The Best Things to Do in New Zealand

The glass tasting pod suspended above the working winery is a good sign that Cloudy Bay takes its visitors as seriously as its wine. This Marlborough estate, ranked 26th on the World's 50 Best Vineyards list, is where New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc effectively got its reputation, and the cellar experience leans into that history without getting musty about it. Private yacht tastings on the Marlborough Sounds are also on offer, which seems excessive and yet somehow right.

Rippon's vines sit right at the edge of Lake Wānaka with the Southern Alps behind them, which makes visiting feel less like a winery tour and more like someone accidentally built a postcard. The Mills family has been farming this land for generations, growing biodynamic, largely ungrafted Pinot Noir in one of New Zealand's most extreme climates. Tastings at the cellar door are free, run by appointment, and capped at six people. It ranks at number 44 on The World's 50 Best Vineyards list.

Greystone sits in the Waipara Valley making cool-climate organic wines, with a chardonnay that keeps getting mentioned in the same breath as the South Island's best. The winery restaurant pairs seasonal dishes with the estate's own bottles, and there's a "Trust the Chef" option if you'd rather hand the whole decision over, which, given the wines, is not a bad instinct. It holds a spot on The World's 50 Best Vineyards list.

The cellar door at this family-run Auckland winery has been quietly stewarded by the same matriarch for longer than most wine regions have had a reputation. The Chardonnays draw comparisons to Burgundy, which sounds like marketing until you taste them. Michael Brajkovich, New Zealand's first Master of Wine, oversees production across 30 hand-harvested hectares. The winery appears on the World's 50 Best Vineyards list, which tells you the pilgrimage is not an eccentric one.

The sleek black barn at the center of this fully organic and biodynamic winery estate sets the tone before you even pour a glass. The minimalist restaurant windows frame rolling hills out to the Southern Alps, the food leans local, and a B&B handles the overnight question. Mountain bikes come with the stay for the Waipara Valley Vineyard Trail, and a pre-booked visit to the neighboring vineyard gets you a proper tour of the sustainable farming side.

Private cottages on a working winery estate in the Hawke's Bay, with terraces that look out over the Tuki Tuki River and sculpture scattered through the gardens. The River Lodges are the ones to aim for. Winery tours run through the local legend of Te Mata's Sleeping Giant, tastings lean into the Prestige Collection, and the on-site restaurant lists the distance from winery to ingredient right on the menu, which is either charming or guilt-inducing depending on what you order.