Travel Alerts: Queenstown Snow Machine, Gascoyne food festival, Auckland wildlife photography, and new South Africa safari reserve

Snow, music and alpine adventure return to Queenstown this September. Photo / Supplied

Gascoyne Food Festival

Western Australia’s Gascoyne region showcases its best produce during its 16-day travelling food festival, running from August 21 to September 6 across Carnarvon, Exmouth, Shark Bay and Coral Bay.

Opening weekend, August 21 to 23, anchors in Carnarvon with two main events. The free, family friendly Taste of the Gascoyne fills Norwesta Lifestyle Park on August 21 with tasting plates from the region’s Portuguese, Vietnamese, Filipino and Croatian communities.

The next day, the long-table Plantation Feast seats 200 among the mango trees, led by Petition Kitchen’s Jessica Roe, the WA Good Food Guide’s 2026 Young Chef of the Year. The rest of the festival promises mochi workshops, a seafood Coral Bay Sunset Cruise, and a dinner under the stars at Ningaloo. gascoynefoodfestival.com.au

Follow the food across Western Australia’s Gascoyne this August. Photo / 123rf

Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Don’t miss some of the world’s most extraordinary wildlife photography now on display in Auckland. The Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year, now in its 61st year, has opened at Auckland Museum for a limited winter run.

The London competition draws the world’s leading nature photographers, with this edition highlighting the winning images announced in London in October 2025.

From hidden animal behaviour to the sweep of the natural world, it’s a feast for the eyes. Running since June 28, it will feature at the museum until August 23. Free with museum entry. aucklandmuseum.com

World-class wildlife photography is on display in Auckland until August 23. Photo / 123rf

Sabi Sabi’s sixth act

A new private game reserve has opened in South Africa’s Greater Kruger, marking the first new reserve addition to the Sabi Sabi Collection in six years.

Sandringham Private Game Reserve welcomed its first guests at the start of August, six years after the rehabilitation began.

The nearly 5000ha property sits where four rivers meet, bordered by the Timbavati and Thornybush reserves, with a large dam and the Drakensberg behind it.

It holds two six-suite camps, N’weti and Shisaka, the latter adding two villas, plus the four-bedroom Sandringham House for up to eight guests with a private chef, butler, and a ranger. The project also supports local communities through tracker training and conservation career opportunities. sabisabicollection.com

Sandringham Private Game Reserve. Photo / Supplied