New Zealand Reopening: The Best New Things to Do on New Zealand’s North and South Islands

For southern city stays, visitors can check into the historic Fable Dunedin, a Victorian-era hotel reimagined into a luxurious five-star boutique property. Another 2021 arrival on the Dunedin scene is Ebb, with a striking modern design inspired by the land, sea, and sky surrounding the Otago Peninsula. In Queenstown, The Carlin opened in February 2022 to become New Zealand’s first six-star hotel. Meanwhile, Christchurch added to its arty cred with the beautifully decorated Muse Art Hotel.

There are plenty of new nature-inspired accommodation options in the wilds of the South Island, with the April 2021 opening of Cross Hill Lodge & Domes, offering stargazing from the shores of pristine Lake Hāwea. Also opening in mid-2021 and overlooking Lake Hāwea is Mt. Isthmus, an impressive four-bedroom villa embedded into a rugged and steep mountain range. For a unique stay, check out the Nest Tree Houses perched in pine branches halfway between Wanaka and Christchurch.

Maintaining its reputation for adventure during the pandemic, the South Island saw the Lake Dunstan Cycle Trail open in May 2021. Linking the towns of Clyde and Cromwell, the trail weaves along cantilevered platforms clipped to the sides of a steep gorge, past a solar-powered coffee shop bobbing on the lake, and across a 279-foot long suspension bridge. The trail was extended in early 2022 past some of Central Otago’s most famous wineries including Mt. Difficulty, Terra Sancta, and Te Kano. The cellar doors make a convenient pit stop for thirsty cyclists.

To step beyond the cellar door, Marlborough Tour Company has introduced a winemaker tour, where you can go behind the scenes at an organic vineyard to blend and bottle your very own sauvignon blanc. Also embracing the trend of food from the source, the Gravity Fishing Hook to Plate Tour, opened in 2021, is an opportunity to experience sustainable harvesting and a freshly caught meal.

Adrenaline junkies will be happy to get their fix abseiling, ziplining, and jumping off waterfalls in Nelson Lakes National Park with new kids on the adventure block Canyoning Aotearoa, or rock climbing down a series of waterfalls (one with a drop of nearly 200 feet) at Wildwire in Wanaka.

For something slightly calmer, hitch a ride on a helicopter into the heart of Fiordland, where you can enjoy four nights sleeping on a ketch and as many days kayaking the mist-shrouded Dusky Sound with Wild Fiordland.