Following a month-long visit to Australia, Prince Harry has crossed the ditch over to New Zealand for his first ever Kiwi adventure.
Highlighting New Zealand’s small and large tourism destinations to the world, the royal tour began on Saturday in Wellington, where the Prince was welcomed to the country by a traditional Maori performance after being greeted by New Zealand Prime Minister John Key.
Following a day in the city, he headed to the more intimate, Steward Island for an overnight visit.
Image: Chris Jackson / GETTY Images
As the first member of the royal family to make an official visit to the southern island, he was invited to take a walking tour of the smaller destination, which included a ‘walk to lunch, walk back, walk to the jetty, walk back, walk to the church and walk back again’.
The little settlement of Oban, home to most of the islanders, is a sprinkling of streets on pretty Halfmoon Bay.
Image: Chris Jackson / GETTY Images
The whole island only has a few roads, there are no taxi services and most tourists visit Stewart Island for the walking.
Unsurprisingly, the Prince’s visit drew attention from the locals – there’s only around 400 people living on the island. He responded by taking time to stop and chat and even posing for photos.
Image: Chris Jackson / GETTY Images
For lunch, the Prince walked the length of the waterfront, past the Sunday lunch-time crowd in front of the South Sea Hotel – the island’s one and only pub – to the ferry terminal to catch a water taxi across peaceful Patterson Inlet to nearby Ulva Island.
On Ulva Island he has a few close encounters with rare birds and plants and took a guided walk with staff from the Department of Conservation.
“It’s a beautiful place, it really is.”
Prince Harry
He then returned to Stewart Island to wind up his day at the local pub, where he joined local for a quiz.
Today, Prince Harry will head to Christchurch to see first-hand some of the city’s recovery efforts following the 2011 earthquake.
