For a fleeting spell each winter, ponds and dams across Central Otago freeze—and the chase for wild ice begins.
A new book showcases the dust and drama of mountain biking in New Zealand.
The Tokelau project started with a phone call during lockdown five years ago. Conservation International had been successful with its proposal to MFAT, and wanted us to contribute to a very different sort of aid programme—an initiative that allowed communities to take conservation into their own hands. The kaupapa meshed well with new citizen science tools we were developing. Over nine long, hot days in Tokelau, the Conservation International team ran education programmes in each of the schools, conducted biodiversity surveys in the lagoon, and across the dozens of motu, and out at sea. New Zealand Geographic collected environmental DNA samples, trained teams on each atoll to build photogrammetric models of coral reefs using mobile phones and shot virtual reality videos to allow Tokelauans, near and far, to get a first-hand experience of island life. You can now travel virtually to Tokelau—visit nzgeo.120.138.19.230.sth.nz/tokelau to fly over the atolls, dive beneath the waves, hunt for coconut crabs and explore one of the most remote island nations on the planet.
Whether you’re searching for rare birds, colourful coral gardens, sites of military significance or unique cultural experiences, you’ll find them on this 18-day New Zealand Geographic and Heritage Expeditions voyage in 2026 through Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu with a soon-to-be-announced special guest.
Designed for more active travellers looking to explore the remote waterways, coves and coastlines of the Marlborough Sounds, this special five-day New Zealand Geographic and Heritage Expeditions voyage on the 18-berth Heritage Explorer gives guests the opportunity to trek sections of the Queen Charlotte track, discover the rich whaling history of Perano, and learn about the conservation success stories of Motuara and Blumine Islands. A special guest will be announced in the coming weeks.
In 2024, Naomi Arnold slogged her way up Te Araroa, walking from Bluff to Cape Reinga over about nine months. Here, 100 kilometres into her odyssey and deeply unsure about her capacity to finish it, she tackles Southland’s notoriously boggy Longwood Range.
Hit the road - and make it electric.
Three pot plants, a barbecue and four bikes—we load up Toyota’s fully electric car for a classic southern summer roadie.
In writing about the impacts of tourism on the Cook Islands (page 58) Rachel Reeves has impeccable pedigree: her step-grandfather, the late Harry Napa, opened the first private accommodation on the islands. The Kiikii Motel, aimed at travellers on a budget, went up on Rarotonga’s southern coast a decade or so before Rachel was born—years before the international airport, now five kilometres down the road, was up and running. People laughed at Harry for thinking such a project could possibly pay off, Rachel says. But the motel was the first of dozens. Rachel herself, now 36, didn’t get roped in to answer phones or change sheets the way her cousin did—she grew up in California—“but when I went to Rarotonga as a kid we spent a lot of time at the motel, swimming at the pool.” Harry’s pictured here with his wife, Rachel’s beloved grandma, Pauline Napa. Pauline relished hosting tourists, Rachel remembers; she especially loved watching visitors light up as they spent time in Rarotonga. Regular guests became friends, popping over for dinners at Pauline and Harry’s place. Now, with Harry’s children at the helm, the motel is still packed every summer.
Dave Hansford, Potton & Burton, $79.99 & A Wild Life: Photographs from the Backcountry of Aotearoa, Shaun Barnett, Potton & Burton, $59.99
Every winter, tens of thousands of New Zealanders fly to the Cook Islands. For them, it’s a week in the sun. But what does the influx mean for the islands?
Scientists build a 2000sqm high-tech playground. Kids go berserk.
Queenstown, Wānaka and the surrounding region have set an audacious goal of becoming carbon zero and creating a regenerative visitor economy by 2030. Right now it might look impossible, but the district remains determined.
Venture down some of New Zealand’s roads less travelled.
Two pieces in this magazine were put together on Te Araroa, the walking track that stretches the length of New Zealand. German photographer Dirk Nayhauss hit the trail in 2022 and into 2023, documenting trees for the photo essay on page 10. And this summer, for the blue carbon feature on page 32, journalist Naomi Arnold wrote about seagrass regeneration, popping into public libraries to work as she walked from Bluff to Arrowtown. “It was the windiest month in Southland since 1970,” she says. “A lot of Oreti Beach sand ended up embedded in my face.”
Our trees, through the steady lens of German photographer Dirk Nayhauss.
For RealNZ, exploration, education and conservation are intertwined.
New Zealand Geographic and Heritage Expeditions invite readers to experience some of New Zealand’s most remote southern shores on our next special voyage. Departing on March 1 2024, the eight-day itinerary combines three amazing destinations - Stewart Island, Fiordland and The Snares - into one journey, with ex-director general of DoC and renowned conservationist Lou Sanson joining as our onboard expert.
Gather your wits, caver, and brace yourself for a squeeze. No other moment epitomises the caving experience than writhing headlong through a space too small for your body—this one just 35cm at its widest. In the uncompromising embrace of limestone, the caver must control their mind as much as their body, and push through.
The landscape underground rivals that above in every way. At Twin Waterfalls, two cascades tumble through a cavern and then join the main flow of the river. The water is clear, but the limestone opalescent under lights.
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