What were the culinary highlights in Wellington?
Next you visited Rotorua— what was that like?
Highwater Eatery & Wine Bar
Redwoods Treewalk
What were the culinary highlights in Wellington?
SS: The highlight of the first day was the chef’ s menu at Highwater Eatery & Wine Bar, which included charcoalcooked sourdough flatbread with broccoli, fresh porcini, currants and pine nuts. It was such a special, three-hour dinner from Chef Alric Hansen— all made from scratch in an open kitchen based around a Pira charcoal oven imported from Spain. And then there’ s Forage Merchants of Wellington, the coolest little hipster market to buy locally sourced artisan food and beverages, like Apostle’ s Kawakawa & Feijoa Za’ tar from the Kāpiti Coast and Superseed Crackers from Lower Hutt. Everything there is personally curated by the owner, Guy
McInroe, and is proudly made within one hour of the shop. We went there with Phil from ZoZo Travel on the“ Taste of Petone” neighborhood tour.
We also took a day trip to the Wairarapa region to go on the“ Martinborough Foodie Delights Tour” with Tom from Kaewa Tours. We sampled cheeses, chocolates, olive oils and wines— all exceptional— but the highlights for me were our wine tasting and beautiful grazing-board lunch at Poppy’ s Martinborough and our stop at Greytown Honey. During their“ hive to honey jar” experience, we got to suit up like beekeepers around actual bees while listening to incredible( and hilarious) stories from Karly, the owner and fifth-generation beekeeper. Every time I travel to New Zealand, I’ m reminded it’ s the people who make the trip so special.
Next you visited Rotorua— what was that like?
SS: Rotorua is a must-do for first-timers to the North Island; it has some of the country’ s most iconic experiences. We started an invigorating morning at Wai Ariki Hot Springs & Spa, which beautifully mixes geothermal and modern spa techniques. Don’ t miss ordering a kawawa tea latte on your way out; it was incredible. Next was visiting Te Puia to experience Māori culture, geothermal activity and kiwi birds up close. Walking through the Whakarewarewa Forest on high suspension bridges and through a glowworm cave at Redwoods Treewalk & Glowworms was unforgettable. �
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