Aotearoa Adventures: The New Zealand Travel Podcast

Sophie Wakelin is a doctor, who quit her job in Wellington to spend time travelling. Over three months in the South Island, she slept out of her car and bagged 67 huts from Nelson Lakes to Rakiura Stewart Island. Sophie shares her top three favourite huts, including Mataketake Hut that required a second attempt to get to. She shares the challenges she faced while tramping solo, how to grow your confidence in the outdoors and plenty...

Please leave a review for Aotearoa Adventures on Spotify or Apple.

Find your next adventure inspo here: PODCAST EPISODE DIRECTORY

Join the broadcast channel on Instagram

Life is life-ing at the moment for host Abigail Hannah as she is in a period of transition both personally and in business. She is taking a break this week to go tramping with whānau and will be back next week with another epic guest episode.

In the meantime, go ah...

Jacq Nesbit started tramping in adulthood and she shares about walking the Heaphy Track from Karamea to Collingwood. Jacq managed to find last-minute tickets on Monday to start the Great Walk on a Thursday - and be back in time for work the following Monday. She details what to expect each day on the Heaphy Track. At 85km, it is the longest Great Walk and often overlooked due to the complex logistics. Jacq shares the best options f...

Naomi Arnold fulfilled a 20-year dream when she walked Te Araroa northbound (NOBO), from Bluff to Cape Reinga. What she expected to be a 4-5 month trail turned into 9 months as she juggled freelance work and writing a book on the trail. Her determination meant she pushed through all the physical and mental challenges, never for a moment wanting to quit, despite how tough it got. Her absolute favourite moment was the Tongariro Cross...

Sam the Trap Man is a bushman - he goes foraging, fishing and hunting - and at his core he is a conservationist, living in harmony with the ecosystems around us. Growing up in the East Cape, Te Uruwera feels like home to Sam. He shares about one of his favourite trails, the Koranga Tawa Loop, because of the mahinga kai the bush provides, and encounters with endangered birds. Now a parent, Sam loves to share his knowledge of the flo...

Jord and Tom quit their jobs 7 years ago to travel to the other side of the world. A few vans later, Jord and Tom have a caravan in New Zealand and share about Fiordland - one of their favourite locations. They stayed off-grid in Fiordland and loved Te Anau for fun activities like jet boating and helicopter trips. The couple share all their best advice for first-time and long-term vanlifers, from choosing the right size space to ho...

Rich Soult has spent years exploring the South Island with 4WD adventures, turning his passion for off-road driving into a career. Having lived in the UK, New Zealand, and France, he started writing for 4X4 Magazine before launching his own guiding company in 2020. Now, Rich leads epic 4WD tours through some of the South Island’s most iconic locations. He shares about their two-week north to south route, covering the iconic Macaula...

Elvisa Van Der Leden was invited to Gorge River to visit the Long family and set off on a two-day unmarked route with three friends. She is a conservationist whose work has taken her from Antarctic islands to Taranaki and marine science. The group brought different skills to the tramp as they navigated thick bush, river crossings, map reading and boulder hopping. They got lost a few times and learnt lots along the way. Elvisa then ...

Renata Wiles, founder of Roam with Kids shares about an easy adventure turned misadventure on a weekend to Peach Cove Hut. While pregnant, Renata and a friend took their two toddlers on an overnight to Peach Cove Hut which ended in someone getting helicoptered out and the other having to carry extra gear out the next day. Renata shares about the importance of mindset when hiking with kids and shares helpful tips for parents want to...

Ollie Sharpe got into jetboating after watching YouTube videos and then bought his 3.5m boat. He shares about a two-week solo jetboat trip where he covered 27 rivers across Canterbury, Otago and the West Coast, venturing up valleys and spending a couple nights up every river with his dog. Ollie talks about his favourite rivers, how he started to get into boating, logistics, his biggest lessons and how you can start too. He also sha...

When travel podcaster Jackie Nourse turned 40, she decided to celebrate in the best way possible - finally ticking New Zealand off her bucketlist. Jackie hosts group trips around the world and created an incredible itinerary for Aotearoa that covered the best of the Southern Alps, combining cycling, hiking, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. She shares their journey, from biking the stunning Lake Dunstan and Around the Mountains t...

Veronika Edali is an outdoorsy hijabi mum based in Auckland who loved getting outdoors as a family with her two kids. She shares her 5 top spots to explore - from short walks, waterfalls and beaches - that are perfect for a weekend adventure. Veronika also talks about her top tips and advice for parents getting outdoors, and a particularly memorable snow trip with the family. Veronika is a Muslim revert and empowers other hijabis t...

After her marriage ended, Larissa Hubbard found herself solo travelling in her 50s as she spent 4 months in New Zealand to allow herself the space to heal. Based out of Bob's Cove, Arrowtown, Clyde and Twizel, Larissa spent longer in each location and found routine, sharing the rituals that helped ground her. She talks about her favourite day trips, walks and local spots across Otago and Canterbury. To finish her trip, Larissa ...

Tiff and Nathan hail from Australia and have been living on the road in NZ for 3 years. They had a terrible experience buying a van in a private sale which turned out to be a lemon! They share their lessons learnt so that no one else has to go through the same awful process. Now they love slowing down and exploring slowly. The duo @theroadlesswritten share their favourite locations in the Abel Tasman and Marlborough regions and tip...

Alexander Hillary describes himself as a generalist when it comes to outdoor adventures. He is multi-passionate about mountaineering, hiking, kayaking and more. Alex manages the Himalayan Trust NZ and Hillary Outdoors, carrying on the philanthropic legacy of his grandfather, Sir Edmund Hillary. In this episode, he shares about a spontaneous expedition to the remote Olivine Ice Plateau, located in a wilderness area. Despite the lack...

Host Abigail Hannah shares about 2024 and what's coming up next in 2025. She covers:

• Highlights of Aotearoa Adventures in 2024
• All about her 3 month global trip - Nepal, India, UK & USA
• What's coming up in 2025 (spoiler: vanlife)
• How you can support Aotearoa Adventures in 2025

Get my NZ Map & Guide

1-on-1 calls and custom travel itineraries

SAVE 5% on the Dishing Up Digital School - for new social media ma...

Olly Dow is an avid tramper who had an idea to cross the North Island from Cape to Cape. He met mountain bikers Will and Thomas and the teens started planning and training for this epic journey which began as a line drawn across a map. They share about the preparation, the most difficult days of the journey and the moments they loved the most - like walking the Tongariro Crossing with 20 mates. Their 900km expedition took them thro...