STAY

Start your trip on the North Island at the 195-room Park Hyatt Auckland, located on the waterfront in the Wynyard Quarter, a former industrial wharf that has been transformed into a mixed-use residential and entertainment area. Most flights from the United States arrive into Auckland in the morning, but the hotel can give you a key to its second-floor spa, where you can indulge in a (prebooked) restorative massage and a cold plunge in the hydrotherapy room. The hotel also has a fitness center and an outdoor 82-foot covered infinity pool.

DINE

The hotel has four drinking and dining venues, most with skyline and harbor views. Onemata, the main restaurant, features New Zealand cuisine with a view of the harbor and glittering Auckland skyline. Enjoy dishes like oysters with pineapple-fennel mignonette, citrus-glazed five-spice duck and braised lamb shoulder. The surrounding area offers numerous bars and restaurants to choose from as well. One of our favorites nearby is the Italian eatery Baduzzi, which specializes in meatballs (two favorites: the wild red deer and crayfish).

EXPLORE

A great way to get your bearings in Auckland is via a bike tour with Power to the Pedal, which conveniently starts in front of the hotel’s café, the Pantry, and takes you 17 miles around the city to parks, museums, gardens and the top of the Mount Eden volcano. The Park Hyatt Auckland is on the quieter side of the waterfront, but just across Viaduct Harbour, via the pedestrian bridge, are the busy Commercial Bay and Britomart areas, both of which offer numerous high-end shops and restaurants. The pretty, plant-filled Te Ara Tahuhu Walkway is an appealing outdoor shopping area, as is Newmarket, with plenty of independent New Zealand-based designers. And the Auckland Art Gallery, with an 18,000-piece collection, is just a short cab ride away.

STAY

Take a short flight from Auckland to Queenstown on the South Island and drive 40 minutes to Manapouri, home to the intimate Cabot Lodge, which sits on a 2,000-acre working farm at the gateway to Fiordland National Park. Husband-and-wife team Brad and Breidi Alexander run the lodge while also managing the extensive farm with Breidi’s parents, who have been its stewards for almost 50 years. Interestingly, the lodge itself was the former vacation home of the world-renowned horticulturists Frank and Anne Cabot, who discovered the beauty of the property decades ago and went into partnership with Breidi’s parents. The refurbished lodge contains four  accommodations, each which surveys the rolling hillsides, lake and mountains of the national park.

DINE

Every evening at Cabot Lodge begins with a complimentary cocktail and canapés in the lounge overlooking the property and continues with consistently delicious meals in the small dining room. While tiny Te Anau has a few restaurants, the dishes at Cabot Lodge are all too good to miss.

EXPLORE

The property is adjacent to the trout-rich Waiau River and near the fjords of Doubtful Sound and three of New Zealand’s Great Walks, including the 37-mile Kepler Track. On-site, guests can enjoy a farm or beekeeping tour, a sheepdog demonstration, hiking, fishing, yoga or a massage in the new one-room spa. Off-site excursions, like jet boating or helicopter tours, can be arranged. Read more about all the things to do in Fiordland.

STAY

Have a leisurely breakfast at Cabot Lodge before checking out and driving two hours to Queenstown. Stop for lunch at the Bathhouse, on the shores of scenic Lake Wakatipu. Walk around downtown or visit nearby Arrowtown. Drive to your next hotel, Gibbston Valley Lodge & Spa, which is a destination unto itself. With a tasting room, wine cave, deli and lunch-only restaurant, it debuted 24 villas in 2019. Each 700-square-foot accommodation has vaulted ceilings, wood floors, a gas fireplace, a wet bar and sliding glass doors that open to a small terrace. Be sure to enjoy the complimentary wine-tasting for guests.

DINE

In addition to lunches at the winery’s outdoor restaurant, dinners can be taken at the restaurant inside the gray-stone lodge building, which also contains the lobby and lounge. Alternatively, book dinner at acclaimed Amisfield, a 10-minute drive away. Its provocative presentations are as unforgettable as the meal itself. For something more down-to-earth, visit Ayrburn, a 160-year-old farmstead turned wine-and-food destination featuring eight venues, about 15 minutes from the hotel.

EXPLORE

The hotel is a great base from which to explore the wineries of the Gibbston Valley. Rent e-bikes at the resort and ride the scenic Gibbston River Trail, stopping at Kinross, Mt. Rosa and Brennan, among others, to taste some of Central Otago’s best Pinot Noirs.

STAY

From Gibbston Valley, you’ll drive two and a half hours north, through the dramatic Lindis Pass. (December visits will be rewarded with field after field of brightly blooming lupine.) The Lindis stands in the Ahuriri Valley on 6,500 private acres that are surrounded by another 120,000 acres of a protected conservation area. This remote, windswept property offers five beautiful suites and three stand-alone pods, whose mirrored exterior walls reflect the landscape. Each accommodation provides sweeping views of the braided river that twists up the glacial valley between mountain ranges. Suite décor employs velvet, eucalyptus wood, bluestone masonry, metallic finishes and faux fur to create sumptuous spaces with high ceilings and wall-to-wall windows.

DINE

Light snacks and cocktails are served in the small lounge every evening, and dinner is served in the Great Hall, which showcases views of the valley from its curved windows. (For a special treat, The Lindis offers the Black Diamond private barbecue lunch, which begins with a glass of Champagne and a horse trek in high country.)

EXPLORE

On-site activities include hiking, horseback riding, stargazing, archery and fishing, but off-property excursions can also be arranged, including helicopter tours that take in views of glacial lakes, rushing waterfalls and majestic fjords.

STAY

Your final hotel on the South Island is some five hours away by car. Alternatively, drive back to Queenstown and take the short flight to Christchurch. From there, drive an hour and a half to Flockhill, set on 36,000 idyllic acres, where some scenes from “The Chronicles of Narnia” were filmed. This special property has opened a lodge with seven villas and a restaurant. Guests can book a 550-square-foot Junior Suite, add a central lounge to make it a Deluxe Suite, or book an entire villa. The brand-new suites each have high pitched ceilings, a fireplace, a big open closet and a massive window surveying the Southern Alps. (Larger parties can buy out the ultra-exclusive ranch-style four-bedroom Homestead and have their own private chef.)

DINE

Your stay is inclusive of superb meals at the open-flame Sugarloaf restaurant. The chef, Taylor Cullen, prides himself on featuring “ingredients with integrity,” sustainable products that are foraged, caught or grown on or near the property. Mornings may start with crumpets and pine syrup or eel hash with hollandaise. Dinners are equally inventive — kingfish belly and gooseberry, mushroom with smoked macadamia or hamachi with kiwifruit and basil — and no two dishes show up on the menu twice.

EXPLORE

Saddle up and ride horses through the high country as dogs lead the way amid Alpine scenery. Take a tour of the farm and watch the shepherd’s canines respond to whistles as they muster sheep. Other activities like biking, hiking and ATV tours can be arranged. If your schedule will accommodate it, take the scenic Tranzalpine Railway to Arthur’s Pass, the highest pass over the Southern Alps.

STAY

Drive back to Christchurch and take a flight to Auckland, where you’ll check into the Park Hyatt again.

DINE

Since you probably tried restaurants in the areas close to the hotel during your previous stay, take a taxi farther afield to either Bianca, a popular neighborhood spot for a relaxed Italian dinner, or visit celeb chef Josh Emett’s Onslow, where the people-watching is as good as the food. Be sure to get the crayfish éclair and make a selection from the salmon trolley. (Reservations are highly recommended for both restaurants.)

EXPLORE

No trip to Auckland would be complete without a day trip to Waiheke Island, 45 minutes away via ferry. Rent e-bikes at the ferry terminal from eRide Waiheke and spend the day touring the island, eating at small cafés that either overlook the beach or the vineyards. Be sure to stop at Casita Miro, for Spanish tapas, and Tantalus Estate Vineyard for a wine tasting or lunch. The Andrew Harper Travel Office can help with all the arrangements.