This Is the Most Scenic Train Journey in New Zealand

Vaughan Mabee is a mad genius. I mean this as the highest compliment. The New Zealand chef asks helicopter pilots to drop him off in the middle of nowhere so he can forage, hunt and cook. He researches the molecular structure of animal proteins. He shoots deer and pheasants from his back porch and serves them to guests. He cooks with the creativity, assurance and technique of someone who spent decades in the kitchens of Noma and Martin Berasategui. He sleeps about two hours a night.

Over the past 12 months, I have experienced six different international business class products thanks to my job as Insider's aviation reporter. And — among this particular bunch — I've found that none of them are like the other.

Queenstown, New Zealand, wouldn’t be Queenstown if it weren’t far away from everything—more than three hours’ flight from the closet foreign city of Sydney, a long transpacific slog from the west coast of the U.S., a diabolically long distance from western Europe. (This part of the world is called the Antipodes for a reason.) But being tucked away in the snowy mountains at the bottom of the world is what gives it its character: It’s a cosmopolitan frontier town, full of ruggedly individualistic locals and generous transplants, ski bums and worldly chefs, shepherds and sommeliers.

In Lonely Plan-It, we take you step by step through how we planned some of the most complicated travel adventures. Here, Craig McLachlan explains how to make the most out of your biking adventure to this South Pacific paradise’s deep south.

Swap planes for trains and embark on adventures that are so much more than just a way to reach a destination. Whether it's multi-day journeys catching glimpses of waves crashing into cliffs or quick, scenic bursts of sparkling seas, these coastal train routes will make you appreciate life in the slow lane.

New Zealand’s southwest corner is where the roads run out — leaving some 4,500sq miles of forest, fjords and jagged mountain chains that make up the country’s largest area of wilderness. Three of New Zealand’s 10 officially recognised Great Walks take dedicated hikers through the northern interior of this region, along the Routeburn, Milford and Kepler tracks. Soon, the coastal south will get its recognition too, as the Hump Ridge Track becomes the newest member of the top league of Kiwi hikes. 

Thanks to Hyatt's newest Bonus Journeys promotion, World of Hyatt members can earn 3,000 bonus points for every three eligible nights on select stays at more than 1,250 Hyatt hotels and resorts from Oct. 6-Nov. 30.

In November 2016, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck and ravaged the region around the town of Kaikoura on the east coast of New Zealand’s South Island. The earthquake and the ensuing landslides killed two people, and demolished homes, roads, and railway tracks. Indeed, parts of the Main North Line, one of the most scenic rail routes in the world, slid into the ocean, forcing the Coastal Pacific train to stop its operation. In 2018, the line was repaired and the magnificent train journey between Christchurch and Picton resumed. Today, the Coastal Pacific still runs along the Pacific Ocean, allowing travelers to see New Zealand’s beauty, the slow and comfortable way.

Flying across the world just got more affordable thanks to an Air New Zealand sale that has flights from the United States to Auckland and beyond starting at less than $1,000.

A couple is demanding that Singapore Airlines refunds plane tickets for their flight from Paris to Singapore because they were sat next to a dog that was farting, drooling, and "snorting" throughout the flight.

Virgin Voyages, the cruise brand from Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, said on Friday it has raised $550 million in fresh capital to expand into new international markets.

Delta Air Lines is rolling out the deals to the South Pacific.