A Sensory Overload Around Mesmerising East Cape

“Not many tourists head for the East Cape; there are no theme parks, big hotels or fancy restaurants. But there are long, empty, driftwood-lined beaches, volcanic islands, vast forests, rolling countryside cloaked in every possible shade of green, and beautifully carved marae dotted across the landscape,” Lisa Young writes in a travel piece for The Scotsman.

“That’s what led me to explore the East Cape Drive, which took me through some of New Zealand best North Island scenery,” Young writes.

“I had wanted to experience Māori culture and found it in bucketloads. What you see is what you get in this region and, for me, that meant great Māori pride, authenticity, history, beauty, friendliness and a natural and slower lifestyle, keeping pace with the rhythms of land and sea.”

Original article by Lisa Young, The Scotsman, April 12, 2021.