"Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2026, this waterfront festival on the Coromandel Peninsula unites sustainably sourced local seafood, live country music, chef demonstrations and ocean conservation in a strikingly scenic coastal setting."

Whitianga Oceans Festival

"Held each Labour Weekend when the whitebait runs are at their peak, this West Coast celebration founded in 2015 brings fresh-caught fritters, live music and quintessential Coaster hospitality to the banks of the Buller River."

Westport Whitebait Festival

"For over 30 years this walkable village-scale festival has gathered Wairarapa Pinot Noir producers and top chefs into Martinborough's lanes and vineyards for a single celebrated day marking the start of summer."

Toast Martinborough

"Since 1992, this beloved one-day festival has transformed Martinborough's compact village of cellar doors into a walkable harvest celebration pairing Pinot Noir from New Zealand's most southerly premium wine district with food from top NZ chefs."

Wairarapa Wines Harvest Festival

"Set on the banks of the Tuki Tuki River beneath Te Mata Peak, this intimate festival pairs 18 Hawke's Bay wineries with award-winning local chefs and three live bands in a strictly capacity-capped riverside setting outside Havelock North."

Harvest Hawke's Bay Food and Wine Festival

"New Zealand's longest-running wine and food festival gathers over 30 Marlborough wineries and 20 local eateries into the Renwick Domain each February for a day of Sauvignon Blanc, live music and masterclasses in the heart of the world's most celebrated Marlborough wine country."

Marlborough Wine & Food Festival

"Held in the self-proclaimed Greenshell mussel capital of the world, this beloved Marlborough Sounds festival offers fresh local mussels, oysters and salmon alongside live music, 40 or more food and craft stalls, mussel-opening challenges, and a culinary tent."

Havelock Mussel and Seafood Festival

"New Zealand's most daring food festival, drawing thousands each March to a remote gold-rush town on the Tasman Sea coast to eat whitebait, venison, huhu grubs and other hyper-local wild ingredients alongside more than three decades of community tradition."

Hokitika Wildfoods Festival

"Set on the shores of Lake Wanaka at Glendhu Bay, this annual Central Otago wine and food celebration gathers world-class regional producers and live entertainment against a backdrop of high-country mountains and glacial lake scenery."

Ripe - The Wanaka Wine and Food Festival

"Held each Easter Sunday in the schist-stone historic precinct of gold-rush-era Clyde, this harvest festival pours wines from the world's most southerly vineyards along the picturesque main street of one of Central Otago's most atmospheric small towns."

Clyde Wine and Food Festival