Welcome to Golden Bay: a hidden slice of the tropics in the South Island.
I feel like I could be tucked away in a secluded bay in Fiji. Turquoise waters lap at my feet, and the only footprints on the beach are my own. The sun is trying its best to age me prematurely but, thankfully, I fall asleep under a tree to the hypnotic crash of the waves – one of life s great pleasures. I m glad nobody is around, because I wake up drooling like a labrador. Occasionally, you come across a slice of New Zealand that’s so good you almost don t want to write about it. I said almost because there s no real threat that this place will be overrun with tourists.