I was sold pretty much on the name alone: Matakana Castle. Who wouldn’t want to stay in a castle? And given I had a wedding to attend in Matakana (about an hour north of Auckland), the decision was made to turn this into a long weekend. In an upcoming “Room Check” article for the New…
Tag: Travel
LA’s Greatest Rock & Roll Hotels – My Let’s Travel Mag Article On The Sunset Marquis & The Redbury
The latest issue of New Zealand’s number one travel magazine, Let’s Travel, is out and it features my article about two of the coolest hotels I’ve ever stayed at. The theme of the piece is about the “greatest rock & roll hotels”, focusing on two in LA that sit at the top of the heap….
Road-Tripping The Florida Keys + The Best Of South Beach, Miami – My Latest NZ Herald Article
Yesterday the Herald On Sunday published my article about Miami and the Florida Keys. Click here to link to it and find out my picks for where to stay, which beaches to visit, what architecture to see and most crucially, whether or not Kokomo (as sung about in the 1988 US #1 hit of the…
Popping The Question At Tauranga’s French Country House (& getting there in a new Holden Captiva)
After just over a month of having been upgraded from “boyfriend” to “fiancee” by virtue of a lovely lady named Aimee saying “yes” to a certain question I asked, it’s high time I thanked a few folks. For starters, Kay who runs Tauranga’s gorgeous French Country House. This is a luxury boutique hotel that is…
The Terracotta Warriors & The Surprise Of Xian – My Top 50 Photos & My Latest Let’s Travel Mag Article
The Dec/Jan issue of New Zealand’s number one travel magazine, Let’s Travel, is out now and it features two of my articles. One is on the jungle adventures of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands – click here to link to my recent photo essay about this – and the other is on the Chinese city…
1 Of NZ’s Finest Boutique Hotels – My Top 50 Waipoua Lodge & Kauri Coast Photos
Gazing at Tane Mahuta. Every now and then as a travel writer you stay somewhere that isn’t just fancy, isn’t just in a beautiful setting and doesn’t just have a point of difference. Which isn’t to say that all of the above aren’t enormously good fun and even a prerequisite for a high end hotel….
Walking In Memphis – My NZ Herald Article + My Top 60 Memphis Photos, Including A Brand New Elvis-Themed Hotel
Outside Graceland with Aimee Palmer. This week the New Zealand Herald published my article on Memphis, focusing on my stay at a brand new Elvis-themed hotel called The Guest House At Graceland. Click here to link to the article which explains all the cool things about the hotel (TVs on the ceiling! Soap with Elvis’s…
Sunset In Santa Monica – 20 Favourite Photos
I love Santa Monica, it’s hard not to. With three nights in LA a couple of weeks ago, we made sure one of those was dedicated to Santa Monica. The pier, the architecture, the shops of the 3rd Street Promenade, the sand and the sun and an overall disposition that seems tangibly happy, Santa Monica…
My Top 40 New Zealand Photos 2015-2016
Here’s a compilation of some of my favourite photos I’ve taken in New Zealand, all of these between 2015-2016. They include images from Dunedin, Rotorua, the Bay Of Islands, Hawke’s Bay, Coromandel, Taupo, Waiheke Island, Waikato, Northland, Wellington, Queenstown, Akaroa, Tekapo, Tauranga and Waitomo. You can follow my travels both domestic and international on…
Man-Made Islands On A Stunning Lagoon – My Top 60 Malaita, Solomon Islands Photos
Langa Langa Lagoon, Malaita. There were so many things I saw in the province of Malaita in the Solomon Islands that I don’t think I’ll ever forget. A grass-runwayed airport with jungle either side and the sea at both ends for starters. But the sight of naturally blonde-haired locals playing bamboo panpipes with old flip-flops/thongs/jandals…
Which Part Of The Great Wall Of China To Walk – My Latest Let’s Travel Mag Article + Top 50 Great Wall Photos
A #casuallean on the Gubeikou section of the Great Wall. The latest issue of NZ’s number one travel mag Let’s Travel is out and it features my second of three China articles, this one all about the Great Wall and the Gubei Water Town of Gubeikou. People are often a bit stumped as to which…
The Best Jungle In The South Pacific – My Top 50 Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands Photos
Near Tenaru Falls, Guadalcanal. The Solomon Islands may be poor, in some cases, desperately so. And they may also be surprisingly expensive too. Then there’s the not insignificant matter of the civil unrest from the turn of the century. But none of this means you shouldn’t go, nor does it mean there aren’t some very…
