honeymoon in new zealand: matakana region

This time last year I was at my honeymoon with my wonderful husband in New Zealand. Yes, we just recently celebrated our one year anniversary on June 6th. This past year was such a transition year for me, but more on that later…I have so much to update but not on this post. Back to New Zealand…I realized that I never finished my post on my honeymoon to that wonderful country of delicious food, amazing wine, friendly smiles and green galore! So a year later, I will put the effort (and it is quite the effort!) to finish my post on one of my favorite trips ever.

The second part of my New Zealand Honeymoon was to the Matakana region, north of Auckland. We stayed at a Bed and Breakfast called Waimana Point Lodge owned by Gloria and Geoff. This place is incredible, and the views leave you nothing but speechless! Luckily for us we had the whole place to ourselves because of the low season. Every morning we did not fail to watch the sunrise; it was so spectacular, you just couldn’t miss it. Our deck led to the backyard which was green pastures that faded into the blue marine of the sea. Similar to Breakfast on the Beach, every afternoon we would meet with Gloria and Geoff for wine, canapés and a great conversation. It was so great getting to meet them both and to hear about Geoff’s travels through Latin America.

While at the Matakana Region we got to explore a few of the wineries around that were as amazing as the ones in Waihike Island. Here are my favorites:

Heron’s Flight Vineyard Café – Tony and I had Lunch at this winery and it was AMAZING! Just can’t believe that every place in New Zealand that we went to did not fail to impress us. The décor of this place was one of my favorite, Spanish-Mediterranean architecture with a hint of Rustic touches…my favorite! At this place we had an amazing Sangiovese (which means ‘Blood of Jupiter’ in Italian).

Brick Bay Wines – This place is amazing for taking a hike and finishing off with a good glass of wine. The place has an amazing trail through a sculpture garden with very modern outdoor art. After the hike you can enjoy a glass of fine wine at the Glass House…and this wine tasting room is really made all out of glass! From this very modern building you can relax as you look out into the vineyard while enjoying the zenful atmosphere of this wonderful place.

Ransom Wines – This winery is a MUST! First of all they have the most amazing cheese platter I have ever had in my whole life. The presentation is exquisite; it comes with a variety of things, and I mean lots of yummy things to try. It was soooo good! Second, their wine was lovely. Third, they have a wonderful story that brings chills to my body every time I tell it…a little too long for this post but it has to do with their Carmenere wine. We ended up buying a bottle of this and this is the bottle we opened as we celebrated our one year anniversary.

Lastly, we visited The Vintry, Wine Centre and Lounge Bar located in the Matakana Village Complex. This is a wonderful wine bar that gives tastings of wines only found in the Matakana Region. Because of the low season, the owner sat with us and gave us a private lesson about wine and the history of the area. The service we got here was impeccable. We learned so much, as well as tried lots of different wines. The tasting was very different from other places; the bottles were wrapped in a paper bags to make sure that we did not get influenced from the label. The funny thing is that Tony and I liked the cheapest wine and the most expensive one. Some of the labels that we liked were Hinchco Family Vineyard and Hyperion.

We ended our trip in Auckland at the Great Ponsonby Bed and Breakfast – small rooms but very affordable and cute place. Tony and I explored the city and ended up at an excellent little bar…I think it was called Bonita, where we had some amazing sangria and continued dreaming about our future plans.

Honestly, traveling with my husband is one of the best things in the world! We are such a good travel unit, we always have fun and we enjoy every moment we spend together. I am so lucky to have him in my life and I am so proud to be his wife!