Central Otago

South Island · Wine lovers · Active travellers · Couples

Central Otago is New Zealand's most dramatic wine country, and possibly its most beautiful. The landscape is semi-arid, ancient schist rock broken into tors and bluffs above river valleys where the temperature swings are extreme enough to produce pinot noir of extraordinary concentration and character. Cromwell, Clyde, and Alexandra are the centres: old stone buildings from the gold rush era, fruit orchards, and cellar doors that produce wine taken seriously in Burgundy and beyond.

The Otago Central Rail Trail, a four-day cycle through gorges, viaducts, and historic tunnels, is the benchmark against which all other New Zealand cycle trails are measured. Private guided versions, with luggage transferred and accommodation at boutique lodges each night, make it accessible to those who want the landscape without the logistics. The Lindis Pass and Ahuriri Valley provide access to high-country wilderness of scale that even New Zealanders rarely see, The Lindis, in the Ahuriri Valley, is one of the country's most architecturally distinguished lodges, its roofline following the land.