New Zealand Golf & Wine Trail - 15 Days / 14 Nights

Day 1:   Arrive Auckland
On arrival at Auckland airport, you will be met by our representative and transferred to your city hotel (self drive clients collect your rental car on arrival).  Known as the ‘City of Sails’, Auckland is New Zealand's largest and most vibrant city offering an array of cosmopolitan experiences.  Enfolded by two huge harbours, Auckland is an environment that's alive with cultural excitement and sea-flavoured challenges.

Stay:	Deluxe	Sky City Grand in a Luxury Hotel Room x 2 nights including breakfast
	Luxury	Hilton Auckland in a King Corner Suite x 2 nights including breakfast

Day 2:   Auckland - Discover Waiheke Island Vineyards 
Mid morning join your scenic helicopter flight across Auckland's Hauraki Gulf to Waiheke Island, a magical island paradise in the treasure trove of Auckland's Hauraki Gulf islands.  On arrival you will be met for a privately guided vineyard tour on Waiheke. With tastings at the best boutique wineries and perhaps a visit to an olive mill, the secrets of Waiheke's stunning world wide success in fine reds will be revealed. You will come away with a deep appreciation of the vintner's art, and the understanding of terrior, weather and the tides of tradition that make up this fascinating milieu.  Finish your vineyard tour with a sumptuous four course lunch at Mudbrick Vineyard & Restaurant.  Then after your meal and some time to relax, you will be taken to join the late afternoon ferry for a scenic journey across the Waitemata harbour to Auckland city before enjoying the stroll back to your hotel.

Day 3:   Auckland - Golf at The Grange - Taupo
This morning enjoy a round of golf at The Grange Golf Club, around 20 minutes south of Auckland.  This par 70 golf course measures 5974 meters/6533 yards and is an excellent test of golf.  Easy walking with undulating tree-lined fairways, the premium is placed on accuracy rather than length with trees and bunkers strategically placed to punish the shots that stray.  The greens (Annual Blue grass) are usually fast and very true, and pin placements can be quite demanding.  Electric cart hire is included.  Then after your round farewell Auckland as you make your way along the southern motorway.  Suburban scenery gradually gives way to the farmland of South Auckland as you through the fertile Waikato region before arriving at the popular lakeside resort of Taupo, home to New Zealand’s largest lake and the spectacular Huka Falls.

Stay:	Deluxe	Millennium Hotel Manuels in a Deluxe Lakeview x 1 night including breakfast
	Luxury	Lake Taupo Lodge in an Executive Suite x 1 night including dinner & breakfast

Day 4:   Taupo - Golf at Wairakei International  - Hawke's Bay
This morning enjoy a round of golf on the magnificent parkland course at Wairakei International. Set in the heart of Wairakei Tourist Park with its rising steam and thermal attractions, this magnificent par 72 parkland course measures 6444 metres/7047 yards and lies on 450 acres of natural rolling countryside, offering magnificent tree-lined fairways and large greens.  Add this to the natural contours of the land, three water hazards and 108 well placed bunkers and you get a course that plays long and demands accuracy.  Wairakei is also It is home to New Zealand’s most famous par five, the 14th, known as The Rogue, named after a geyser which used to erupt in a nearby field.  The course is also ranked by the prestigious US Golf Digest Magazine to be in the top 20 courses in the world outside the USA.  Electric cart hire is included.  After your round depart for the Hawke’s Bay town of Napier.

Stay:	Deluxe	The County Hotel in a Luxury Suite x 3 nights including breakfast
	Luxury	The Master's Lodge in a Suite x 3 nights including dinner and breakfast

Day 5:   Hawke's Bay - Wine Lovers Tour
Enjoy a full day guided tour to start your exploration of the range of New World wine excellence, in both white and red varietals.  Visit the very best of the wineries and taste the best of the wine.  Guided by a vineyard owner and medal winning wine expert, this is a fantastic day for wine lovers!  A picnic lunch is included today.

Day 6:  Hawke's Bay - Golf at Cape Kidnappers
Today enjoy a round of golf at New Zealand’s newest course, Cape Kidnappers.  Designed by acclaimed golf architect Tom Doak, the par 72 course is built on a 5000 acre sheep farm.  The course feels like an old-style Scottish course and was designed to blend in with the rolling coastal farmland.  It is not true links terrain; instead, the land tilts toward the sea as a series of ridges which jut out toward the edge of the cliffs.  The play is seaside golf at its finest.  You’ll hit heroic shots over the top of tea trees and play cautiously along the edges of deep ravines.  Every hole has a view of the Hawke’s Bay, and at the sixth and fifteenth it is possible to pull your approach off the very end of the earth, though it will take nearly 10 seconds of hang time for your ball to reach the ocean, 500 feet below.  Electric cart hire is included.

Day 7:   Hawke's Bay - Queenstown
Time at leisure this morning before joining your scheduled flight to Queenstown (flight not included).  On arrival you collect your new rental vehicle or are transferred to your accommodation.  Perhaps the most famous of all South Island cities, Queenstown’s pulse thumps to the beat of action, adrenalin and visual wonder.  Alive with activity all year round, there is enough activity to keep you entertained all day and all night.

Stay:	Deluxe	Millbrook Resort in a Villa Suite x 4 nights including breakfast
	Luxury	Matakauri Lodge in a Villa x 4 nights including dinner & breakfast

Day 8:   Queenstown - Discover Queenstown Vineyards
Depart for a relaxed and informative day out in the company of a senior wine guide.  Your tour today takes in four to five outstanding vineyards located in Bannockburn and the Gibbston Valley and includes wine tastings, a tour of New Zealand's largest wine cave and a tasting of excellent local cheeses - a fascinating insight into the region.  Lunch is included.  This is an excellent day out!

Day 9:   Queenstown - Day at Leisure
Today is at leisure to relax or explore Queenstown.  Whether it's bungy jumping, white-water rafting, heli-skiing, fly-fishing, hang gliding, horse riding or scenic flights, you will find thrills and excitement in every way imaginable. Meanwhile, other activities such as exploring historic Arrowtown, scenic walks, eco-tours, shopping, galleries, cafes and an exciting nightlife provide something for everyone all year round.  Alternatively you might like to try the Queenstown Golf Club which offers spectacular views of Lake Wakatipu and the surrounding Remarkables Mountain range.

Day 10:   Queenstown - Golf at Millbrook Resort 
This morning enjoy a round of golf on the Course at Millbrook.  Measuring 6412 metres/7013 yards, this spectacular par 72 course was designed by renowned golfing professional, Sir Bob Charles.  Set amidst a spectacular alpine amphitheatre, strategic use of water and sand traps ensure exciting and demanding golf and the design of the course emphasises the natural features of the site, with each hole having its own particular identity in terms of both strategy and landscape setting.  Featuring four different tee positions, impeccably groomed fairways and greens, demanding hazards and meandering water courses, all surrounded by the alpine backdrop of the Remarkables Mountain Range, golf at Millbrook Resort is an exhilarating experience.  Electric cart hire is included.

Day 11:   Queenstown - Rakaia Gorge
Depart Queenstown today and travel through the rugged and beautiful landscape of Otago.  Cross the Lindis Pass into the Mackenzie Country and onwards to reach your destination of Terrace Downs High Country Retreat. 

Stay:	Deluxe	Terrace Downs High Country Retreaat (Hillside Studio x 1 night, breakfast included)
	Luxury	Terrace Downs High Country Retreaat (Golf Villa x 1 night, breakfast included)

Day 12:   Rakaia Gorge - Christchurch
This morning enjoy a round of golf at Terrace Downs.  This par 72 course is set on the edge of the Rakaia Gorge against a backdrop of the snow-dusted Southern Alps and golden tussocked foothills.  Measuring 6406 metres/7005 yards, Terrace Downs has achieved praise from golfers of all abilities and all around the world.  The four position tees, wide fairways, 70 bunkers and eight lakes are just part of the magic that can only be experienced by playing 'The Taniwha’ as it is known (a Maori word for a supernatural being).  The course provides a challenge to the best golfers, yet is still enjoyable for high handicappers.  It is a fair course that rewards a good shot and penalises a bad one, a course that inspires delights and creates a sense of exhilaration on every tee and a course that harmonises with and enhances the natural beauty of the surrounding landscape.  Electric cart hire is included.  After your round travel on to Christchurch.

Day 13:   Christchurch - Day at Leisure
Today is at leisure for optional sightseeing and to explore what Christchurch has to offer.  Perhaps visit the Anglican Cathedral, Town Hall, the Arts Centre or perhaps take a tram ride around Christchurch City or enjoy punting on the Avon River.  Alternatively, take a cruise or enjoy hot air ballooning. 

Stay:	Deluxe	Outrigger at Clearwater Resort in a Lakeview Suite x 3 nights including breakfast
	Luxury	The George in a Executive Room x 3 nights including breakfast

Day 14:   Christchurch - Golf at Clearwater
Today enjoy a round of golf at Clearwater.  This 18 hole, par 72 championship course layout is already turning heads in the golfing world.  Designed by John Darby in consultation with New Zealand golfing legend, Sir Bob Charles, the course combines elements of links golf inspired by the great Scottish courses with parkland golf, more reminiscent of Florida.  Playable year-round and measuring 6526 metres/7137 yards off the black tees, the course at Clearwater is aptly named.  Its fifteen hectares of lakes are fed by an abundance of natural springs and crystal clear streams, teeming with trout.  Water comes into play on fourteen holes and if the lakes don’t catch errant balls, then the acres of tussocks and marram grasses will.  And with five sets of tees, this course offers a game to suit players of all abilities.  Electric cart hire is included.

Day 15:  Depart Christchurch
Sadly your time in New Zealand comes to an end as you transfer to or return your rental car to the airport for your onward flight.  Here, we bid you a fond farewell to your homeland and hope you leave with many happy memories of your stay in Aotearoa, New Zealand.


Inclusions - prices below are inclusive of the following:

departures daily on request meet & greet on arrival in New Zealand transportation by self drive rental vehicle including unlimited kilometres & daily insurance OR private charter 14 nights accommodation on a choice of deluxe or luxury breakfast daily Pre dinner drinks with canapés and dinner on days 3-10 if travelling on luxury accommodation scenic helicopter flight to Waiheke Island privately guided vineyard tour on Waiheke Island wineries and/or olive mill lunch at Mudbrick Vineyard & Restaurant ferry across the Waitemata harbour to Auckland 18 holes of golf at The Grange including cart hire 18 holes of golf at Wairakei International including cart hire privately guided full day wine lovers tour including lunch and tastings 18 holes of golf at Cape Kidnappers including cart hire privately guided tour of Queenstown vineyards including tastings & lunch 18 holes of golf at Millbrook Resort including cart hire 18 holes of golf at Terrace Downs including cart hire 18 holes of golf at Clearwater including cart hire

Tariff - please contact us for details and pricing.

This package has been prepared by Luxury Vacations to help you plan your golf, wine & cuisine holiday in New Zealand.  All of our packages are fully flexible, from the date you travel to the accommodation you stay at, the courses and vineyards you experience to your mode of transport. 

We also offer a free itinerary planning service so you can design your dream vacation.  We’ll match your interests, budget and time frame to find that perfect balance just for you - all the while backed by our specialist advice.

If you’d like further information and pricing on this golfing holiday, please email us and be sure to let us know your proposed month of travel.

Or if you’d like us to help you plan your own individually tailored holiday, simply fill out our free enquiry form with as much information as you can and one of our experienced staff will be in contact.