We think you’ll agree: food never tastes better than after a long, hard day in the saddle. So combining a cycle tour with a food festival? Could quite possibly be the tastiest experience of your life! Here’s a selection of some of New Zealand’s top food, wine and beer festivals – paired with a cycling adventure….
The Marlborough Food and Wine Festival
14 February 2015.
www.marlboroughwinefestival.co.nz
New Zealand’s original and longest-running wine festival, held in one of the world’s best wine producing regions. Wine tutorials, cooking demonstrations and entertainment on offer.
Tour pairing: 5 Day North Canterbury and Marlborough Cycle Tour.
Dates: 16 February – 20 February 2015.
Wildfoods Festival
Hokitika, Saturday 14 March 2015.
www.wildfoods.co.nz
Fancy sampling wasp larvae icecream, cucumber fish, sheep milk cheeses and wok fried clams? These were just some of the tasty treats on offer at last year’s Wildfoods Festival. First held in 1990 (coinciding nicely with the 125th anniversary of the birth of the town), the event has become hugely popular: 22,500 hungry hordes attended in 2003; numbers are now capped at 15,000.
Tour pairing: 5 Day Self Guided Road Cycle Tour Christchurch to Queenstown.
Cheesefest
The Langham, Auckland, Wednesday 18 March 2015.
www.nzsca.org.nz/cheesefest
Enjoy free samples from some of New Zealand’s finest cheesemakers and a cheese sale table.
Tour pairing: 3 Day Self Guided Waiheke Island Cycle Tour (plenty of vineyards on offer – create your own cheese and wine experience!)
The Great Kiwi Beerfest
Hagley Park, Christchurch, 28 March 2015.
www.greatkiwibeerfestival.co.nz
A craft beerstravaganza! There were 200+ brews on tap in 2014 – organisers are promising even more for the 2015 edition.
Tour pairing: 6 Day West Coast Queenstown to Christchurch Cycle.
Tour dates: 06 March – 11 March 2015 or 04 April – 09 April 2015.
Farmers’ Markets
If you can’t make a festival, don’t panic: you won’t miss out. Farmers’ markets take place up and down the country every week and are a great way to sample fresh, local fare. Here’s a selection of some of the most popular markets:
North Island
Whangarei: Every Saturday.
Matakana: Every Saturday.
Parnell: The French-style Market La Cigale takes place every Saturday and Sunday morning, as well as Wednesday afternoon, while the Parnell Farmers’ Market takes place every Saturday morning between the library and museum.
Hawke’s Bay Farmers’ Market: Every Sunday at the Hastings showgrounds.
South Island
Marlborough Farmers’ Market: Held in Blenheim on Thursday afternoons until September, then Sunday mornings for the spring/summer season.
Waipara Valley Farmers’ Market: Every Saturday during the summer months at Pegasus Bay Winery.
Otago: Every Saturday in the carpark of the Dunedin Railway Station.
Riverton: Every Saturday morning from 10.30am.
Like more information about any of these tours? Give us a shout and we’ll happily help you out.
