Premium Tours in Napier
With striking 1930s art deco-style architecture, sweeping ocean views and some of the oldest vineyards in the country, Napier is a city that deserves to be experienced in style. Premium tour companies make exploring the city so effortless yet unique with vintage car tours, sightseeing by a V8 trike, down-to-earth walking tours and more. You can also hop from winery to winery or, if you’re the adventurous type, spend the day on the Mohaka River rafting and fishing. So, plan a premium experience to suit you and your group with this list of the best luxury activities in Napier.
For more luxury activities in Napier, as well as more ways to plan your premium getaway, check out The Luxury Guide to Napier and the 8 Best Luxury Accommodation in Napier.
1. Experience a Premium Wine Tour
Hawke’s Bay is New Zealand’s first established wine region that is now home to a variety of premium wineries. While there are many fantastic tours to enjoy the wineries and cellar doors, one of the most premia is Bay Tours and Charters. They offer wine tours with a trip up Te Mata Peak for an unmissable photo opportunity, as well as a visit to two different cellar doors before indulging in a winery lunch. Learn more about Bay Tours and Charters on Viator and Tripadvisor. Another fantastic option is the small-group tour with Vines and Views Tours, who offer a six-hour experience with tastings at four wineries, a chef’s platter lunch and tour of a wine-making facility and more. Find out more on Viator and Tripadvisor. See more activities like this in the 10 Things to Do in Napier for Foodies.
Location: Tours offer pick-ups from local accommodations.
© Hawke's Bay2. Tour Napier in a Vintage Vehicle
See the sights of Napier in style in a classic car! To complement the art deco architecture of the city, Napier Classic Cars (more info on Viator and Tripadvisor) and Hooters Vintage & Classic Vehicle Hire (on Viator and Tripadvisor) both offer sightseeing tours in classic vehicles. With just your group in the vehicle, you have the opportunity to customise your trip. Otherwise, your driver-guide will show you the sights. Hooters will even take you to their exclusive classic car showroom. For more activities like this, see the 10 Things to Do in Napier on a Rainy Day.
Location: Tours offer pick-ups from local accommodations.
© Art Deco Trust -Hawke's Bay3. Take a Private Art Deco Tour
Familiarise yourself with Napier’s city centre and get an in-depth insight into its art deco buildings on a private tour with the Art Deco Trust. On this walking tour, you’ll get exclusive access to buildings not normally open to the public, while you’ll also get to ask questions and get your tour customised to the history that you want to see and hear about. Find out more about the Art Deco Trust tours on Viator and Tripadvisor.
Location: Art Deco Trust building, 7 Tennyson Street, Napier city centre. Pick-ups are also offered.
© NZPocketGuide.com4. Experience Authentic Culture on Private Maori Tour
Forget the impersonal shows and rehearsed performances found elsewhere in New Zealand. The Maori tour near Napier is as authentic as they come. Waimarama Maori Tours offers private tours with one of their Maori family members to take you from the sandy shores of Waimarama Beach where their ancestors arrived in New Zealand to the pa site remains of the Hakikino Conservation Reserve. Learn about Maori traditions and how they relate to modern Maori life in this tour where you are free to ask questions and get a real insight into this unique Polynesian culture. Find out more about the tours on offer by Waimarama Maori Tours on Viator and Tripadvisor.
Location: 20 Airini Road, Waimarama, approximately 45km (28 miles) from Napier city centre.
© Waimarama Maori Tours - Hawke's Bay5. Experience New Zealand’s Largest Mainland Gannet Colony
One of Hawke’s Bay’s most breathtaking natural attractions, the Cape Kidnappers gannet colony allows you to get up-close to these majestic yellow-eyed seabirds known for diving at point-break speed. With beach access to the plateau gannet colony only available at low tide, one of the only other ways to get there is with Gannet Safaris Overland who have special access over New Zealand’s largest privately-owned wildlife sanctuary. Although they offer bus tours, there’s an opportunity to enhance the experience with a private 4WD tour. Find out more about Gannet Safaris Overland on Viator and Tripadvisor.
Location: 396 Clifton Road, approximately 22km (14 miles) from Napier city centre. Pick-ups are available for the private tour.
© NZPocketGuide.com6. Tackle the Rapids of the Mohaka River
Experience the real outdoors and untamed wilderness surrounding Napier on a white water rafting tour with Mohaka Rafting. Choose your adventure, a six-hour river journey experience on grade three rapids or a full-day hardcore rafting excursion with grades four and five rapids. While the rafting is an adrenaline-fuelled experience, the beauty of the Mohaka River, with ancient seashell fossils decorating the canyon walls and waterfalls cascading into the river, is an attraction in itself. See Mohaka Rafting’s range of tours on Viator and Tripadvisor.
Location: 3408 State Highway 5, approximately 48km (30 miles) from Napier city centre.
© Mohaka Rafting - Hawke's Bay7. Do Raft Fishing on the Mohaka River
Another way to experience the Mohaka River is on a half-day to multi-day rafting and fishing excursion with Raft Fish NZ. Surround yourself in the ancient beauty of the Mohaka River for a personally curated expedition, whether you want to fish for just half a day, camp on the banks of the river overnight, or stay at the base with some comforts and fish over a few days. Your guide will keep you right providing interesting commentary as you travel along the river, as well as give you tips of catching the resident brown and rainbow trout. Learn more about Raft Fish NZ on Viator and Tripadvisor.
Location: 123 McVicar Road, Te Haroto, approximately 58km (36 miles) from Napier city centre.
© NZPocketGuide.com8. Tour Napier and Te Mata Peak in a V8 Trike
More unique ways to do sightseeing, explore Napier and the surrounding area with Supertrike Tours. Sit back, enjoy the sights and feel the breeze through your hair as you blast around Napier in a luxury five-seater V8 trike. The team can organise bespoke half-day and full-day tours to visit Te Mata Peak, do tastings at some of the wineries and breweries of the area, enjoy a winery lunch and more. Find out more about Supertrike Tours on Viator and Tripadvisor.
Location: Tours offer pick-ups from city centre accommodations. Otherwise, departures are from The National Aquarium of NZ, 546 Marine Parade or Napier i-SITE, 100 Marine Parade, Napier city centre.
© Supertrike Tours9. Take a Private Bespoke Tour of Napier
Whatever your interests or whatever is on your Napier bucket list, Tour Napier will get you there with their private bespoke tour. Tell your local guide what you and your group would like to see or leave it up to the experts to show you at art deco sights, a stunning viewpoint of the city, interesting art galleries, local artisans and more. There’s plenty of time to stop and take photos, while the driving portion of the trip will be in an air-conditioned Mercedes vehicle. Find out more about Tour Napier on Viator or Tripadvisor.
Location: Tours offer pick-ups from city centre accommodations. Otherwise, departures are from The National Aquarium of NZ, 546 Marine Parade or Napier i-SITE, 100 Marine Parade, Napier city centre.
© Tour Napier10. Indulge in Napier’s Fine Dining Restaurants
As a foodie hub of the North Island, in the midst of vineyards and fruit orchards, Napier unsurprisingly has a fantastic selection of fine dining restaurants. One for a special occasion is the Mission Restaurant at the Mission Estate Winery, which serves contemporary European cuisine using only local produce. For fine seafood and a taste of the Pacific, book a table at Pacifica Kaimoana Restaurant. The boutique restaurant exclusively offers degustation dining on Maori-inspired cuisine. And transport yourself to France at the Poivre & Sel Restaurant offering all homemade cuisine from genuine French owners. For more recommendations, see The Foodie Guide to Napier.
Location: Mission Restaurant – 198 Church Road. Pacifica Kaimoana Restaurant – 209 Marine Parade. Poivre & Sel Restaurant – 189 Marine Parade.
© PixabayMore About Luxury in Napier
- 5 Napier Must-Dos
- 10 Romantic Activities in Napier for Couples
- 10 Things to Do in Napier with Kids
- The Complete Travel Guide to Napier
That’s it for the best luxury activities in Napier. Find even more tips to make your luxury getaway exceptional in The Luxury Travel Guide to New Zealand.
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