Detailed Itinerary
On arrival at Queenstown Airport on the South Island of New Zealand, you will be met by PerryGolf staff and transferred to relax at your accommodation, Hotel St Moritz.
SIGHTSEEING: Queenstown is reassured for its magnificent scenery, adventure opportunities and luxury lifestyle. Long summer days blonde the tussocks, throwing the hills open to mountain bikers and hikers. The brilliant reds and golds of autumn colour the trees, inspiring photographers and golfers alike. In winter, snow transforms the region into a remarkable alpine playground for skiers and snowboarders. Spring brings the spark of fresh green to the landscape, a time to celebrate life with a cruise on the lake or an invigorating bungy jump. In any season, you can count on stylish accommodation, designer shopping and marvellous cuisine experiences. Queenstown's compact downtown area is a cosmopolitan hub that's relaxed during the day and huge fun at night.
Welcome cocktails and dinner are included this evening, giving you an opportunity to meet your fellow travelers.
OVERNIGHT: Hotel St Moritz – Alpine Suite Lakeview with Balcony
GOLF: Today play Millbrook. This spectacular par 72 championship golf course, designed by New Zealand's renowned master golfer, Sir Bob Charles, is enjoyed by enthusiasts from around the world. Challenging for both higher and lower handicap golfers, the Millbrook Resort course is one of the most impressive international golf arenas in the world. Featuring impeccably groomed fairways and greens, demanding hazards, and meandering water courses, surrounded by the alpine backdrop of the Remarkables Mountain Range, golf at Millbrook Resort is an exhilarating experience.
SIGHTSEEING SUGGESTION: Enjoy today at your own leisure. There is so much to do and see in Queenstown for both the adventurous and not so adventurous! Morning at leisure to stroll around town and visit the nearby Queenstown Gardens. Consider boarding the vintage steamship, the TSS Earnslaw, and cruise across Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak High Country Farm. Enjoy a quintessential Kiwi experience – a delicious gourmet BBQ lunch and a farm demo in a stunning lakeside setting.
OVERNIGHT: Hotel St Moritz – Alpine Suite Lakeview with Balcony
SIGHTSEEING: Today you will enjoy a Fly/Cruise/Fly Milford Sound experience. There's a reason Milford Sound is called the 8th wonder of the world…and today you will discover why on this return scenic flight between Queenstown and Milford Sound and a scenic boat cruise along the fiord towards the Tasman Sea. Your 35-minute flight will take in many panoramic views of spectacular alpine scenery including glaciers, rivers, lakes and rainforest before landing at Milford Sound. A short transfer will then see you board a leisurely cruise on the fiord to the Tasman Sea. View the spectacular alpine scenery including waterfalls, rainforest and the towering peaks; and keep a lookout for wildlife including seals, dolphins and penguins when in season.
OVERNIGHT: Hotel St Moritz – Alpine Suite Lakeview with Balcony
GOLF: Today play Jack’s Point. The course is bounded by the Remarkables mountain range and Lake Wakatipu. It traverses through wetland to the lake edge encountering steep bluffs, indigenous vegetation and wildlife. It is designed to work with nature, not against it. Fairways are designed with minimal excavation and careful plantings to complement the natural environment, but also to give the golfer a fighting chance. Jack's Point is sited on the elbow of Lake Wakatipu and at the foot of the Remarkables mountain range. It’s the largest parcel of land to be comprehensively developed by one entity in the history of New Zealand..
SIGHTSEEING: Visit the quirky nearby village of Arrowtown before taking in a couple of boutique vineyards in the Gibbston and Bannockburn/Cromwell region. Considered one of the world's premier cool-climate wine regions, Central Otago boasts high-quality varietals including chardonnay, pinot gris, pinot noir and Riesling.
OVERNIGHT: Hotel St Moritz – Alpine Suite Lakeview with Balcony
Today you will check out of your hotel and return to the airport for your onward flights to Napier.
SIGHTSEEING: A coastal city on New Zealand's North Island, Napier is set amid the renowned wine-producing region of Hawke's Bay. Rebuilt after a 1931 earthquake, the city is known for art deco landmarks like the zigzag-patterned Daily Telegraph Building. Along the tree-lined waterfront promenade the Marine Parade, the Pania of the Reef statue depicting a Maori maiden, is a symbol of the city.
Napier's city centre has the feeling of a time capsule - the seamless line of 1930s architecture is quite extraordinary. One of the ways to enjoy the streetscape is on a self-guided walk - ask for a map at the information centre or at the Art Deco Trust.
Art Deco Tour. Napier is known as the Art Deco City. Walking tours, most conducted by the Art Deco Trust, operate daily and leave from the Marine Parade and proceed through Napier's Art Deco Quarter and a stylish retail shop. Delight in the decorative and colourful buildings - Napier is famous for its Jazz age architecture.
Later today, check in to your next accommodation, Porters Boutique Hotel.
OVERNIGHT: Porters Boutique Hotel – Premier King Room
GOLF: Today play Cape Kidnappers, a Tom Doak designed golf course which is consistently ranked amongst the world's most spectacular courses. The clever use of the layout is best seen from the air where Doak has used the natural landscape to craft some magnificent, memorable, and challenging golf holes. However, the Cape Kidnappers experience starts from the moment you drive in the entrance gate. What follows is a 10-kilometer drive (yes that is correct) leading you up to the shearing shed designed clubhouse. The long drive helps to build the anticipation of the day ahead as one passes through a pine plantation, a working cattle farm where sheep abound, across streams and along roads cut out from sheer faced cliffs.
SIGHTSEEING SUGGESTION: The Hawke’s Bay region is a foodie’s paradise with great local flavours to sample and enjoy. The New Zealand Wine Centre can take you on a journey to learn about how the region’s wines are made and you can grab a packaged four course lunch option to sample the fine flavours. You can also go on a bike tour to see Napier’s stunning views and vineyards to taste the premium wines. Hawkes's Bay Trails can offer beginner riders, keen cyclists, walkers and runners 180km of on-road and off-road trails where you will see everything from mountainous lookouts and beautiful lowland rivers to endangered wetland wildlife and the sweeping Hawkes's Bay coastline.
This evening we will enjoy a dinner at a local winery.
OVERNIGHT: Porters Boutique Hotel – Premier King Room
Today we check out of our accommodation and continue our journey on the Napier to Taupo “highway”, a road of national significance, being one of the very first bridal tracks built in the 1800’s to connect the central North Island to the east coast. As we pass through native forest on our 3-hour journey, we will witness 1000 year old species of trees including Kauri, Rimu, Totora and Macrocarpa – all native trees to New Zealand and our Guardians of the Forest! We will arrive into Taupo and check into the Hilton Lake Taupo Hotel for three nights. You are greeted with majestic views overlooking Lake Taupo with its backdrop of the trio of mountains Ruapehu, Tongariro and Ngauruhoe. As part of a volcanic plateau, formed by a super volcano which erupted 28,000 years ago, Lake Taupo itself is 150 metres deep and covers an area just under that of New York City!
GOLF: Today play Wairakei Golf + Sanctuary which sprawls over its expansive property using the natural contours to the fullest. Over 100 bunkers are carefully positioned to catch errant shots and cleverly placed water hazards provide both a visual beauty and challenge. Officially opened in 1970, the course lies on 450 acres of natural rolling countryside and was developed to meet the rigorous design standards required for world class championship competition.
Later today we will check into our next accommodation at Hilton Lake Taupo.
OVERNIGHT: Hilton Lake Taupo – Guest Room Plus
SIGHTSEEING: A day in the region to visit the world-famous Huka Falls and a unique glass blowing gallery, as well as a visit to Rotorua to experience some local Maori culture where you will learn how New Zealand’s cultural mix has blended over two centuries to create a warm and hospitable nation of peoples.
OVERNIGHT: Hilton Lake Taupo– King Guest Room Plus
GOLF: Today play The Kinloch Club. Designed by world renowned golfer and course designer, Jack Nicklaus and has been lauded for its quality design and testing challenge. Ideally situated in the central portion of the North Island, with spectacular views of Lake Taupo. At Kinloch, the land's characteristics feature fast-moving contours and knobs, and Nicklaus recreated that same look in the golf course. Many have described this links like layout as a course reminiscent of the coastal gems in Scotland.
SIGHTSEEING SUGGESTION: This beautiful resort and holiday base enjoys a scenic location on the shores of Lake Taupo, at the centre of the North Island. The town sits on a thermal belt, and visitors can see areas of boiling mud, steam and geysers north of the town at Wairakei Park and Orakei Korako. Thermal activity first attracted visitors during the 1880s, but today the town lures anglers from throughout the world with a plentiful supply of rainbow and brown trout. Lake Taupo is popular for swimming, boating, waterskiing, jetskiing, kayaking, rowing and scenic cruises, while thrillseekers can enjoy bungy jumping, tandem skydiving, jetboating and whitewater rafting. The spectacular Huka Falls and the Aratiatia Rapids lie to the north of the town, while to the south are the imposing mountains of the volcanic plateau and the skifields of Mount Ruapehu.
This evening we will enjoy a Maori Culinary Experience.
OVERNIGHT: Hilton Lake Taupo – King Guest Room Plus
Today is a long day. Driving straight through from Taupo to Te Arai would take approximately 5-hours. In order to break up the journey, we will be stopping along the way for some of the area's most popular sightseeing.
SIGHTSEEING: As we drive north from Taupo to Te Arai, we will either stop at Hobbiton for a tour of the movie set of Lord of the Rings where an incredible experience waits, or at the lovely Hamilton Gardens, based on the banks of the Waikato River.
This evening we will check into our next accommodation at Te Arai Links.
OVERNIGHT: Te Arai Links – Super King Suite
GOLF: Today play Te Arai Links – North Course. According to course designer Tom Doak, "The North Course starts and finishes on the ocean, but for me the unique character of the course will be found inland. The green of the par-4 5th hole, and the next tee, sit high on a ridge adjacent to an ancient Māori Pa, or hill fortress, built from the largest dune on the property, while the 4th, 6th, 7th and 9th greens sit in a shared bowl amongst the dunes." Possibly the most dramatic holes on the course will be the 11th and 13th. The former is a long par-5 with an elevated green and a ‘whirlpool’ hazard to the right, some seven meters below the green. The 13th is a long par-4 with its green at the edge of a huge natural bunker, so that second shots have to be played over the sand or safely around to the left. It’s a hole very reminiscent of Pine Valley in New Jersey, and indeed so is much of the inland terrain at Te Arai. It is odd having to apologize for a golf course that ‘only’ features the ocean for seven of the 18 holes, but that is how spoiled golfers have become by the best of New Zealand’s modern golf courses. The North Course promises to be near the head of the class.
SIGHTSEEING SUGGESTIONS:
On-Property Activities
MASSAGE - Massages are available in your private accommodation. Massages range from 45mins to 90mins, and our experienced masseuse can tailor the treatment to your needs.
BEAUTY - A range of beauty services are available in your private accommodation. Choose from manicures, pedicures, or a wide range of facials.
YOGA - With a private instructor. In the privacy of your accommodation or a scenic location around Te Arai Links. Anything is possible, from sunrise yoga on the beach or a post-golf stretch session. Available for individuals or small groups.
OVERNIGHT: Te Arai Links – Super King Suite
GOLF: Today play Te Arai Links – South Course. The South Course at Te Arai Links was designed by world renowned golf architects Coore & Crenshaw. It is a uniquely special site for golf, comprised of sand dunes and landforms sculpted by the wind, adjacent to the sea. Te Arai’s landforms vary from heaving sand ridges and meandering valleys to rumpled contours reminiscent of the classic seaside links on which the game began. These contours are the foundation and inspiration for the golf holes of Te Arai Links. The holes are as varied in appearance and character as the land itself. There are highly individualistic, some might even say, quirky holes like the shortish par fours at three, six and sixteen, each reflecting the drama and unique character of the landforms that created their concepts. There are more traditional yet equally dramatic holes like the inland second, the tenth and eleventh; and there are the visually spectacular seaside holes at seven, eight, nine and fifteen through eighteen. There are lengthy holes and finesse holes. There are holes with varying shapes and sizes, with character and golf strategic are based upon the natural contours. The South Course at Te Arai Links has sixteen ocean view golf holes and eight holes bordering directly on the sea making it a photogenic and visually stunning golf course.
SIGHTSEEING SUGGESTIONS:
Off-Property Activities
HIKES AND WALKING TRACKS - There are an array of hikes in the local area to suit all fitness levels.
SURFING - Whether you are a first-time surfer or a seasoned pro, the beautiful beaches of Te Arai and Mangawhai offer waves for all.
HORSE RIDING - Book a horseback adventure to really connect with the surrounding environment. Rides can be tailored to suit all guests, from slow and steady to fast and exhilarating.
PADDLE BOARDING AND KAYAKING - Stand up paddle boarding (SUP) is safe, fun, and easy – and it’s the perfect way to experience our beautiful coastline from a whole new perspective.
Later we leave Te Arai Links and continue north for a 2.5 hour drive to our most northern stay of the tour, the Bay of Islands awaits. The final piece of a New Zealand itinerary, as a tried and tested knockout punch to complete an incredible tour is a stay at the Rosewood Kauri Cliffs Lodge.
OVERNIGHT: Rosewood Kauri Cliffs – Grand Ocean View Junior Suite
GOLF: Today play Kauri Cliffs. This world class course also offers unparalleled spectacular ocean views. Situated high above the ocean on 4,000 acres of working farmland, 15 of the holes look out on the Pacific Ocean. Immaculately presented, it is a fantastic experience to play, and the memories will last forever. The inland holes wind through marsh, forest and farmland as this magnificent course is presented in a natural setting. Fred Couples and Michael Campbell battled here in a Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf match.
SIGHTSEEING SUGGESTION: There are an abundance of activities on site ranging from horse riding, surf casting, walking, biking, or simply chilling out in the spa or by the swimming pool.
This evening we join together for our Farewell Dinner.
OVERNIGHT: Rosewood Kauri Cliffs – Grand Ocean View Junior Suite
After breakfast, check out and transfer 4-hours back to Auckland Airport for homeward flights (the earliest recommended departure flight time from Auckland is 3:00PM).
Additionally, in lieu of the provided ground transfer from Kauri Cliffs to Auckland Airport, should you make your own domestic flight arrangements from Kerikeri to Auckland, we recommend allowing 5 hours between the time you land in Auckland and the time of your departing flight from Auckland.
