NZ Top-Rated by Condé Nast Traveler, Few Highlights

New Zealand has won from Condé Nast Traveler their . . . Readers’ Travel Award 2012 for Favorite Emerging Destination Overseas. These awards were a part of their "Top List" edition. This country's tourism officials are glad to see the awareness and interest in New Zealand staying high and growing. Earlier this year, the London-based newspaper, the Telegraph, named New Zealand as the ‘Favorite Country – Worldwide’ at their Travel Awards.

From this Condé Nast Traveler magazine, I found an interesting May 2012 article and picture feature. Below is a link to the full story, plus lots of pictures. Below are three of their visuals to give folks a little sampling and help build excitement for those, like us, planning to travel there for the first time. It is titled: "New Zealand: Navigating the Land of The Lord of the Rings" and notes in the subhead that this is a country of "otherworldly mashup of climates, geologies, adventures, and luxuries."

More info/details at:

http://www.cntraveler.com/features/2012/05/new-zealand-maori-lord-of-the-rings-alps-bay-islands-adventure-travel-susan-hack

http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/new-zealand-wins-cond-nast-traveller-readers-travel-award-18578

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 111,256 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 87,990 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

Milford Sound, a ten-mile-long fjord that served as a Lord of the Rings backdrop, is what they call the "magnum opus of the South Island’s landscape spectaculars." Mitre peak is to the left, and Bowen falls is one of its hundreds of waterfalls.:

19th Century colonizers established the first settlement in the Bay of Islands, on the NE coast after the Maori arrived a thousand years earlier. These sheep—they outnumber humans in New Zealand eight to one—graze on Urupukapuka, one of scores of islands in this bay region. Urupukapuka Island’s calmness demonstrates why the first settlers preferred these sheltered anchorages—the NZ western coast is far wilder.:

A white-water pioneer invented the jet boats that provide the thrills on the Shotover River, an old gold-mining stream near Queenstown, the adventure capital of the South Island.:

I'm sure that you really meant "NZ Top-Rated by Condé Nast Traveler, a Few Highlights"! There are many!

I'm sure that you really meant "NZ Top-Rated by Condé Nast Traveler, a Few Highlights"! There are many!

Yes, I wondered about that too!

I'm sure that you really meant "NZ Top-Rated by Condé Nast Traveler, a Few Highlights"! There are many!

YES!! Good catch by our London expert. Just trying to save a little typing and finger work. Agree there are many great highlights in New Zealand.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 111,256 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

New Zealand and Australia are two of my favorite places to visit. So much to see and to enjoy.

Keith