Dine at New Zealand's Top Restaurants | International Traveller

Mr Morris

After a three-year break, Michael Meredith returned to open Mr Morris in Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau’s Britomart precinct in late 2020. Local and seasonal produce is harnessed for dishes infused with Pacific and Asian flavours, and there’s also a subtle Latin American influence courtesy of head chef Fabio Bernadini. Secure a spot at the bar overlooking the open kitchen, and enjoy grilled octopus with a Mexican-style chipotle sauce.

Ahi

Ahi’s impressive dining room is the standout space amid Auckland’s new Commercial Bay development. Harbour views are the background for a savvy menu from award-winning chef Ben Bayly, including innovative dishes cooked over fire and harnessing traditional Māori cooking techniques. Try the pāua (a New Zealand shellfish), slowly cooked hāngi-style.

Kingi

Located in Auckland’s new Hotel Britomart, Kingi restaurant showcases the best of New Zealand kai moana (seafood). Begin the day with smoked kahawai on quinoa toast for breakfast, or return for dinner of Waiheke Island oysters from the raw bar and pan-roasted snapper with basil and lime. The menu details the independent and sustainably focused fishermen and women contracted by Kingi around New Zealand. Served in an unpretentious cottage along Napier/Ahuriri’s Marine Parade, Māori chef Jeremy Rameka imbues his good-value five- course degustation menus with an authentic New Zealand sense of place. The freshest of kai moana at Pacifica could include scallops and crayfish, while ethically sourced venison and lamb are both regularly featured.

Hiakai

Wellington/Te Whanganui-a-Tara’s Hiakai is New Zealand’s standout fine-dining experience, with chef Monique Fiso drawing on her Samoan-Māori heritage and harnessing native forest herbs like kakakawa and horopito for seven-course dining experiences inspired by Māori myths and legends. Indigenous New Zealand ingredients could include tītī (muttonbird) or kina (sea urchin). Subscribe at hiakai.co.nz to be advised when in-demand bookings open.

Inati

Divided into Earth, Land and Sea, Inati’s menu of shared plates partners with Christchurch/Ōtautahi’s best wine list, including on-trend pét-nat sparkling wine from the nearby Waipara Valley sub-region. Playful dishes inspired by New Zealand food memories include smoked mutton tartare, or yoghurt, feijoa and burnt honey popcorn.

Hali Bar & Bistro

From the same owners, the menu at Christchurch’s Hali Bar & Bistro presents superb seafood. The closest vineyard to Queenstown also offers Central Otago’s best dining. Sit outside with views of Lake Hayes and enjoy Amisfield’s relaxed menu of shared plates or a five- or seven-course degustation experience. Ingredients are often foraged locally, and Amisfield’s estate-harvested wines are all organic. Try the kingfish tostada or playfully reworked Kiwi classics like ‘Fish & Chips’ with delicate slivers of kūmara (sweet potato).Rātā

In a Queenstown laneway, Rātā is chef Josh Emmet’s relaxed ode to classic New Zealand flavours and ingredients. Inventive dishes include cured Fiordland venison with locally grown wasabi, or delicate Southern Ocean blue cod with clams from Marlborough’s Cloudy Bay. Served with beer-infused mustard, Rātā’s Southland cheese rolls are an upscale spin on a South Island/Te Waipounamu cafe staple.

Wellbeing means different things to different travellers. Here’s how to pick a hotel that gets it right for you.

The best wellness holidays aren’t necessarily spent wrapped in a spa robe. Sometimes they’re found around a dinner table in Cambodia, on a hiking trail in New Zealand or after finally beating jet lag on the other side of the world. The hotel you choose is what makes them happen.

1. Easy access to good food

meals from Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20 — Taste delicious meals at Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20.

One of the quickest ways to derail healthy habits on holiday is to spend half of it working out where to eat instead of digging into the culture around you. Thankfully, Novotel has done much of the hard work already, with chefs building menus that lean into the flavours, ingredients and traditions of each destination.

In Sihanoukville, Cambodia, Korkor soup – often dubbed ‘Cambodian ratatouille’ – sits alongside raw blue crab dressed with lime and chilli, best enjoyed with views across the Gulf of Thailand.

In the lovingly chaotic city of Bangkok, the presence of food cranks up the sociability. At Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20, you can settle in with mango sticky rice and stranger-turned-friends beside the pool at Sky on 20 rooftop bar, or bring them along to tackle river prawns and stir-fried crab with holy basil at the buzzing Crab Paradise Dinner Buffet.

Then Novotel Dubai Al Barsha welcomes you with a laidback twist on the level of indulgence the Middle Eastern city is best known for up on Deck Se7en. Looking towards Burj Al Arab, the rooftop lounge has everything from Mediterranean-style dishes like seabass ceviche to Italian prosecco sundowners.

At the other end of the scale, in the hills that surround the Novotel Bali Ubud Resort, calm comes from nature. At Siralada restaurant, Balinese traditions shape the menu while thunder rumbles over the surrounding jungle – proving the setting is as nourishing as the food itself.

While at Novotel Nha Trang, chef Kieu Thi My Hanh and her team showcase Vietnam’s knack for balancing freshness, texture and fragrant herbs. Pho remains a favourite, while seafood salad with pomelo and mango brings those flavours together in one bright dish.

It’s all an approach backed by partnerships with expert food creators such as Alfie Steiner, whose plant-forward recipes prove healthy food should never taste plain.

2. Better sleep options

Novotel Bali Ubud Resort room — Sleep deeply with Novotel.

There are few travel experiences more disappointing than arriving in a new country, determined to seize the day, only to fall asleep fully clothed by 3pm.

For Australian travellers, jet lag is often an unavoidable part of the journey. That’s one reason Novotel runs sleep-focused initiatives that help guests adjust quickly without compromising on health. We’re talking partnerships with Sydney-based sleep specialist Olivia Arezzolo, known for her advice on everything from better sleep habits to beating jet lag, alongside features like pillow menus, in-room yoga content and tailored sleep guidance.

The sooner you’re operating on local time, the sooner you can get back to more pressing matters – like deciding which spa treatment to book.

3. More ways to move

woman hiking around queenstown new zealand — Stay at Novotel Queenstown Lakeside and explore local hiking trails. (Credit: GettyI mages/ naruedom)

Every place in the world has its own way of getting you moving: whether that’s hiking up ice-bitten mountains before a sauna or gentle stretching by the pool before a facial. From fitness centres to spas, Novotel recognises that wellbeing rarely looks the same.

At Novotel Queenstown Lakeside, activity is inescapable. Here, hiking trails, ski fields, bungee jumps, and white-water rafting have made the region famous. The hotel’s location on the shores of Lake Wakatipu means less time spent organising yourself and more time out there experiencing them. To top it all off, you can book a private hot tub for the evening before heading back into the wilderness tomorrow.

Bali, of course, takes a softer approach. At Novotel Bali Ubud Resort or Novotel Bali Nusa Dua, movement is less about conquering a mountain and more about a dance class between the tropical gardens and lagoon pools. Afterwards, the spa takes over, with traditional treatments like a Lulur body scrub: a combination of rice, turmeric, sandalwood, ginger and jasmine that’ll soothe muscles already relaxed by the Balinese heat.

4. Better connections

Kids will love a stay at Novotel Sharm El Sheikh.

One of the best things about travel is that it gives your family stories you’ll be telling for years. Novotel helps create them with activities that bring everyone together, whether that’s trying something new, learning a local skill, or simply spending more time together.

Go for a distinctly Thai twist at Novotel Phuket Vintage Park, where many of the family activities draw on local culture. Kids can try everything from beginner Thai boxing and language lessons to umbrella painting and – a pastime beloved by children the world over – pool foam parties. Everyone is welcome to join in, whether that’s getting splashed, covered in paint, or simply watching their children discover a new side of Thailand during the dedicated Family & Kids Day.

A different adventure awaits at Novotel Sharm El Sheikh. Kids could be perfectly content with discos, drawing classes and new holiday friends, but the Red Sea has other ideas. Sitting on the edge of Naama Bay, days here might involve snorkelling colourful reefs, taking a boat trip to Ras Mohammed National Park or heading into the desert by quad bike or camel for a Bedouin-style dinner beneath the stars.

5. Location is everything

Surin Beach, Choeng Thale, Thalang District, Phuket, Thaiföld — Explore Phuket’s gorgeous beaches. (Credit: Bence Biczo)

Everyone’s idea of wellness looks a little different. With more than 600 hotels across 65 countries, Novotel gives guests the freedom to choose the destination that suits them best. Whether that’s a beachside escape in Phuket, an alpine expedition in Queenstown or a city break in Bangkok, there’s a good chance a Novotel isn’t far away.

All that’s left? Choosing your version of wellbeing.

Discover stays to inspire your everyday at novotel.accor.com.

Dine at New Zealand’s top restaurants

In New Zealand’s indigenous language of te reo Māori, tiaki means ‘to care for people and place’, and the country’s invitation for travellers to take the ‘Tiaki Promise’ inspires visitors to ‘care for the land, sea and nature, treading lightly and leaving no trace’

Mr Morris

Ahi

Kingi

Hiakai

Inati

Hali Bar & Bistro

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