The unexpected challenges of a luxury lodge trip around New Zealand
I stay in the gorgeous attic suite, The Loft, which includes its own door to Narnia in the cupboard. There are several such witty touches throughout the property, such as the chicken coop named Ota-hen-a. And, past the heated outdoor pool, there's a croquet lawn, of course. Cute, black-nosed sheep occupy one of the paddocks.
The 12 hectares of gardens are magnificent, with woodlands, orchards, flower gardens and a vast organic vegetable and herb garden from which chef Jimmy McIntyre draws his ingredients.
The cooking is off the charts in terms of flavour, using garden produce such as prosciutto and ham from the farm's pigs and fresh eggs from the chickens. Breakfast is a total delight in the big, country kitchen, with preserves, pickles and chutneys from the garden.
Otahuna is famous for its carpets of daffodils in spring. More than a million bulbs have been planted and about 100,000 of these bloom every year. In autumn, formal gardens with their red benches are a riot of reddish colours and mossy greens.
After the cosy stay, it's a flight to Wellington and then a quick helicopter transport to Wharekauhau (pronounced foray-ko-ho), a working sheep station with 16 cottages and a villa set atop dramatic 62-metre-tall cliffs overlooking Palliser Bay on the very south of the North Island.
Wellington has been nicknamed 'Wellywood' for its vibrant film industry, and the lush neighbouring fields we fly over belong to US film director James Cameron, who has been instrumental (with Peter Jackson) in the industry's boom. The landscape is wrapped in the peaks of the Remutaka mountain range.
Wharekauhau was one of the first purpose-built lodges in New Zealand when it opened in 1998. It's now owned by American entertainment mogul William Foley, who loved it so much as a guest that he bought the property in 2010. Foley has a stake in a number of local vineyards in nearby Martinborough, which also produce Lighthouse, the craft gin made by Rachel Hall, New Zealand's only female gin distiller.
The lodge, set on 1200 hectares, is supremely comfortable, with plush country house-style interiors by Victoria Fisher. The cottages all have canopy beds, sitting rooms by gas fireplaces, large bathrooms and wide verandas facing the ocean. Because of the spectacular storms in the region, storm watching and stargazing are the lodge's most popular activities.
Fine dining and drinking New Zealand's famous wines are too, of course. There's a dedicated edible garden which supplies the chefs – and there's a head forager, Jack Fredrickson, an Australian who ventures far and wide on his quad bike to find wild ingredients for the dishes.
The main lodge has room after room of overstuffed furniture and beautiful objects and art, a glasshouse with pool, spa and gym, tennis courts, croquet lawn, games room, library and two restaurants. Every detail is immaculate, in line with the expectations of guests.
Walks down country lanes to visit the sheep are invigorating. And then there are activities such as ATV and quad bike excursions on the moody black sand beach scattered with bleached driftwood, and clay pigeon shooting at stations along the river. (When the zombie apocalypse comes, I'm not going to be much help – I hit one target out of about 20.)
It's a domestic flight from Wellington to Queenstown and on by car to Blanket Bay Lodge, which sits on the far reaches of Lake Wakatipu, near the village of Glenorchy.
With the Southern Alps framed in every window, the setting has an undoubted wow factor and the lodge itself, a lofty chalet lined with recycled wharf and woolshed timber polished with wool lanolin, is as spectacular as the surrounds.
It's filled with delightful ephemera – antler chandeliers, taxidermy deer and ducks, displays of birds' nests, saddles, fishing rods and bales of wool – which makes it feel like a cross between a swank Aspen chalet and a hunting lodge.
Opened in 1999 and developed by American Tom Tusher, a keen fisherman, the lodge consists of five lakeside lodge rooms and five suites in the main building, plus two chalet suites and an exclusive-use villa with four bedrooms and private chefs on tap. (Kylie Minogue is a past guest, as are a number of movie stars when in New Zealand to shoot Wellywood productions.)
There are stone hearths and fireplaces throughout, with afternoon teas, cocktails and delicious, chewy cookies served by the fire. (Each cookie arrives topped with a gilded chocolate 'B' – an example of the superb attention to detail throughout the lodge.) The gastronomy is refined, with dinner an ever-changing five-course degustation sourced from New Zealand regions, such as organic chicken from nearby farms and kingfish sashimi from local waters. As with all the lodges, full farm breakfasts are a highlight of the day.
Why venture outside? Well, there's the lakefront and peninsula woodlands and sheep farms to explore on foot, plus the world-famous hiking trails on the Alps.
One of the experiences is a jet boat adventure along the Dart River, which is a couple of hours of screaming and getting soaked as the driver does countless 'wheelies' in the cold water. Next time, I'll take a slow boat.
The big draw is the great Lord of the Rings landscapes of the Southern Alps and Milford Sound. The way to see it all is by helicopter. Our helicopter lands directly on the lawn, scooping us up and darting along the lake and into the jagged mountain peaks of the Fiordland National Park.
The two-hour trip includes a thrilling landing and walk on the ever-shrinking glacier in the peaks. It's not pristine – the ice is still covered with ash from the Australian bushfires in 2018. Then we chopper down to Milford Sound and land at the airport, which is squeezed between mountain and waterfalls, and must be one of the busiest in the world, judging by the number of small planes landing and taking off.
Back at the lodge, there's a roaring fire in the hearth, cups of tea and those moreish cookies.
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