Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Queenstown

As you descend from the whitewash of clouds above, the landscape of Queenstown greets you with startling contrast. Abrupt mountains rise up from the landscape endlessly, with glacial rivers threading in between. The city of Queenstown appears as a patch of electric life amongst a sea of mountains. Landing at the small airport, things feel equally serene — modern glass architecture brings the landscape indoors, agents wave passengers through security through without checking IDs, travelers relax with expertly-prepared flat whites and luscious pastries.

Photography by: Emily Nathan
Writing by: Charlotte Boates
Design: Tara Hadipour

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Azur Lodge

Azur Lodge is perched above Lake Wakatipu a few minutes outside of downtown Queenstown. The small hotel is a hideaway tucked beyond a narrow lane of green at the edge of a residential neighborhood — on the property, wherever you look, you see nothing but mountains and the lake. Here, it’s all too easy to get stuck on your balcony for hours as you watch the clouds move across the sky, hiding then revealing the ever-changing snow line of Cecil Peak directly across the lake, or admiring the evening shifts of golden light from your bath.

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

TSS Earnslaw

The historic TSS Earnslaw — a working 100-year-old steam-powered ship, constructed from kauri timber with its hull painted snow white, is an easy daytime adventure in Queenstown that departs from a casual pier downtown with Real Journeys. The ship slowly cuts across Lake Wakatipu to its destination at the Walter Peak Sheep Station for lunch and sheep shearing demonstrations. Sailing through the landscape with little else around for miles, it feels as though you’ve drifted back in time, your clothes and phone being the sole reminders of present day.

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

The Sherwood

Closer to town is the Sherwood — a lakeside retreat and boutique hotel that’s also a gathering point for the community of Queenstown. Renovated from a midcentury motor lodge, today it’s a local hub hosting music performances, creative workshops, yoga classes. Designed to serve the community and the land as much as it does outsiders, products are sourced locally and sustainable materials are used as much as possible. Natural, biodynamic wines from nearby vineyards are on offer, recycled cork panels line the walls as insulation, blankets on beds are knit from local wool.

At the Sherwood, we meet local blogger Jane Guy, a British expat who has been living in Queenstown for over a decade. Queenstown draws visitors from around the world with its reputation for adventure sports — travelers who jump out of planes and leap by bungy down thousand-foot canyons are plentiful here. But for Jane, Queenstown has many layers travelers don’t often see, with the city’s locals a mix of people from different backgrounds, all brought together by the beauty of the land. “Cafes and shops come and go but the mountains are always consistent, always watching, always beautiful,” she explains.

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Winter in Milford Sound

Imagine a place where waterfalls cascade down mountain peaks, where deep green lakes sprinkle with light, where flocks of sheep speckle emerald pastures. When you stop along the two-lane highway for a hot coffee or to feed alpacas, locals will tell you you’re in Southland — a region that is mostly nature plus sheep, a sparsely-populated wonderland of natural phenomena. And Milford Sound embodies all of this, an infamous fiord cradled by the alpine landscape. Just one of many epic scenes that makes up Southland, the vast scale of the sound feels beyond the scope of what you normally see and experience.

In the winter, the most spectacular qualities of Milford Sound are highlighted. Fresh coats of snow add depth to the mountain ranges, frosted ferns give complexity to the forest, layers of mist give the lakes an ethereal feel. While most travelers only visit for a few hours, staying in Milford Sound overnight lets you see the landscape as it changes — from the softer tones of the morning to the cinematic sunsets reflected across the glassy lake in the evening. On an overnight voyage, a kayak excursion takes travelers into the calm waters at the middle of the sound. This excursion especially gives contemporary travelers armed with cell phones ample opportunities to truly take in the sound, rather than simply seeing it through their lenses.

Currently the only overnight winter cruise in Milford Sound is aboard the Fiordland Discovery, a boat custom-built for the sound by former commercial fisherman Rob Swale and his family and crew. At night, the boat anchors in a calm bay, the dark sky is lit up by stars. With the central part of the Milky Way directly overhead, stars are even brighter here in the Southern Hemisphere. On the sound, there is nothing but nature. A wild place in a country that already feels remote, the locals are the dolphins, the fur seals, the kea parrots soaring high above.

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Auckland

Stopovers are spent in the art deco-inspired Hotel DeBrett, in Auckland — New Zealand’s biggest city, encircled by two sprawling harbors, a center for art and culture. As in all of New Zealand, or Aotearoa in Māori, here Māori culture is a powerful current that informs everything about the place. In our final days, we spoke with Jermaine Dean, multidisciplinary artist in Auckland who runs FAFSWAG, a visual arts collection for queer indigenous creatives, alongside Patti Tyrell. “Right now there is a high influx of Māori and Polynesian culture within the arts scene — find cultural art spaces and indulge yourself in the creative energy. There are quite a few who still understand and practice their culture.”

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

North Island

In the North Island’s Bay of Plenty and just a short drive from the city of Auckland, you’ll find Rotorua — one of the most geothermally-active regions in all of New Zealand and a center of Māori culture. A walk through the town makes things clear that this is a volatile place. With sulphur-rich air, it’s as if the center of the earth has risen up and overtaken the land — bubbling mud pools on the sidewalk are marked off, steaming vents and geysers rise up nearby, thermal pools are sprinkled across the landscape. Only a century ago, nearby Mount Tarawera erupted, destroying Rotorua’s then-main attraction, the pink and white terraces, considered at the time as the eighth wonder of the world.

Rotorua may be located in a geothermal wonderland, but here it’s easy to take things slow, too. The area is a local getaway for fishing and hiking as much as a destination for mud baths, hot springs and geysers. And Solitaire Lodge, just moments from Rotorua, is an ideal refuge. The lodge is surrounded by native greenery — primordial ferns imbue the atmosphere with an almost tropical feel. Even the rain seems to only highlight the lushness of the plant life, its vibrant greens brilliant against slate grey. Like in so much of New Zealand, here you are enveloped by natural beauty, seclusion and space.

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand
Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Itinerary Note

Tiny Atlas founder and editor Emily Nathan traveled to Hamilton, New Zealand to speak about photography at the Spark Festival — a yearly arts and culture festival put on by the Waikato Institute of Technology. She also traveled through Queenstown, Rotorua, and Auckland.

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Resources

Eat:

Restaurant at the Sherwood Queenstown

A meeting point for both Queenstown locals and travelers. Chef Ainsley Rose makes use of produce harvested from the Sherwood’s own gardens and orchards, building seasonal dishes served in their jewel-toned dining room.

Yonder

A Queenstown staple. With dishes like tofu bao buns with fresh Vietnamese herbs or beet gnocchi, visit Yonder with friends or family, so you have an excuse to order a lot.

The Chop Shop Food Merchants

Go here for all things breakfast — think ricotta hotcakes with roasted quince and vanilla marscapone, poached eggs with chilis. Located in Arrowtown, a sleepy spot near Queenstown.

Duck Island Ice Cream

Small-batch organic ice cream in Hamilton. Sample whimsical flavors like rhubarb Szechuan peppercorn, strawberry condensed milk, churros with dulce de leche.

Shaky Bridge Cafe

In rural Otago, stop here when driving enroute to Queenstown. Sample wines from their vineyard by the warmth of a roaring fire, or sit outdoors overlooking farmland for dinner on summer evenings.

Ode

Dine on seasonal, set menus at Ode, a Wanaka restaurant helmed by chef Lucas Parkinson. Diners are encouraged to trust the chef — dishes are named “Don’t Grow Up, It’s a Trick,” “Social Acceptance,” “R.I.P. Fusion.”

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Resources

Stay:

The Sherwood

A 1960s motor lodge meets boutique eco-hotel, the Sherwood is set on an alpine hillside just a few minutes shy of Queenstown. Suites have touches like manuka honey soap, New Zealand soda drinks, local art lining the walls. The Sherwood hosts community events, yoga classes, and is home to a spa, sauna, and acclaimed restaurant.

Solitaire Lodge

Kiwi Collection’s Solitaire Lodge is sheltered by forests of green, right outside of geothermal Rotorua. The suites at Solitaire take on a nautical-theme, many of them overlooking Lake Tarawera, home to black swans and a hot water beach.

Azur Lodge

Rise to views of the sun crossing over the mountains at Lake Wakatipu from the sundeck of your own private villa. Secluded and spacious, this Kiwi Collection lodge is minutes from Queenstown.

Hotel DeBrett

Small art deco-inspired hotel in central Auckland. With details like black and white tiled baths and colorful spiral staircases, eclectic and retro decor find their place in the individually-designed suites.

Tiny Atlas Quarterly, Emily Nathan, New Zealand

Resources

Do:

Queenstown Life

A guide to Queenstown and the surrounding area by long-time resident Jane Guy. Restaurant reviews, outdoor excursions, podcasts about the local community are all found here.

Spark Festival

Annual arts, media and design festival featuring international speakers and workshops, hosted by Hamilton’s Waikato Institute of Technology. Topics range from building a business to art exhibitions to human-focused design.

Onsen Hot Pools

Go for a soak in these steamy cedar-lined hot pools, overlooking the Shotover River minutes from Queenstown. Come here to relax during cold, rainy days on the South Island.

Cruise on the TSS Earnslaw

Real Journeys offers cruises aboard the historic TSS Earnslaw, a 100-year-old steam-powered ship that cruises through breathtaking Lake Wakatipu. Join them for lunch, dinner or a scenic stop at Walter Peak Sheep Station.

Queenstown Gardens Disc Golf

A (non) extreme way to enjoy the great outdoors in Queenstown. The frisbee golf course overlook Lake Wakatipu, the path winds through Douglas-fir grove within the Queenstown Botanical Gardens.

Browsers Bookshop

Secondhand books line the walls floor-to-ceiling at this Hamilton bookshop. With a particular focus on New Zealand and the outdoors, stop here to pick up a few books to learn about the area.

Fiordland Discovery

Family-run excursions on the custom-built Fiordland Jewel in majestic Fiordland. From multi-day journeys through the region’s multitude of sounds and inlets to cruises in Milford Sound, see starry views from the on-deck hot tub and dig into seasonal seafood meals.