Story Angles

From a distance White Island first appears as a thick plume of smoke rising from the Pacific Ocean.

Deep in the South Island, hidden under the waves at high tide, lies a clue to New Zealand’s birth.

As the home of the Royal Ballet of New Zealand, State Opera, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and three professional theatres, Wellington is rife with creative talent.

Kiwi ingenuity at its best - the Kawarau River is home to many world firsts, including the first commercial bungy jumping operation, the brainchild of pioneers A J Hackett and Henry van Asch.

Driving Creek Railway in the Coromandel region boasts a narrow gauge mountain railway, 14,000 planted native trees, a pottery studio and railway coffee cups.

The Croydon Aircraft Company Ltd has a global reputation for restoring classic 1930s and vintage de Havilland aircraft.

There are various significant literary spots open to the public, featuring important places in the lives of New Zealand's best-known writers.

Loitering around a public toilet would normally invoke the wrath of the law, but there is one very special place in Northland where a visit to the bathroom is not all about business - the Fredrick Hundertwasser inspired Kawakawa toilets (Bay of Islands).

The Geraldine district has long enticed artists to paint – not surprising, given its superb setting near the foothills of the Southern Alps and its proximity to the mountains themselves. The area is now home to several award-winning artists whose work encompasses a wide range of artistic styles.

Long before Europeans came to Aotearoa New Zealand, Whirinaki Forest has special significance to the early Maori iwi (tribes) of Te Urewera.