TRENZblog POSTS
Art Adventures – Explore Your Creative Side!
Posted by Ruth Atherley on May 13, 2012 at 1:39 pm
I had the opportunity to experience Art Adventures and I can tell you, it is amazing.
New and totally original to the tourism industry, Art Adventures offers customized art excursions and tours, allowing visitors to see a spectacular landscape while been driven in luxury through it and to have the unique opportunity to record everything with an expert tutor at your side.
We were flown by helicopter (thank you Over the Top Helicopters and our fabulous pilot Steve) to a remote location for an art lesson. Talk about a fabulous experience. With us was an exceptional art tutor, whose name I believe was Gwen. (I am blaming jet lag on my non-ability to remember her name or the fact that I can’t find my notebook!!!) I can’t draw at all, although I have a huge appreciation for art. Gwen made me feel like I could draw and create something that was uniquely me. It was an incredible experience.
There are many tours available from Art Adventures. They offer you the opportunity to meet local artists and to talk with gallery dealers about the vibrant New Zealand art scene (ideal for conference / incentive options). They operate year-round and prefer small groups (maximum of six), giving you a more personalized experience. And they work around your time schedule, so there is plenty of time to purchase artwork and to view exactly what you are interested in.
Their drivers can explain environmental, geographical and historical features; and their tutors are all professional artists with a mature understanding of how to allow you to discover and explore your creative side. Their products are of high quality so that your results are exciting and immediate. You also get to keep the art equipment they supply so that you can keep sketching while on holidays and continue to work on the skills you learned.
Art Adventures is about extending yourself in a relaxing and rewarding way. You leave feeling as though you have connected to New Zealand in a very intimate way. I can certainly vouch for that. For all of the moments of connection that I have felt in New Zealand, sitting in a remote spot sketching the beauty of the mountains and the sky, I felt deeply connected to this great land. It is something I will always cherish.
Click here to see additional images.
Journey into the Most Beautiful Valley in New Zealand
Posted by Paul Holman on May 13, 2012 at 1:00 pm
Located south of Queenstown in the spectacular Fiordland National Park, the dramatic Hollyford Track guided wilderness experience is one of New Zealand’s greatest nature walks. If there is one experience that delivers the diversity and very essence of New Zealand wilderness – it is, without a doubt, a guided nature walk through the Hollyford Valley. Here you’ll marvel at ever-changing scenery from towering mountains to pounding coast and everything in between. Explore unspoiled wilderness and native wildlife in an ancient forest. Discover your sense of adventure, and find inspiration around every corner.
For those seeking a truly unique New Zealand holiday experience, the Hollyford Track is now offering a fantastic and extremely personalized new way to explore the wonders of the remote Hollyford Valley with the new premier one-day guided heli-hike. The one-day heli-hike allows you to explore the wonders of the Hollyford Valley including a jet boat journey on the Hollyford River and morning tea at Pyke Lodge, deep in the heart of the Fiordland National Park. Visitors are accompanied by a professional guide who explains the history, flora and fauna of this World Heritage area and travelling by helicopter provides access to many remote and dramatic locations that are rarely touched by man. This will definitely be a day to remember with no other itinerary offering such a diverse range of experiences.
Located in the spectacular Fiordland National Park World Heritage Area, the exclusive “Hollyford Track – Premier Management Retreat” is one of New Zealand’s greatest small group meeting experiences. Remote and dramatic, a management retreat in the Hollyford Valley is like no other.
Please click here to see additional images.
Te Papa – So Much More Than a Museum
Posted by Paul Holman on May 13, 2012 at 12:52 pm
Te Papa is New Zealand’s national museum, renowned for being bicultural, scholarly, innovative and fun. Their success is built on their relationships with, and ability to, represent their community.
Te Papa is a landmark building in the heart of Wellington, with spectacular views of the harbour. Their collections span six floors and five areas: Art, History, Pacific, Maori and Natural Environment. Their exhibitions are interdisciplinary and interactive, and they have dynamic events and education programs.
Te Papa features the National Art Gallery, lots of hands-on fun, motion sensor rides, a waka (large Maori canoe) with hologram images so you can get a better sense of the size of it, an earthquake house where you can experience a 5.4 quake and much, much more.
For a visitor to New Zealand, Te Papa is a great place to visit. It puts New Zealand’s history, art, culture and its natural environment into context and creates an exceptional foundation of understanding of this great country – where it came from, where it is and where it is going. Te Papa is a must do when in New Zealand.
Hukafalls Jet – Taupo’s Original and Best Ride!
Posted by Paul Holman on May 13, 2012 at 12:43 pm
I had the pleasure of meeting with Michelle from Hukafalls Jet at this year’s TRENZ. Heading out of Queenstown, we found ourselves sitting beside her on the plane from to Auckland. We had fun with her answering Air New Zealand’s trivia questions that they show throughout the flight. She got more of them than we did.
Hukafalls Jet is located just 10 minutes from Taupo, in the Wairakei Tourist Park, and is right off the main highways from Auckland and Rotorua.
The half-hour of thrills, fun and excitement takes you along a beautiful river environment, lined with native bush, sheer rock cliff face and natural hot springs.
The exhilarating power of the Hukafalls Jet is an experience you will never forget. You’ll marvel at the incredible water level views of the spectacular Huka Falls as you slide past cliffs and trees at an incredible 80km an hour in one of their state-of-the-art jet boats. Then get ready for their trademark 360-degree spin as the boat turns on its own length, leaving you with a beaming smile and your heart pumping with adrenalin.
The maneuverability of the Hukafalls Jet boat is legendary. You’ll awe at the speed and precision in which you torpedo gracefully down the river to play in the tail of the mighty white water of the Huka Falls. You will zoom past sheer rock cliffs with just inches to spare, exhilarated and secure in the knowledge that your driver is an expert and that you’re enjoying the most thrilling ride of your life.
We really enjoyed our time at Hukafalls Jet last year. Here is the video of our heart-stopping ride.
An Authentic Cultural Experience at Te Puia
Posted by Ruth Atherley on May 12, 2012 at 4:20 pm
Te Puia is one of those magical opportunities for visitors. Te Puia is the premier Maori cultural centre in New Zealand – a place of gushing waters, steaming vents, boiling mud pools and spectacular geysers. The Maori tradition lives on at Te Whakarewarewa, with guided tours and attractions, Maori culture, and the National Carving and Weaving Schools of New Zealand. When you visit, you can watch and interact with master carvers, weavers and their students, and purchase the finished artworks at the Taonga Gallery Gift Shop.
In the Maori world, connections between people are integral to their culture. Whakapapa (shared origins) define that world, and these relationships are maintained and honoured throughout the generations.
At Te Puia you will experience this world, where the Maori guides proudly recount stories handed down from their tipuna (ancestors). For many visitors, learning about the Maori culture is a highlight of their trip and Te Puia never disappoints. There is so much to do here that the biggest challenge is deciding what to do first. Along with the opportunity to participate in a Haka – a traditional Maori ancestral war cry, dance or challenge – to partaking of a special traditional food experience that uses the geothermal waters of Ngararatuatara for cooking foods such as corn, seafood, eggs, which is how Maori people utilized nature for their sustenance.
Visitors can also take part in a Te Po: Indigenous Evening Experience which includes a Powhiri (ceremonial welcome) which commences with the sounding of the putatara (conch), followed by a Wero (challenge), where a toa (warrior) is sent out to challenge the male chief elected from among the visitors to confirm the visitor’s peaceful intent. Then is the Karanga (call of welcome), where the Maori women give the call of welcome to the guests and they move into a traditional and authentic, fully carved marae (Maori ancestral meeting house). Visitors then view the hangi, a traditional Maori cooking technique that uses hot rocks and water to steam cook food in an underground earth oven. Next is the Whaikorero (speeches of welcome), where the Maori chief officially welcomes the visitors and some simple encounter rituals are performed. The home tribe sings a traditional song in support of their chief. Then, the Kapa Haka – a cultural performance where guests are invited to participate in either the haka or poi dances. And, then comes the Hakari (feast), which includes the traditional hangi. This is done in a comfortable dining area. Here guests enjoy the indigenous food along with cultural storytelling and entertainment. And then, the visitors move down to the Pohutu Geyser where they feel the spirit of the valley and finish the evening beside the awe-inspiring geyser with a hot drink and more Maori inspired delicacies. Then, it is time for Poroporoaki, final goodbye and good wishes.
Te Puia takes its origin from the heritage of the Te Whakarewarewa Valley. With its gushing waters and steaming vents, it’s a place of powerful energies and natural beauty. People have been living here for almost 700 years, nourished by those energies. The special connection the Maori guides have with the land and its history ensures tours at Te Puia are unlike any other in New Zealand.
Te Puia is a very special place and one that connects visitors to New Zealand with Maori culture and tradition by engaging and inspiring rather than just showing. For those interested in the cultural heart of New Zealand, the Maori people, their history and their traditions, this experience is exceptional.
Click here to see additional images.
