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Welcome!

Thank you for choosing to travel with us during your time in New Zealand. 

Our company offers an experience like no other; a tour through New Zealand with cuisine at the forefront. 

Get to know local residents, the land and the culture of New Zealand through food and food related activities. This 15 day tour will take you from the North Island all the way down to Stewart Island, experiencing the best the country has to offer along the way. 

We have done the hard-work for you, and put together this blog detailing everything you will experience along the way. 

Enjoy! We hope to see you soon. 

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Auckland 13th - 14th August

Auckland, New Zealand’s biggest city offers hundreds of beautiful restaurants and café’s, so it is fitting your culinary tour of New Zealand begins here. 

When you arrive to New Zealand is up to you, spend a few days or more exploring Auckland before your tour officially begins on August 13th at Depot

Depot eatery is the brain child of acclaimed New Zealand chef Al Brown. Constantly good, Depot is a fantastic introduction to New Zealand produce and cuisine. Begin with oysters, and cloudy bay clams.

 Follow with a selection of New Zealand meats and vegetables all presented with a unique twist on a classic recipe. Enjoy a local craft beer, or Pinot Noir while you dine. 

You will be spending the night at Sky City, a 2 minute walk away, to rest up for the next 15 days of travel and culinary delights. 

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Marlborough 14th - 17th August

Hiking, eating, tramping, tasting, walking, savouring: these are all things included in the Nature and Nosh food and tramping tours. 

Nature and Nosh offer a 3 day excursion through the picturesque Marlborough region, breaking up tramps with delicious food and wine tasting. 

Enjoy a picnic on a serene New Zealand beach and walk through local bush. Connecting the land and food through one experience will create memories that will last a lifetime. 

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Rotorua 17th - 18th August

Visitors travelling to Rotorua have the pleasure of experiencing New Zealand’s incredible Māori heritage. 

Known for it’s thermal activity, and unique smell Rotorua offers many tourist activities for visitors to enjoy during their stay. You will be staying in Rotorua for one night, arriving early in the morning to enjoy the most of what the city has to offer. 

In the evening you will be able to enjoy a traditional Māori Hāngi hosted by local Iwi. You will be treated to an entrée of New Zealand mussels, corn on the cob, traditional rewana bread and dips, and a local drink made from kawakawa extract and manuka honey. Before the main event, local vegetables and meats cooked cooked over hot-coals underground as is tradition.

After dinner you will be invited to board the motorised waka (people mover) for a journey Through the Valley Under Lights. Be awed by the magical evening sights of Te Puia's geothermal valley. You'll disembark the waka (vehicle) right in front of the Pohutu Geyser, illuminated in its full glory beneath a starry sky. Marvel at the sight of this glorious natural wonder, while your tour guide entertains you with traditional Māori mythology and stories.

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Hawkes Bay 18th - 20th August

Sunny Hawkes Bay has many other names to locals. One of these, ‘the fruit bowl of New Zealand’ and another; ‘wine country’. 

Home to farms, orchards and vineyards Hawkes Bay is a food lovers paradise. You will be staying in Hawkes Bay for two-nights, and take in as much of the produce Hawkes Bay as possible. 

You will based at a homestay in Craggy Range- an internationally acclaimed winery just out of Havelock North, located on the banks of the Tukituk River and in the shadow of the might Te Mata Peak. 

Your first day will take you around the many wineries in the region, in one of the famous bike tours. This will see you sample many of the locally made wines, and food that each winery will offer. In the evening you will return to Craggy Range for their acclaimed dinner service. 

The next day you will have to yourself, to explore the town and many of the delights small-town New Zealand has to offer including orchards, farmers markets and cafe’s.

Your evening meal will take place at Pacifica, a beautiful seafood restaurant with pacific roots, focusing on fresh seafood and fresh Hawkes Bay grown ingredients. Enjoy Michelin style food in a relaxed, Pacific-style atmosphere. 

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Wellington 20th - 23rd August

Wellington is not just the capital city in the traditional sense, it is also the cultural capital of New Zealand. Wit more cafes and restaurants per capita than New York, Wellington has cultivated a thriving and unique culinary scene.

The timing of your trip places your visit to Wellington during the middle of the ‘Wellington On A Plate’ festival, where for a month the city celebrates its culinary culture, and many food-focused events and competitions are on offer.

You will have three days to explore Wellington, provided with a programme of the festival you will be able to enjoy the foodie scene in the capital at your leisure. 

Wellington is also the coffee capital of NZ, and is home to several specialty coffee roasters, with their brews on offer at many café’s around the city. Make the most of your morning, and enjoy a coffee of three at one of Wellingtons top café’s flight coffee hangar, customs, and peoples coffee. 

Your final night in the city will see you take a seat at Hiakai. A restaurant headed by Monique Fiso, and deeply engrained with the Māori culture and New Zealand history. 

Recently names as one of Time Magazines Top 100 Places in the world, Hiakai takes you on a journey through time, and throughout New Zealand. 

Read more about experiencing Hiakai here. 

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Queenstown 23rd - 25th August

You can’t travel to New Zealand without making a visiting Queenstown. With it’s pristine lake and snow capped mountains, Queenstown is potentially New Zealand’s most photogenic destination. 

Although well known for adventure tourism such as bungy jumping and sky-diving, Queenstown is also home to many culinary delights set to excite any foodie traveller. 

When you arrive into Queenstown after a picturesque flight descent over the Remarkable, make your way to an accomodation of your choosing and rest up for an eventful night. 

After meeting at the Wharf at 6pm, you will take a trip across the lake on the TSS Earnslaw, an 112 year old Steamship. The ship will take you across to Walter Peak, the old colonial home and farm which is now boasts an incredible dinner service and a glimpse into southern life. 

Dinner at Walter Peak is an all you can eat buffet unlike any you have experienced before. With a BBQ bar serving only NZ sourced meats, and salads made from locally sourced vegetables you are in for a real NZ feast. 

After dinner, you will make your way outside for a farm demonstration. Enjoy learning how to shear a sheep, and watch a sheep-dog herd sheep while enjoying a glass of New Zealand wine. You will also learn about the different types of cattle and sheep farmed in Southland enabling you to learn more about where your food comes from.

After the show, back on the ship returning to Queenstown enjoy a nightcap, where a sing-a-long often takes place as a piano player belts out classics on your way back across the lake. 

In the morning, spend your day as you would like exploring all Queenstown has to offer. In the evening, you will be dining at esteemed chef Josh Emett’s restaurant, Rata. 

Rate pays homage to the South through an incredible selection of ingredients all sourced from southland. The menu is off New Zealand, with a commitment to sourcing local ingredients and following diverse cultural traditions. Get to know the south through an exquisite meal at Rata before returning to your accomodation to rest up for the rest of your journey south in the morning, 

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Bluff 25th August

You can’t talk about New Zealand seafood with out mentioning Bluff Oysters. 

Bluff is known for their huge creamy oysters, seeing them pop up on menus around the world. In a quick stop off to the South Island’s southern-most spot. 

Enjoy some Bluffies at one of the many cafes and restaurants around small town Bluff for a fraction of the price you would pay around the world. 

Kaimoana (seafood) and the ability to feed whanau (family) and manuhiri (guests) has always been an important part of Maori cultural heritage. Oysters are representative of this, being a one of New Zealand’s exclusive ocean treasures. Enjoy a dozen or so, before you make the journey to Stewart Island and the final night of your stay in New Zealand.

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Stewart Island 25th - 26th August

iThe final destination in your culinary exploration is the jewel at the bottom of New Zealand, the beautiful Stewart Island. 

Stewart Island, or Rakiura as it’s more commonly known is located accross Foveaux straight just south of the South Island. The original Maori name Te Punga o Te Waka a Maui, translates to The Anchor Stone of Maui’s Canoe. As legend goes, Maui and his crew raised a great fish from the sea (the North Island) from their canoe (The South Island). The name refers to the part Rakiura played in being the anchor for this canoe. 

With over 85% of the islands 1570 square kilometres protected as a National Park and only 380 permanent residents Rakiura is a serene destination to relax and finish off your New Zealand adventure. Wake up to bird calls from the Kereru- New Zealand’s famous drunk wood pigeon, spot kiwi on your evening walk and enjoy the sunset across the straight. But most of all, enjoy some of the world class seafood Stewart Island has to offer. 

Originally brought to New Zealand from California, King Salmon are now thriving at the cusp of Rakiura National Park. Farmed in Glory Bay, these salmon are available all year round and have recently been names the world’s most environmentally sustainable farmed salmon. Oily and high in omega 3 and good fats, this salmon can be smoked, barbecued, poached, grilled or served as sashimi. 

One place to enjoy this is Church Hill restaurant and lodge, where you will be staying Recently refurbished in 2017. The lodge is located atop of Church Hill with stunning views over the bay, where you can watch the fishing boats dock and deliver freshly caught seafood to the kitchens. Locally owned and operated with an emphasis on fresh local produce, staying and dining at Church Hill lodge is an experience that authentically ties you to the land. 

Spend you last night in New Zealand gazing across the ocean and chatting with the locals over an extraordinary dinner. An experience like no other in the world.