They’ve ridden horseback in Tauranga, enjoyed an acoustic barnyard performance by Kiwi musician Tiki Taane and devoured a picnic atop Auckland’s Harbour Bridge.
But for all Arthur Green and Matilda Rice’s carefully orchestrated dates, the hot couple’s most treasured memories are also the most simple.
After finding love on The Bachelor NZ, the gorgeously tanned and toned duo are glowing with happiness on a romantic escape to sunny Rarotonga. Miles away from the spotlight and their Kiwi fans, Art, 27, and Matilda, 24, are happy wasting the days away just lying in each other’s arms.
Click through to see more pictures from our shoot with the loved-up couple during their holiday in island paradise!
After finding love on The Bachelor NZ, Arthur Green and Matilda Rice are glowing with happiness on a romantic escape to sunny Rarotonga. Image by Turama Photography.
Their island holiday is the longest amount of uninterrupted time the lovebirds have had together since meeting on the show, Matilda, 24, tells us. Image by Turama Photography.
Spending eight days in paradise together has only made the couple grow closer. Image by Turama Photography.
Matilda says it’s been all smiles and laughs for the duo since arriving in Rarotonga. Image by Turama Photography.
“For the first couple of days, we did almost nothing, apart from lying around the resort in different areas – it’s been bliss,” she tells Woman’s Day. Image by Turama Photography.
For Art, their sun-soaked escape has brought back memories of the show’s finale, where he asked Matilda to be his girlfriend on the sandy shores of the Gold Coast. Image by Turama Photography.
Life has been a bit of a whirlwind for the couple since then, with all the sneaking around they had to do before the finale aired and the public scrutiny after the show finished. Image by Turama Photography.
Now, however, the 27-year-old former Bachelor says their relationship has progressed naturally from its beginnings on TV. Image by Turama Photography.
“I feel like I know the real Mattie now and she knows the real me, and weirdly, it feels like we’ve known each other forever,” Art says. Image by Turama Photography.
The couple are so close now, Matilda jokes she’s reverted to “stretchy sweatpants and messy buns” on their dates – a far cry from the hair, makeup and wardrobe she had on The Bachelor. Image by Turama Photography.
But she’s just being modest, surely, because Art is full of compliments for his gorgeous girlfriend on our shoot. “Look at her! Mattie’s gorgeous inside and out,” he tells Woman’s Day. Image by Turama Photography.
The couple still get recognised when they’re out and about together, but Matilda says the hype has definitely died down. Image by Turama Photography.
Even though some people still insist the couple are only together to keep up appearances, Matilda says she and Art are happy with each other. Image by Turama Photography.
“Like, what more do you want?” Matilda says of the comments people post on their social media pages. “It’s coming from us saying that we’re still together. But we are so happy together, we couldn’t really care.” Image by Turama Photography.
