September 1st marked the 74th birthday of a man who just may be the second most successful popular songwriter of all time after Paul McCartney. Sure, these things can be a little hard to quantify, but songwriter of 16 different US #1 hits, 10 different UK #1 hits, 21 different US or UK #1 hits…
The Best Of Sri Lanka In Just 8 Days – From Beaches & National Parks, To Luxury Hotels & Historic Sites
10,000-kilometres from home (10,851 to be exact) and there I was, playing cricket by the sea with a bunch of locals and in that moment, life couldn’t have been much better. In a Sri Lankan holiday that included everything from seeing elephants in the wild to cycling through tea plantations to exploring ancient cave temples,…
In Search Of Giants – Wild Adventures In The Jungles Of The Solomon Islands
Legends and myths thrive in the Solomon Islands, but perhaps none so captivating as the stories of giants who live deep within the jungles of Guadalcanal. So the rumours tell, a race of giants as tall as 10-15ft inhabit the mountainous forests of the island’s interior, only occasionally leaving their homes by the cover of…
Walking On Water – Langkawi’s 6-Star St Regis Hotel
This article was originally published in Let’s Travel Magazine in 2017 and is reprinted with kind permission. Please see letstravelmag.com for more.
The 5 Unmissable Must-Do’s Of South Taranaki – My Latest NZ Herald Feature
Last Sunday the New Zealand Herald published an article of mine about the awesomeness of Taranaki, specifically the sights of South Taranaki. While I may not have used the word “awesomeness” in the feature, I hopefully gave a sense of why this province – and in particular its less-visited southern district – is so rewarding….
The Luxury Eco-Staycation You Never Knew You Could Have – Auckland’s Warblers Retreat
When you think of the word “staycation”, chances are you’re picturing a night or two in a nice CBD hotel in the city in which you live. But when thoughts turn to treating yourself to some kind of retreat – the sort of place where you can be immersed in nature, hear the birds, go…
Rainforests, Rafting & A Brand New Luxury Beachfront Hotel – The Bay Of Plenty’s Best Hidden Gems
A huge part of the entire ethos of the Roxborogh Report is writing about hidden gems – be they in travel or music. Sometimes, those gems are hiding in plain sight. As in, the Bay Of Plenty already happens to one of the best known holiday regions in New Zealand – especially for Kiwis travelling…
Riley Roxy’s 1st Birthday – The U2 Song That Brought Her Into The World
We were in last chance saloon. When I say “we”, sure, I was fulfilling the role of the hand-squeezer while also in charge of the delivery-room music, but “we” was really quite clearly just my wife Aimee and her midwife Annie. As for “last chance saloon” though, that was more clear cut: there would be…
Piha’s Jaw-Dropping Mercer Bay Loop Track With Riley Roxy In The Backpack
How is it you can be pushing 40, consider yourself outdoorsy, have lived in the same city roughly three-quarters of your life, and still find jaw-dropping walks you haven’t even heard of, let alone done? Well firstly, I’m grateful that’s the case given seemingly all I want to do these days is discover new walks…
Anger & Hope – 10 Vital, Socially-Conscious Soul Songs The World Needs Right Now
Imagine, if just for a second, that President Obama had ordered peaceful protesters outside a historic church to be dispersed with tear gas and rubber bullets just so he could get a photo op with an upside down Bible. No clergy at the church were consulted, no prayers were made and no passages of scripture…
Suva Has One Of The World’s Great Colonial Hotels & Too Few Kiwis Know About It – Reviewing The Grand Pacific Hotel
Always a sucker for a historic hotel, as soon as I heard Fiji’s 1914-built Grand Pacific Hotel had been given a multimillion dollar refurbishment to celebrate its centenary, I knew I had to go there. Five years on from that Suva stay and as we grapple with what tourism will be post-Covid-19, I wanted to…
Samantha Gibb Covers Her Dad’s Most Beloved Song – What Maurice Said To Me Backstage With The Bee Gees In 1999
March 20th, 1999 and I’m in some kind of delirious state of nirvana because I’m backstage with Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb – the Bee Gees – at Western Springs stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. Against the hum of 70,000 awaiting fans and here I am, a 17-year old in my new corduroy pants and…