Luxury North Island Golf Trail 11D10N, Self-Drive

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Arrive into Auckland Airport, where you will be met by a travel representative and presented with the necessary documentation. Enjoy a private transfer to your CBD accommodation. 

You’ll stay the night at the Hotel Grand Windsor. Located in the heart of Auckland, this elegant 5-star hotel will transport you to an age of opulent glamour. Its 79 rooms and suites are classic masterpieces of refined design, featuring exquisite bedding, muted fabrics and excellent service complemented with state-of-the-art technology. 

Spend the rest of the day making the most of 5-star facilities and amenities including a fitness centre and jacuzzi. When you’re ready, head into the city to discover a multi-cultural hub of food, music, arts and culture sprawled over volcanic hills and around twin harbours. 

Driving Information: Auckland to Karikari Peninsula: 332km/206mi | 4.5hrs

This morning, make your way to the rental vehicle city deport where you will collect your full size hire car.

Departing Auckland, head north to the Karikari Peninsula. Arrive at the Karikari Peninsula, renowned for its amazing white sandy beaches and bays such as popular Maitai Bay. Once covered in kauri forest, this area was scoured by gum diggers who drained Lake Ohia, and the 30,000-year-old kauri stumps, thus exposed, may be seen from a boardwalk.

Continue on the scenic drive north, taking in dramatic ocean vistas of New Zealand's northern most peninsula before arriving at Cape Reinga. When you arrive, you'll experience the majesty and history of this unique place; where oceans collide, New Zealand reaches it's northern zenith and spirits return to their ancestral homes. Walk the path to the lighthouse on the edge of NZ – hear the crashing of the two oceans the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean in a spectacular swirl of currents, take time to absorb the atmosphere of this place you can almost feel the power!

Check in Carrington Estate, where you’ll stay the next 2 nights, a place where leisure meets nature, where rolling vineyards and farmland flow through pristine fairways down to azure waters, white sands and untouched beaches of the Pacific Ocean. You’ll stay in a comfortable and beautifully appointed Lodge Room, with king-sized bed and private bathroom. Watch the sun go down at the estate’s Karikari Estate Winery, sipping on New Zealand’s finest wines and indulging in dining perfection.

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Today, you will play 18 holes on the renowned Carrington Estate Golf Course. Described as an “inland golf course with an oceanside location”, this par 72 championship, 6417-metre (7267 yard) course is sandwiched between rolling vineyards and the Pacific Ocean. The course is designed to accommodate golfers of all abilities and offers a great variety of hole play with a terrain ranging from rolling vales to challenging water holes.

Driving Information:
- Karikari Peninsula to Kauri Cliffs: 85km/53mi | 1hr
- Kauri Cliffs to Matakana: 222km/138mi | 3hrs

Travel south to Kauri Cliffs golf course. One of the most visually spectacular golf courses in the world, this par 72 championship, 6528-metre (7139 yard) course offers 5 sets of tees to challenge every skill level. Fifteen holes view the Pacific Ocean – 6 of these are played alongside cliffs that plunge into the sea. The beautiful inland holes, meanwhile, are scattered through marsh, forest and farmland.

After the game, continue south to Matakana. Close to a myriad of stunning east coast beaches, this picturesque region is a foodie's heaven known for its weekend farmer’s market, boutique food shops and spectacular vineyards. If you enjoy homegrown delicacies and award-winning wine, then look no further.

You’ll stay the night at Sugarloaf Lodge. Set on the lower slopes of the hill known locally as Sugarloaf, this 4-star bed and breakfast is only 3 minutes from Matakana and 10 minutes from Warkworth. Cosy up in one of 2 wonderfully appointed guest suites and relax on your private deck, overlooking fabulous expansive rural views out to Omaha Beach.

Driving Information: Matakana to Rotorua: 294km/183mi | 3.5hrs

Travel back through the Auckland region and on through farmland, lake land and forest until the distinctive smell of sulphur and constant steam drifts let you know you are in tempestuous, geothermal Rotorua. 

Explore the raw beauty of the world’s youngest geothermal site on a self-guided, ecology-focused adventure among the craters of the wonderous Waimangu Volcanic Valley. This exciting geothermal attraction has a very unique ecology, with rare botany and plenty of fascinating geothermal features.

See the hypnotic steam rising from the Echo Crater, marvel at the fizzling Frying Pan Lake (the world’s largest hot spring) and take in the beauty and dazzling blue of the Inferno Crater hot lake. The newly forming silica terraces are also a highlight. At any stage during your walk, you can jump on board a courtesy shuttle that regularly circles the valley back to the Waimangu Visitor Centre.

You’ll stay the night at Black Swan Lakeside Boutique Hotel. Named for the graceful birds that circle Lake Rotorua, this 5-star hotel offers gorgeous monochromatic rooms overlooking either the lake or the manicured English-style gardens. Make the most of facilities including 2 spa pools and an outdoor swimming pool before heading into the onsite restaurant for a sumptuous Pacific fusion dinner. 

Driving Information: Rotorua to Taupo: 80km/50mi | 1hr

Spend the morning exploring Rotorua at your leisure.

When you’re ready, continue on the lakeside resort town of Taupo. Created nearly 2000 years ago by a volcanic eruption so big it darkened the skies of Europe and China, the beautiful lake Taupo is about the size of Singapore – more of an inland sea, really. Visit the Craters of the Moon and you’ll see evidence of the lake's fiery birth in the geysers, steaming craters and boiling mud pools. At some of Taupo's beaches, swimmers and paddlers can enjoy warm, geothermal water currents.

Just north of Taupo you'll find New Zealand's most visited attraction, the magnificent Huka Falls, where more than 220,000 litres of water thunder over the cliff face every second.

You’ll stay the next 2 nights at Wairakei Resort. Nestled amid the forested slopes of the Wairakei Thermal Valley, this historic hotel features rooms with views across the Wairakei Tourist Park as well as 2 outdoor swimming pools, 6 open air hot tubs, a 9-hole golf course, a well-equipped gym, and a spa with a full range of treatments. The resort also offers a variety of delicious a la carte dining options ranging from authentic Kiwi afternoon tea to legendary buffets.

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Tee off at Wairakei Golf + Sanctuary. Voted New Zealand’s number 1 golf course, this 18-hole, par 72 course is set in 450 acres of rolling terrain, bubbling with geothermal activity. The course has 3 water hazards and 108 bunkers. Developed to meet the rigorous design standards required for world class competition, the end result is a course that sprawls over the property using the natural contours to the fullest.

If one round of golf is not enough, you may also like to venture over to Kinloch golf course (own cost). Designed by Jack Nicklaus, one of the game’s most renowned strategic thinkers, this 18-hole, world championship course pays homage to the great links courses of the British Isles. Pit yourself against the mind of the master as you explore the intriguing holes and championship fairways and challenge yourself on a course that is strongly regarded as one of the Golden Bear’s best.

Alternatively, why not take it easy and explore more of Wairakei Resort? The resort is host to a predator-free environment as a creche for kiwi chicks and a retirement home for breeding takahe. The 3 takahe pairs have enjoyed sanctuary life so much there have been 3 takahe chicks in the last few years.  A variety of wildlife flourish within the sanctuary, mixed colour pheasants, guinea fowl, pekin ducks, fallow deer and a pair of karearea (NZ Falcon) that have nested and raised their chicks for many years.

Driving Information: Taupo to Hawke’s Bay: 141km/88mi | 2hr

Hit the road for a scenic drive through rugged mountain ranges and exotic pine forests to the fertile vineyards of Hawke’s Bay. 

At 11:00am, visit Church Road Winery, one of New Zealand’s oldest wineries, for an immersive “Versatility of the Grape” experience. This is your opportunity to discover the passion and innovation of local Hawke’s Bay winemakers. With glass in hand, sample multiple ways that grapes are used for more than just the production of wine. From pressed juice to balsamic vinegar and barrel aged spirits, enjoy an informative behind-the-scenes look at the world of wine and the adaptability of this versatile fruit. The experience concludes with a guided tasting of Church Road wines and a delicious platter lunch. 

Your afternoon is free to enjoy Napier, a world-renowned Art Deco treasure. Here, you will find many fine wineries, fabulous restaurants, bars and cafes. The boutique shops are a must-visit, as is the Sea Walls collection of magnificent murals painted on more than 50 walls around the city. Grab a map and walk or ride around the city to see them up close.

You’ll stay the next 2-nights at Craggy Range. Located at Craggy Range’s Giants Winery in Havelock North, in the heart of New Zealand’s Hawke’s Bay, this boutique accommodation offers luxury lodges and cottages among the vines, under the escarpment of Te Mata Peak. Enjoy a complimentary wine tasting and dinner (own cost) in the award-winning onsite restaurant. Specialties include pan fried local fish, salmon fillet, and pork belly with almond cream, chili lentils and apple. 

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Tee off at Cape Kidnappers golf course. Designed by legendary golf architect Tom Doak, the par 71 course measures 6510-metres (7119 yards) and will challenge golfers of all skill levels. The spectacular course has been hailed as one of the great modern marvels in golf. Like Kauri Cliffs, Cape Kidnappers plays above the ocean, atop dramatic cliffs but unlike Kauri Cliffs, where the shape of the land dictates play along the shoreline, this course runs to and from the edge.

After your game, it is highly recommended that you stay for lunch (own cost). Cape Kidnappers harvests and abundance of crops from its own extensive vegetable, fruit and herb gardens. Generous access to such premium, fresh produce is one of the strong elements that defines the seasonal nature of the cuisine created by Head Chef, James Honore, and his brigade of chefs. With menus changing on a daily basis everything can be showcased at its very best, when crops have reached their peak of flavour. A delicious 3-course lunch menu is available from 12:00pm to 2:30pm for $120NZD per person.

Driving Information: Hawke’s Bay to Kapiti Coast: 275km/171mi | 3hrs 40mins

Today’s journey takes you from the east coast to the west, with its spectacular sea vistas, glorious sunsets, untouched native forest and dramatic hillscapes.

Spend the rest of the day exploring the Kapiti Coast. If you’re feeling energetic, you can take the ferry over to Kapiti Island, one of New Zealand’s most valuable nature reserves. Marvel at the birdlife and what New Zealand must have been like thousands of years ago. Alternatively, enjoy a horse beach ride from Paekakariki or Raumati. Additional cost applies.

You’ll stay the night at Greenmantle Estate Boutique Lodge. Nestled in a native palm forest, this award-winning luxury lodge offers 6 stunning suites, each with their own unique feature, as well as a heated pool and hot tub – just perfect for relaxing.

Driving Information: Kapiti Coast to Wellington: 70km/43mi | 1hr

Your adventure culminates with one final round of golf at Paraparaumu golf course. A true Scottish links course, the undulating fairways, fierce rough, fast greens and intimidating bunkers combine with the naturally windy coastal weather to create a truly challenging golfing experience.

After your game, take the short journey down the beautiful coastline to Wellington. Named “the coolest little capital in the world” by Lonely Planet, Wellington is a compact city with a powerful mix of culture, history, nature and cuisine. Fuel your visit with strong coffee and world-class craft beer – Wellingtonians are masters of casual dining, with plenty of great restaurants, night markets and food trucks.

Your tour ends here with the return of your rental car to Wellington city or airport depot.