A significant birthday requires a significant effort, so I arranged a 24 hour trip to Queenstown for my husband, to remind him that luxury in short bursts is like vitamin for the soul.

The direct flight from Wellington over the Southern Alps flew us to the golden autumn wonderland of Queenstown.  The rental car (upgraded for Birthday Boy) took us to Hotel St Moritz which is part of the Accor Hotels group.  An inviting view of Lake Wakatipu from our stunning hotel room encouraged us back on the road to visit Glenorchy;  essentially “for a beer”.  The 40 minute drive was breathtaking and the photo stops were numerous.  Once again I fell in love with the extreme beauty of our whenua, dressed in gold with dazzling sunlight over a pristine blue lake.

The beer in Glenorchy was in honour of my mother who took a housemaiding job there over the summer holidays in the 1940’s, before there was even a road.  She said it was a quiet place.  Indeed, there seemed to be only us, a pub and a lonely dog for company;  but we were in a surreal heaven having that beer.

Queenstown isn’t Queenstown without paying serious attention to the views.  Back at Hotel St Moritz we lazed in the outdoor hot tub garden.  Not a plastic spa, but a real cedar wood hot tub overlooking the Remarkables and that magical lake, ethereal at dusk.

The birthday dinner is a centrepiece of a 24 hour break, so it had to be right.  Our choice of dining at threesixty was a coup.  The restaurant is located at the Crowne Plaza and the décor is both hip and chic with a bar I could lounge in forever.  Our host Maurice enticed me into a lime daiquiri, made with exacting attention, to commence the evening.  It set the scene for a great night of food, wine and fun!

My husband declared the wild venison the best in his life which prompted a visit to our table by Phil Ryan the Executive Chef of threesixty.  Phil has that most irresistible link to Wellington – a Logan Brown background.  His eat local, eat fresh philosophy was exciting to discuss as he told us of the local hunter who sources his venison from a nearby locality.  This is a man serious about pure enjoyment of great food.  His passion for food is only matched by his charm and focus on service.  With each course matched to a glass of Central Otago wine, we were spoiled.  Dessert arrived along with a white platter declaring Happy Birthday in chocolate.  Not even I could have planned that!

We completed our 24 hours with morning coffee in Arrowtown soaking up the history of the Chinese goldmining settlement.  A drive back to Queenstown airport via the simply incredible Lake Hayes made me pick up a property newspaper so I could dream in peace.

The flight home was orchestrated by a masterly Air New Zealand captain who decided to detour to take in Mt Cook Aoraki.  He even insisted on a quick traverse so both sides of the plane could experience the highest peak in Australasia.

This was indeed 24 hours of pleasure for the soul, and I would happily repeat every 24 hours again.

Jennifer