Southern Destinations: March 22, 2018
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26 |<br />
southern holiday destinations Wanaka | MarCh <strong>2018</strong><br />
Warbirds & WHeels<br />
Wanaka For all seasons<br />
This visitor attraction at the Wanaka<br />
Airport is sure to keep the entire<br />
family drooling, just as much as you,<br />
with its amazing collection of classic<br />
aircraft and cars.<br />
The attraction opened in December<br />
2011 and features warbirds aircraft,<br />
stunning classic cars, the story of<br />
local aviation and business pioneer Sir<br />
Tim Wallis, a retail shop selling lots of<br />
memorabilia including a great range<br />
of tin signs, and a retro 1905’s style<br />
Diner.<br />
The five warbirds aircraft cover<br />
the evolution of fighter planes. The<br />
display starts with the SE5A from WWI<br />
and moves through WWII with the<br />
Hurricane and Vampire to more recent<br />
warbirds, such as the Strikemaster<br />
and the Skyhawk.<br />
Then there are the wheels with up<br />
to 30 vehicles, and the emphasis on<br />
quality rather than quantity. Most of<br />
the cars currently on display are from<br />
the 1930’s era, with plenty of space to<br />
show off their free-flowing lines and<br />
unique styles. There’s the magnificent<br />
1934 Duesenberg Model J, the only<br />
one of its kind in the <strong>Southern</strong><br />
Hemisphere, as well as one of only a<br />
handful located outside the US. The<br />
display also features a number of<br />
Packards, Cadillacs, Thunderbirds,<br />
Lincolns and some great Fords.<br />
The Sir Tim Wallis display takes you<br />
on a journey following his life and<br />
times of this wonderful <strong>Southern</strong> Man.<br />
Sir Tim is famous for being one of<br />
the pioneers of the live deer recovery<br />
industry, he was also a major player in<br />
local tourism, and of course started<br />
the hugely successful Warbirds Over<br />
Wanaka international air show.<br />
The beauty of the Warbirds & Wheels<br />
attraction is that when others in your<br />
group may have had enough, they can<br />
head out to browse in the retail shop<br />
or grab a seat in the Diner to enjoy a<br />
great coffee or one of their famous<br />
Warbirds pies.<br />
The attraction is situated on your<br />
right, just inside the main entrance<br />
to the Wanaka Airport, and is open<br />
every day (except Statutory Holidays)<br />
from 8am (Diner) and 9am (Museum).<br />
Check out their website www.<br />
warbirdsandwheels.com.<br />
• Classic & vintage cars<br />
• Warbirds • Art gallery<br />
• Sir Tim Wallis’ story<br />
• 1950’S retro diner<br />
Adult: $20 | Senior 65+ / Student: $15 | Family: $45<br />
Museum & Diner open 7 days - 8am to 4pm (no bookings required)<br />
Wanaka Airport, 11 Lloyd Dunn Ave, Wanaka, 9343.<br />
Phone: 03 443 7010<br />
www.warbirdsandwheels.com<br />
Wanaka offers the perfect<br />
surroundings to truly relax on a<br />
lakeside holiday. The township is a<br />
busy resort and service centre for the<br />
region’s many visitors who enjoy its<br />
amenities and activities year-round.<br />
The variety of indoor and outdoor<br />
activities is extensive within the local<br />
area, with plenty of choice to suit all<br />
ages and budgets. Attractions include<br />
the intriguing Puzzling World and<br />
Great Maze, the Transport and Toy<br />
Museum, while at Wanaka Airport<br />
you could try tandem sky diving,<br />
take a scenic flight, visit the New<br />
Zealand Pilot’s Museum and discover<br />
the largest collection of World War<br />
2 fighter planes in the <strong>Southern</strong><br />
Hemisphere.<br />
Lake Wanaka is New Zealand’s fourth<br />
largest lake with clear pristine waters in<br />
depths that plunge to below sea level.<br />
Take a boat trip to the conservation<br />
island of Mou Wahu, go fishing or take<br />
a scenic cruise for spectacular views<br />
back to the township.<br />
Lake Wanaka is also the gateway to<br />
Mt Aspiring National Park where there<br />
are unmatched tramping and climbing<br />
opportunities is one of the country’s<br />
most unspoiled wilderness areas.<br />
Wonderful proximity to the lake<br />
and mountains also offers adventure<br />
activities such as heli biking,<br />
white water rafting and sledging,<br />
parasailing, jet boating, yachting,<br />
water skiing, horse treks, quad biking<br />
and 4WD safaris. In winter Wanaka is<br />
wonderland for snow sports. Within<br />
easy reach of Cardrona, Treble Cone<br />
and Snowpark, you can slide, glide,<br />
snowboard, slalom, go cross country<br />
or freestyle by day and be back<br />
in Wanaka for evening dining and<br />
winding down.<br />
But more leisurely pursuits might<br />
entice you to the range of cafes and<br />
restaurants in Wanaka, a visit to the<br />
historic 1863 Cardrona Hotel, a soul<br />
soothing treatment at Sanctuary Day<br />
Spa, wine tasting at Rippon Vineyard<br />
or an evening movie at the quirky<br />
Cinema Paradiso.<br />
But whatever fills your days in Wanaka,<br />
be sure to enjoy a lakeside barbecue<br />
or dinner and watch the breathtaking<br />
sunset against a backdrop of lake and<br />
mountains whatever the season or the<br />
reason.
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