Luxury Meets Adventure: Honeymoon Chronicles in New Zealand – The Itinerary
- Anja Chang
- May 19
- 2 min read
Updated: Jul 1
When Alex and I first got engaged, our minds completely skipped the wedding and went straight to picking a honeymoon destination. New Zealand was at the top of the list for both of us — a place neither of us had been, but one we’d both dreamed of visiting for as long as we could remember.
The Planning Process
The deal was simple: I’d plan the wedding, and Alex would plan the honeymoon. (We both ended up outsourcing our jobs, lol.) We're members of a concierge service called Velocity Black, so Alex reached out to them to kick things off. They sent back a polished draft of a 3-week itinerary. It was amazing — but a little too polished for our adventurous taste.
We got married in November, which meant our honeymoon would take place in December — summertime in New Zealand. The perfect season for hiking, flying, and exploring the outdoors in full bloom.
So, we made a few changes.
Our Final Itinerary
We designed a route that felt a bit more us — remote luxury meets wild exploration:
A. Wanaka – Minaret Station Alpine Lodge
B. Ahuriri Valley – The Lindis Lodge
C. Fiordland – Hollyford Track
D. Tahuna–Glenorchy – Blanket Bay
E. Tamaki Makaurau (Auckland) – The Hotel Britomart
The Journey Begins
With the itinerary set, it was time to handle logistics and start packing.(Side note: I put together a full New Zealand Packing Guide – check it out here).
Since most of our time would be on the South Island, we booked our incoming flight to Queenstown: Austin → LA → Sydney → Queenstown. For our return, we took advantage of Austin’s direct flight from Auckland.
Traveling through New Zealand is no joke — especially between remote lodges and regions. Helicopters are actually the preferred method of travel. We ended up doing a hybrid: private driver for accessible routes and helicopters for the rest.
A Bumpy Start
Our trip kicked off with a little hiccup — Alex’s luggage was lost in Sydney. Not ideal when you're moving around constantly for three weeks. There wasn’t much we could do, so we kept going.
We met our driver (a sweet older gentleman who, fun fact, later became our hiking guide!) and headed to a nearby airport for our first helicopter transfer — destination: Minaret Station.
Next up: Our Stay at Minaret Station
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