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New Zealand s best swimming holes, beaches and outdoor pools to visit this summer
27 Dec, 2020 05:16 PM
8 minutes to read
By: Ewan McDonald
Summer is bliss. Or Bliss , if your coming-of-age memory is Th Dudes gig at the Soundshell.
It s the rosy beginning, burnt-orange middle and fading end of the golden weather, when life is a beach, a surf break, lakeshore, swimming hole, whitewater raft-ride, sit-down or stand-up paddle bay; when New Zealand becomes a country of sails.
Aotearoa has 15,000km of coastline, which means that each of us gets 3 metres to find a tree, spread out a towel and moor a gently defrosting chilly bin.
Play the ultimate Kiwi Big Things bingo this summer
5 minutes to read
By: Sarah Pollock
How many of New Zealand s big roadside objects have you passed? Sarah Pollok makes a big deal out of these local landmarks
When it comes to celebrating our love of something, it seems we Kiwis love building a big old sculpture of it. So, if seeing an enormous avocado or towering takahe, gigantic carrot or huge human hand has been on your bucket list, you re in the right country. Sometimes wonderful, often weird, here are some of New Zealand s quirkiest landmarks.
Ohakune s Big Carrot
As it turns out, the roots of this beloved landmark were commercial, with the giant carrot created for an ANZ TV commercial in the 80s. Done with filming and unsure what to do with a 7.5-meter-tall vegetable, the producers donated it to the town of Ohakune, where it was embraced as the city s mascot, beloved by tourists and locals alike.
Brook Sabin
Stuff has launched a new travel section, one that we hope will inspire Kiwis to see more of our beautiful backyard, and give them an easy way to plan and book their trip.
If you’re among the many Kiwis whose overseas travel plans have been undone by the pandemic, you’ve no doubt experienced a cocktail of negative emotions – made worse by the uncertainty over when we’ll be able to travel freely internationally again. To my knowledge, the hair of the dog is the best – perhaps only – cure. You need to book another break, fast. Fortunately for us, our geographically diverse isles offer up similar experiences to many we used to suffer hours in cramped plane cabins for: world-class road trips, wildlife encounters, beach breaks, wine regions, and stunning hikes.