiheke Island is included in the prestigious New York Times’ “46 Places to Go in 2013”, featuring at No 35 under the title, “A homegrown arts scene beckons from down under”. “Long home to…

Hop, Skip and a Jump

Hop, Skip and a Jump

“The sea is never more than a few miles away on Waiheke,” Jonathan Hutchison writes for The New York Times. “West is Oneroa, a small township with cafeterias and shops selling clothes, crafts and,…

Art the Lifeblood on Waiheke

Art the Lifeblood on Waiheke

“‘There’s something about this stretch of water that changes everything,’ sculptor Chris Bailey says, gesturing towards the Hauraki Gulf. ‘It has an almost cleansing effect.’” “Clambering out of Bailey’s cluttered ute, we…

Feral Cats Out Tuatara In

Feral Cats Out Tuatara In

Sixty tuatara have been released on Motuihe Island, which lies between Motutapu and Waiheke islands in the Hauraki Gulf. The New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) and the Motuihe Trust spent many years ridding…

Wonders of Waiheke

Wonders of Waiheke

“ is famed for its hippies and nudist beaches, its boutique art galleries and cafe culture, and for its stunning wineries, the production of which, although small by commercial standards, regularly match up…

Friendliest Place On The Planet

Friendliest Place On The Planet

New Zealand is the world’s friendliest place according to the results of HSBC’s Expat Explorer Survey. “New Zealanders as a whole seem like happy people, and that translates into friendly, helpful and kind people,”…

Dreaming Of A Bach Life

Dreaming Of A Bach Life

New Zealanders and Australians could easily develop hospitality schools that would give Lausanne and Cornell a thumping reflects Monocle editor-in-chief Tyler Brûlé after his “most wonderful eight-day holiday.” “ are good at hosting, selling, serving…

Feel And Scale Of Earlier Times

Feel And Scale Of Earlier Times

“ downtown is dominated by 21st century high-rises, but neighbourhoods like Ponsonby retain the feel and scale of earlier times,” Allan Seiden writes for the Hawaii Reporter, “with galleries and boutiques to browse and eateries…

Cheeky Island Sentinels

Cheeky Island Sentinels

The bohemian enclave of Waiheke Island has become a gallery-rich art destination; the Guardian’s Stephen Phelan’s first impressions are of bare bottoms, all brightly painted in tinges of lime green, lemon yellow, electric blue…

Blue Rates Destiny

Blue Rates Destiny

Waiheke Island’s Destiny Bay Vineyard 27 Magna Praemia has been awarded a rating of 98 out of 1 by top United States wine critic and editor-in-chief of The Tasting Panel magazine, Anthony Dias Blue…

Inspired By Nature

Inspired By Nature

The stunning landscape of Waiheke Island (off Auckland’s east coast) is home to over 7,5 residents. Regenerating bush, an indented coastline, vineyards and olive groves are some of its defining characteristics. When…

Auckland’s Own Nantucket

Auckland’s Own Nantucket

“Once a hippie haven where forested blocks sold for a few quid, Waiheke is today dotted with multi-million-dollar holiday homes and slick cellar doors (although it remains a firm favourite with artistic types),” The…

Island artscape

Island artscape

Bailey, a full-time artist whose Maori, Irish and Dutch heritage is central to his work is one of more than 1 who make Waiheke Island their home, many of whom open their studios to…

Taste of Success

Taste of Success

“There are several reasons for Man O War’s success,” Air New Zealand Wine Awards judge Eric Arnold writes in an article for Forbes. “It’s the island’s biggest, most established producer; it’s…

Good as gold

Good as gold

Waiheke Island is a prime growing spot for olive trees and each year, in November, the Waiheke Olive Festival takes place on the estate of one of the local producers. Toronto Star freelance travel…

Island Paradise

Island Paradise

Waiheke Island’s Mudbrick Vineyard & Restaurant is recommended by the Wall Street Journal in an article about worldwide wine tours. Waiheke Island features alongside the Barossa Valley, Australia; Western Cape, South Africa and Grover…

Best Northern Beaches

Best Northern Beaches

The North Island’s top beaches are named by The Sydney Morning Herald’s Bruce Elder, who writes that those suggested are so good that no trip to New Zealand would be complete without visiting them….

Out of Town Delights

Out of Town Delights

Waiheke Island, Martinborough and North Canterbury’s Waipara Valley, each a short drive from a main centre, are all worth exploring for “epicurious travellers” from across the Tasman. Residents of Auckland would doubtless prefer that…

Little Island Paradise

Little Island Paradise

Waiheke Island, in the North Island’s Hauraki Gulf has placed 6th in the 2009 list of the ‘World’s Best Islands to Live On’ by Islands magazine, and is praised in particular for being emigration-friendly…

To Cascading Waters

To Cascading Waters

Waiheke Island, home to 8000 people and 30 vineyards, is a “true microcosm of Aotearoa” writes Boston Globe reporter Stephanie Stephens, who is “struck by the endearingly lower-stress pace of New Zealand life” coming…

Hollywood Holidays in Aotearoa

Hollywood Holidays in Aotearoa

NZ was allegedly the holiday destination of choice for a slew of A-list celebrities over the summer. Bill Gates spent Christmas quad-biking at Ahipara with his son, while actors Jack Nicholson and Charlize Theron reportedly spent time…

The Complete Package

The Complete Package

NZ’s largest city is described as having “new wind in its sails” in a US travel feature. Once the jumping-off point for further exploration of NZ, Auckland has become a worthy destination in its…

Stonyridge a Must-see

Stonyridge a Must-see

Waiheke Island’s Stonyridge vineyard featured in the Guardian’s top ten must-visit wineries, alongside Chateau Mouton Rothschild in Bordeaux and the Frank Gehry-designed Marques de Riscal in Rioja, Spain. Guardian: “Stonyridge is a cult winery with a global…

Still the Place to Be

Still the Place to Be

NZ has proven its staying power as a must-see for British tourists by winning both the Dream Destination prize at the 2006 British Travel Awards and the favourite long-haul country category in the annual Guardian…

Liquid Gold

Liquid Gold

One of NZ’s most respected wineries, Waiheke Island’s Goldwater Estate, has been sold to the NZ Wine Fund for $10 million. The Wine Fund, which also purchased Marlborough’s Vavasour Wines in 2003, is predicting combined sales this…

Best Put to the Test

Best Put to the Test

Travel & Leisure writer sniffs out the best luxury retreats in NZ – a country where “everyone is a hotelier, or so it can sometimes seem.” After testing the waters at Eagle’s Nest (Russell), Otahuna Lodge…