An Insider's Tour of New Zealand

At Sculptureum, which is fast becoming one of the country’s most inventive and original wedding venues, you can explore artworks by Picasso and Rodin and come face-to-face with glass art by modern masters such as Dale Chihuli. Then, you can take in the view at Rothko, an elegant restaurant where you can savour local oysters and champagne or sip a glass of shiraz by the fireplace. The menu is heavy on seasonal, regional dishes that are a culinary introduction to this part of New Zealand. Grant says it’s unlike anywhere else.

“I decided in 2005 that I wanted to start an art project, but I thought that there was no point buying art just for myself,” says Grant, who built the park on weekends over seven years. “I’ve got over 700 works – some beautiful work from South Korean artists who use resin as an art form, a local artist who uses silk flowers and an English artist, Andi Regan, who makes amazing work with cable ties. After you visit the gallery, you are transported into a palm garden and then a garden full of giant snails and a huge green rabbit. It's a very unusual venture. No one's done anything like it.”

The coast with the most

Romance isn’t necessarily about high-end restaurants. Sometimes, there’s nothing more satisfying than the age-old honeymoon ritual – a long walk hand-in-hand on a white-sand beach.

Grant recommends a visit to Omaha Beach, a pristine 4km stretch of coastline where you can watch the sun set over the Omaha estuary. Or you can drive to Matheson’s Bay, near Leigh, a secluded cove that’s the perfect place for a private beach picnic..

Afterwards, you can navigate the rockpools at low tide or kayak around the surrounding inlet — the beach is sheltered from the ocean, making it ideal for swimming. The hiking track here is well worth exploring. The easy loop meanders through native bushland, takes in a secret swimming hole – perfect for a pit stop – before culminating in a series of magical waterfalls.

For nature fans, there’s also nearby Goat Island Marine Reserve. This much-loved marine life sanctuary is ideal for relaxing in a glass-bottomed boat and watch snappers, eagle rays, orcas and the occasional dolphin glide underneath.

“Matakana is a hilly area which goes down to the sea and Omaha Beach is by and large the most popular beach for holiday houses for Aucklanders,” Grant says. “In the summer, the marine reserve is very popular, and you can see all kinds of fish which swim up close to you.”

Grant is a fan of Tawharanui Regional Park, a park dotted with walking trails that take in lush, native rainforest as well as sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean. It also provides a sanctuary for kiwi birds and endangered species such as New Zealand dotterels, which you can observe on the park’s ecological track.

“Tawharanui is a lovely regional park with two pristine beaches and there’s no housing on them,” Grant says. “It is only about five minutes down the road from where we are.”

He also suggests a visit to the Matakana Village Markets. This much-loved farmer’s market epitomises the warmth and friendliness that’s a key characteristic of Kiwi hospitality. It’s ideal for lingering over a coffee and striking up a conversation with one of the local farmers or producers who specialise in sustainable produce and artisanal goods. Stop by the Ringawera Bakery for freshly baked focaccia and melt-in-your-mouth brioche or head to the Matakana Market Kitchen, a bustling, convivial eatery where you can sample the best the market has to offer complete with a riverside view.

Calling adventurers and honeymooners

Queenstown is a resort community in the Otago region and one of the world’s great adventure capitals for good reason. Fancy trying bungee jumping? You can try the Shotover Canyon Swing. The world’s most adrenaline-inducing jump is 109m high and will see you fly at dizzying speed past ancient cliffs and forests. Prefer to share your adrenaline fix with your loved one? Try tandem skydiving, plummeting together in freefall through the cloudless South Island sky.

Afterwards, you can hire a jet ski and explore Lake Wakatipu, a body of water shaped like a lightning-bolt that’s the centre of Queenstown’s summer and winter activities. Or you can hike through alpine forest to catch views to Mount Earnslaw and Mount Aspiring and snowboard and ski your way down the Southern Alps.

For Grant, who regularly visits Queenstown, outdoor activities might be the town’s best-known drawcard. But it also offers world-class eateries as well as getaways such as Blanket Bay. The luxury lodge, complete with lake-view outdoor jacuzzis and a wine cave that hosts private candlelit dinners, is the kind of high-octane honeymoon destination that would inspire envy in James Bond. You can even charter a private helicopter fly over Milford Sound on the way to Fiordland, a national park dotted with exquisite glaciers.

“Blanket Bay is an hour-and-a-half out of Queenstown and is absolutely amazing,” he says. “As you look across the bay, there are no other houses, there’s this vast range of mountains covered in snow in front of you. And you could just helicopter from resort to resort. When my kids were younger, my wife and I would go to Queenstown almost once a year – it’s got mountains, rivers and lakes and all the infrastructure. It’s got an airport right in the heart of town. On a world scale, it’s just wonderful.”

But the Otago region is also home to charming, lesser-known gems beloved by New Zealanders such as Cromwell, a former gold rush town famous for its miner’s cottages. There’s also Arrowtown, on the banks of the winding Arrow River. The historic city centre is home to cosy bars and family-run restaurants, where a warm local welcome is high on the menu – along with homegrown wines and fresh Otago-grown produce. Acclaimed wineries and golf courses are a short drive away.

“Some of the cottages in Cromwell have been opened up as little art galleries and I saw an incredible Matisse lithograph when I visited last year,” Grant says. “We also tend to stay in a place called Millbrook, which is one of the world’s finest golf resorts. And I recommend Saffron, which I think is Arrowtown’s best restaurant.”

Grant grew up in New Zealand and has travelled widely. But lately, his appreciation of the sublime landscape and increasingly cosmopolitan nature of the country has deepened. These days, he wouldn’t choose to live anywhere else in the world.

“In New Zealand, the natural beauty is so close,” he smiles.

I lived for 10 years in England, but I’ve since realised that I am more of a New Zealander than I am any other nationality. It’s peaceful, stable and such an incredible environment in which to live.