Waitaki Holiday Guide

The new Ladybird Hill Vineyard and Restaurant in Omarama, which opened nine weeks ago, is perfectly planned for the whole family.

Trout and salmon commonly lie deep in lakes during the heat of summer days seeking cool water, security and the thermocline. 

There is a great range of events on this summer in the Waitaki Valley. Here is a sample! 

In an effort to put life back into the Kurow Festival, organisers have taken the bull by the horns and are planning it big!

In a break from recent tradition, Market Day will not be held on race day this year but on Saturday December 31. Plans are in hand to close off a section of the main street and fill this with all manner of fun.

"The festival itself is over the whole week,'' says Graham Hill, committee chairman. 

Omarama is in the middle of everywhere and amongst some of New Zealand's top scenic attractions. It's where various scenes of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings was filmed. It's a gliding mecca and boasts the world's best mountain soaring.