If there’s anyone who knows how to make a moment feel magic, it’s Melbourne wedding photographer Georgia Wiggs. So when she and her wife Cat, packed up their wedding gowns and headed off to New Zealand’s South Island for their honeymoon, you just knew the landscapes wouldn’t be the only thing breathtaking.

Their 16-day trip was part romantic escape, part hiking adventure, and part creative playground – full of starry skies, glacial walks, and misty canoes in the wild. Georgia planned the whole thing down to a spreadsheet, and still left room for spontaneity. In true photographer style, she made sure there was time to dress up and take photos too. Because if you’ve got a view like Milford Sound behind you, why not wear the gown one more time?

We’ll let Georgia take it from here.

We travelled to New Zealand’s beautiful South Island in April 2023 and were away for 16 days in total. We chose this destination because we wanted something easy to plan, with plenty of hiking, absolutely stunning landscapes and of course, my number one priority when booking accommodation: hot tubs

Initially, we were planning a campervan trek across the island, but after some spreadsheeting, I realised that due to the school holidays (I was teaching at the time), it was more expensive to book a basic campervan than to book nice bungalows through Booking.com.

I planned much of the trip using the blog Walk My World, It made it really easy to sort out an itinerary and pace our trip around what hikes we wanted to do. I’m a bit of a researcher and planner beforehand, and had made a list of potential activities/points of interest at each stop. I loved this, as it meant we didn’t have to arrive somewhere and then waste time trying to figure out what to do, but it also left it open enough to be spontaneous and choose based on our energy levels at the time.

We spent two nights in Queenstown at The Embassy B&B, taking buses or walking into the city. Then we rented a very basic campervan (think: a car with a mattress in the back) through Campify and travelled to Milford Sound, staying at the campervan section of Milford Sound Lodge for two nights.

After that, we dropped off the campervan and headed to Wanaka for two nights at The Kanuka Cabin, which had a hot tub on the porch. From there, we travelled to Aoraki/Mount Cook, but as all the accommodation there was booked, we stayed nearby in Twizel at Archers Cottages for two nights.

We then spent one night at The Black House in Lake Tekapo. Lake Tekapo is known for lupins and stargazing, and while there were no lupins in bloom during our visit, the outdoor bathtub at The Black House was perfect for looking at the stars.

Next came the long trip to Franz Josef, with a stop at Arthur’s Pass Motel to break up the drive. We stayed in Te Awa Cottages in Franz Josef for three nights, with an amazing view of the mountains.

We decided to drive back via the West Coast, which had much fewer options, but absolutely had its own charm as well. We spent one night at the quirky Wonderland Makarora Lodge for a night, then finished with wine tasting in Cromwell and a stay at 2 Oaks Cottage in Clyde.

The places with hot tubs or outdoor baths were my favourite,  the one spot in Lake Tepeko was especially stunning as we got to see the beautiful night sky without any light pollution, which was truly very special.. Staying at Milford Sound Lodge was also a highlight. We had a great little camping spot to cook our meals, and we splurged on one fancy dinner at their restaurant, which was worth every cent.

We went on countless hikes (none over 10 km or too adventurous though), the Hooker Valley trek in Aoraki/Mount Cook was a highlight, it was incredible to see the glaciers at the midway point of the hike.

When we started, cloud cover had set in, so we couldn’t see much of the valley, but it gradually lifted to expose stunning views of the mountains. Cloud cover ruled some of our choices, as we were keen to do the Roy’s Peak hike in Wanaka, but the thick cloud cover just meant that the views wouldn’t be there that day.

We stopped at so many fun locations, and my lovely wife Cat, put up with my suggestion that we pack our wedding dresses, as the wedding photographer in me just really wanted to take some photos of us all dressed up in such incredible landscapes. We still really adore those shots.

The absolute standout of the trip was a sunrise kayak tour at Milford Sound (through Rosco’s Milford Sound Kayak Adventures). It was one of the best things we did, and I would highly recommend it to anyone. Five hours felt so quick, and due to the drizzly weather, we had the entire lake to ourselves for a while (and amazing little rainbows everywhere). The guides were so funny and knowledgeable, and we just had the best time. The only thing I would do differently is have this at the end of our trip as it was such a highlight!

We also went on a really cool helicopter ride in Franz Joseph. It was incredible to stand up there on the glacier, and as someone who has only ever seen snow once before, it was really fun. We very nearly missed our helicopter, though!

The flight was initially delayed an hour or so, so Cat and I decided to check out the nearby Lake Matheson mirror lakes, which was a 5km walk around. We thought we may as well have a look, but not do the entire walk. At about 40 minutes before the flight, I suggested turning around. Cat said, “Nah, we’re over halfway through the loop, let’s keep going.”

About ten minutes later, we realised we were not actually halfway through. It was too far back to turn around, so we needed to run the rest of the way to make our flight in time (decked out in thermals and warm clothes for the glacier walk, and inappropriate shoes).

We are not runners. It was one of those moments that should have been stressful, but we just couldn’t stop laughing about how silly it all was. Somehow, we made the flight with about two minutes to spare, after jogging two kilometres and sweating profusely in our thermals.

Food-wise, the meal at Milford Sound Lodge was the standout. The sticky date pudding was phenomenal, and it was quite entertaining to be at a super fine dining restaurant when staying in a 1994 campervan.

One moment that really surprised me happened in Queenstown. We were just sitting by the lake at the very start of our trip when a phenomenal busker started playing an old restored piano he had rescued from hard rubbish. There was something about the way he was playing. It sounded so profoundly sad and beautiful that I actually ended up with tears running down my face.

If I had to do it again, I would slow down the itinerary. Like every holiday I’ve ever planned, we moved a little too quickly. Another regret was driving back via the West Coast, the sandflies were really brutal, and there weren’t as many great options for food, activities and walks.

If you can, spend the night at Milford Sound. Seeing it before all the day trippers arrive is something special.

Georgia, thank you for sharing your honeymoon story with us. It’s such a beautiful reminder that your wedding gown doesn’t have to stay in the cupboard, and that adventure doesn’t have to mean rushing. Sometimes it’s the still mornings, the slow hikes, and the starry skies that make the memories stick. Make sure you check out more of Georgia’s beautiful wedding photography work on her website.

Planning your own escape? Find more real honeymoon stories over at Polka Dot Honeymoons, or submit yours here.