Kauri Cliffs a Place to Holiday like a Billionaire

Boutique golf resort the Farm at Cape Kidnappers in the Hawkes Bay wine region is one place in the world where it is possible to holiday like a billionaire, Forbes contributor Larry Olmsted says, including the resort in a list of 11 such locations.

They say the rich are different from everyone else, but that’s not completely true. They have hobbies, enjoy vacations, and are passionate about many different things, from conservation to golf to food, just like other people. Since the rich have diverse interests, this offers many different attractive travel options, all around the world.

A perfect example is Julian Robertson, founder of legendary Tiger Management Corp., one of the very first high-profile hedge funds. Back in the 1980s Robertson’s savvy turned $8 million into more than $20 billion. But before investing, Robertson’s passion had been aroused by a college trip to New Zealand, and he was never able to get the Lord of the Rings landscape out of his mind.

After he largely retired from finance, he bought vacation property on the North Island, first building a house, then a highly acclaimed golf course, and finally the Robertsons decided it was too good to keep to themselves. They turned their estate into Kauri Cliffs, now considered one of the world’s greatest boutique golf resorts – personally decorated by Mrs Robertson.

They didn’t stop there, adding wineries and a second equally impressive boutique golf resort, the Farm at Cape Kidnappers. Golf and leisure travellers make global pilgrimages to these vaunted escapes.

Original article by Forbes, January 4, 2015.