With five private residences and
views over both the island and the
surrounding Hauraki Gulf, Villas
Waiheke serves as a picturesque
home base, with local favourites
Batch Winery and Peacock Sky
Vineyard both less than a 15-minute
walk away. There’s also a gym
and 12-metre mineral pool in case
you’re tempted to work off all that
wine – but we dare say you’ll forego
the former and shortcut to the latter
with a holiday read in hand.
villaswaiheke.comWAIHEKE ISLAND,
NEW ZEALAND
VILLAS WAIHEKE
A world away from Auckland (yet
only 35 minutes by ferry), is NZ’s
staycation spot of choice, Waiheke
Island, beloved for its vineyards
(read: all-day wine tasting), olive
groves (read: olive oil worthy of
a spot in the most discerning foodie’s
pantry) and postcard-worthy
beaches with their white sands and
(relatively) balmy waters. It’s the
preferred weekender destination for
savvy Aucklanders, so do as they do
and make a beeline for the famed
Ostend Market for gourmet local
fare and take-home treats you’ll
pray are customs-friendly.PORT STEPHENS
BANNISTERS
The latest addition to a growing
collection of beautiful properties
is Bannisters’ gleaming white
Port Stephens address, boasting
glimmering bay views and housed
inside an immaculately-renovated
building that had a former life as
a motel. With 78 rooms, it’s bigger
in scale than the boutique-sized
Bannisters’ Mollymook, but
manages to retain the magic.
If you bother to tear yourself away
from the infinity pool that overlooks
the sandy shores of Soldiers Point
or the stellar in-house dining options,
there’s a beach and a jetty only
a few steps away. If you don’t catch
your own dinner, book a table at the
famed Rick Stein at Bannisters, which
serves local oysters and rock lobster
among an array of seafood, like fish
pie and Singapore chilli crab.E
bannisters.com.au/port-stephensWords: Elle McClure. Additional words: Amy Starr, Mahalia Chang. Photography: Adam Gibson, Jason Futrill
With a coffee scene to rival
Melbourne’s and an impressive
amount of foodie spots for a city
of just over 200,000 people,
“The Windy City” is the
weekender for those in-the-
know. Check into hotel-cum-art-
hub QT (qthotelsandresorts.
com/wellington), grab a pastry
from French bakery La Cloche
(lacloche.co.nz/terrace)
and coffee from Nikau Cafe
(nikaucafe.co.nz), followed
by an arty fix at the
City Gallery Wellington.WELLINGTON