Julie Le Clerc combines sightseeing with sleuthing on a murder mystery weekend in Whitianga I have fond childhood memories of summertime family camping holidays spent at Whitianga. So, when my Swedish friend Anna suggested a road trip to her favourite New Zealand destination before she left us to return home permanently, I jumped at the […]

Kylie Bailey enjoys an outdoor honeymoon on the Kaikoura Coast We are big fans of the rugged wilds of New Zealand. Throughout our eight-year relationship, we’ve lived on Auckland’s windswept West Coast, rung in New Year’s Eve in the heart of the Southern Alps, partied high on the hills above Nelson and taken camping trips […]

Sarah-Kate Lynch basks in the luxury of Hong Kong’s grand Peninsula Hotel Travelling across the world is one of my favourite things to do but it takes a long time and tends to be more fun if you’re doing it with someone else. I like a stopover if I’m going to London, say, but on […]

Forsyth Thompson goes penguin-spotting in Southland our great tour of Southland actually kicked off in the neighbouring province of otago – the perfect starting point for a gentle meander down the beautiful southeast coast. Dunedin was crisp and sunny – a welcome and refreshing change after weeks of rain in Auckland, and we collected our […]

Sharon Course finds plenty to keep her city-slicker kids occupied in oanawatu It’s rush hour in the little town of Feilding, deep in the heart of rural oanawatu, and the traffic is backing up. But instead of cars, it’s cows, and my city kids can hardly believe their eyes and ears as the big beasts […]

Julie Le Clerc makes a pilgrimage to beautiful New England, USA There’s no doubt big cities like New York and Boston are exciting destinations, but for a relaxing US vacation, there’s nothing like the countryside. Recently, I discovered breathtaking scenery, fascinating history, unique local produce and some very friendly folk 55km south of Boston. The […]

Vicky Tyler and daughter Cassie splash out on a trip to Australia’s Dreamworld Travelling to an amusement park with a pre-schooler in tow wouldn’t normally be my choice of dream holiday, but when I took my four-year-old daughter Cassie to Dreamworld on the Gold Coast, we both had fantastic fun. As an amusement park, Dreamworld […]

Aroha Awarau explores the cultural attractions and natural wonders of Rotorua Growing up immersed in Maori culture, it never occurred to me to visit Rotorua and experience the geothermal wonderland and the cultural epicenter as a tourist. But despite my initial cynicism, I spent a whirlwind day at the cultural institution Te Puia and very […]

Alice o' Connell takes time out in stunning Thailand