Queenstown, New Zealand: Adventure, Food, and Fun fit for a Queen
“My mom prefers remembering the times when good defeats the bad—when Frodo climbs with orcs upon his trail to Mordor, meets the eye, and kills the ring so that he’ll greet the Shire again, because to him his home is everything, is all he’s ever known, is simple, pure, and worth the fight despite his loss of innocence. The fearless knight, the dear dark horse, the bare foot Frodo Baggins, a dewey-eyed and humble hobbit, wins!”
My mom, who loves Lord of the Rings, inspired this poem. I also love Lord of the Rings and always wanted to visit New Zealand where they filmed the movies. Going to NZ happened to be Matt’s dream too, so it worked out perfectly to spend our December honeymoon in Queenstown and other locations on the Southern Island (the best time to visit New Zealand for hiking is the summer season-December through February). As one of my favorite trips, I’m thrilled to write about it!
Writing Challenge: Write a poem or story about someone you love.
This poem about my mom is one of my favorite poems I have ever written. It basically wrote itself because I know her so well. I found that zeroing in on a unique trait about her helped launch the rest of the poem. I started writing about how my mom loves Lord of the Rings, and it led to a poem about stories she had told me about her grandfather.
So my challenge for you- Write a poem (or story) about someone who means something to you. Have fun with it and see what happens.
Remember: Specificity is key.
Queenstown Adventure
Down Under Endeavors Custom Itinerary
Travel Agent: DownUnderEndeavors
Matt and I have planned some trips on our own, and I have to say this was by the far the most organized and seamless trip we haven taken! If you are going to to take a big trip like this, working with a travel agent can be a huge help. They considered everything from flight reservations to insurance. Those details are important when traveling overseas (and this was pre-pandemic).
Accommodation: Azur Luxury Lodge Queenstown
I would highly recommend Azur to any travelers although this is certainly on the higher end of accommodations. If you can make it happen, do. It is absolutely gorgeous. Located on the cliffside overlooking Lake Wakatipu, you won’t regret this stay. Plus, the staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming and cooked delicious made-to-order breakfasts. Mmm muffins and pancakes.
Lamb, Lamb, and more Lamb
I never considered myself someone who liked lamb until I went to New Zealand. I could not even tell you what restaurant prepared this lamb dinner, but I count it as one of the best meals of my entire life (and I tend to prefer vegetables over meat). The the lamb was slow cooked in sauce for hours and reached a delicious tenderness. After a day of adventure, we actually ordered in and had the food delivered to our hotel room. We both were astounded at how amazing this lamb tasted and still talk about it today wishing we could have it again! I have to say, I am forever a lamb fan.
One NZ food that I was introduced to that’s delicious is lamb Wellington. So so good. It’s essentially a pastry with cooked lamb inside. I would go back to NZ just for lamb Wellington.
Another distinct memory is eating burgers at the famous Ferberger (see CNN article: “Best burger joint in New Zealand? Or the planet?”). I remember waiting in a line outstretched down the storefronts. This is a popular spot. I’m pretty sure I ordered a veggie burger (because I would do that), but my husband got a juicy burger with cheese and bacon.
It’s been so long ago that I don’t remember if this burger lived up to the hype, but judging by my husband’s enjoyment of the burger in the picture, I think it must have!
Activities
Dart Stables: “Ride of the Rings”
Riding horses on a farm with “horses of Rohan” was one of my favorite experiences. Dart Stables provided many horses used in both The Two Towers and The Return of the King films. They told us behind the scenes information about the filming such as which actors used stunt doubles and how the horses were cared for while filming such intense scenes.
Dart Stables led us through Paradise Station, the location for scenes such as Isengard, Amon Hen, and “The Death of Boromir”. For a Lord of the Rings fan like myself, this was gold. It was beautiful, informational, and breathtaking-all the things you want in any tourist experience, right?
Absolutely idyllic.
Dart River Funyaks
Dart River Funyaks was one of the most fun adventures! I would describe a funyak as a mix between a kayak and a banana boat. For a full day of our trip, Matt and I paddled down the Dart River in a funyak and soaked in the beautiful scenery. These mountains were used to film the Misty Mountain scenes, specifically the scenes from the Fellowship of the Ring where they had to cross the pass in the storm. Our guides told us that they took the actors to these high heights for filming using helicopters.
Matt kept us floating down the river for sure!
Queenstown- Lake Wakatipu is one of the most beautiful sites I’ve ever seen.
Room with a view. Our villa overlooked Lake Wakatipu. Couldn’t you just live here? I never wanted to leave!
Lamb braised in sauce with potatoes.
Matt eating Ferberger.
On the road from Queenstown to Glenorchy, New Zealand. Glenorchy is the entry to New Zealand’s Mount Aspiring National Park.
Paradise is a beautiful town on the route from Queenstown to Glenorchy, NZ.
https://seethesouthisland.com/trip-paradise-queenstown-new-zealand
On our route to Paradise, we also passed the "golden woods” of Lothlorien and views of the Mistry Mountains (filming locations). (Sidenote: Is it cruel to name a child someday after a LOTR character? Eowyn, Arwen, Galadriel. Probably…but I just LOVE the words so much!)
“Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden! spear shall be shaken, shield shall be splintered, a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now, ride now, ride!”
Caught on the rocks.
Milford Sound
Rudyard Kipling once penned this magnificent channel surrounded by fiords as the “8th Wonder of the World”. Honestly, this was a cool experience and is iconic, but if I had to cut something out for lack of time, it would be this. It was cold and rainy, and I sat inside the boat more than I should have (I am lame and don’t like to be cold!). It was mesmerizing and gorgeous, and according to this post on activeadventures.com this rainy weather is ideal for a trip to the Milford Sound because it produces magnificent waterfalls. My husband who basically lives in the woods (avid hunter) was just fine.
Milford Sound-Bus vs. Helicopter. The bus ride to the Milford Sound was 12 hours for a 2 hours boat tour. SO, I would highly recommend taking the helicopter tour to reach the Milford Sound. It costs more, but it’s worth what it saves you in time and hours on a bus.
For more information visit: https://newzealand.com
Routenburn: Guided Nature Walk
Having a hiking guide for our Routenburn hike was a plus. She knew what paths to take and shared insightful information about specific spots on the route. On our hike back down, my feet started hurting pretty badly because my hiking shoes were too tight. Good husband that he is, Matt ended up carrying me on his back for most of the hike back down! Needless to say, I ended up buying new hiking shoes in town when we returned to Queenstown.
Fun Fact: You can hike all the way from Queenstown to the Milford Sound! It’s an overnight trip, but would be an awesome experience for the outdoorsy type.
For more information, visit this site: https://www.newzealand.com
Fun activities in town: Luge and Paragliding.
The luge track! Reminded me of Mario Kart.
The Milford Sound is a channel that ships enter from the Tasman Sea.
Crystal clear water.
View from the top of the “mountain” where we paraglided back to the city. It was thrilling!
Newlyweds. 12.2016
If you’ve gotten this far through this blog, you are likely considering a trip to New Zealand! I would wholeheartedly recommend making this trip a top priority (post-pandemic when travel restrictions lift).
This was the trip of a lifetime for us, and we jumped at the opportunity knowing we might not ever get the chance again. It was so much fun to travel as a newly married couple to an adventure location like Queenstown. Although some honeymooners prefer beach time, we are both glad that we combined adventure in New Zealand with relaxation in Fiji. It was the perfect amount of activity and rest. I hope you enjoyed reading and please feel free to reach out anytime with questions about New Zealand! It is a gem on earth-as close to heaven as it gets.
