Skip the mall and treat that special someone to quality time at a concert or event. Here are five post-Christmas events you can still buy a pair of tickets to for under $200. Just don’t buy a single ticket. It really needs to be a pair.
Black Barn Open Air Cinema, Hawkes Bay, Dec 27-Jan 6.
Each summer, Hawkes Bay vineyard Black Barn uses its gorgeous amphitheatre to hold open-air screenings of some pretty decent films. Imagine seeing Hunt for the Wilderpeople (Jan 4) surrounded by your fellow countrymen, or Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Jan 5) stretched out on a picnic blanket under the starry summer skies... Some movies are strictly R13. $42 for two, book here.
NZ Festival of Motorsport, Waikato, Jan 20-22.
A fun day out for anyone who fancies the whiff of hot exhaust, and an unmissable juncture for petrolheads and classic car fanciers, the NZ Festival of Motorsport, at Hampton Downs, opens with the Tasman Revival Series, a Formula 5000 race that’s been going since the 60s (it was first won by Bruce McLaren), and includes historic Formula Ones, Formula Fords, muscle and saloon cars, as well as heritage touring cars. This year, the festival pays tribute to 75 year old legend Ken Smith.
$83 for two day passes; $145 for two 3 day passes. Book here.
Caribbean pirate party, Auckland, Feb 3.
New Zealand’s West Indian and Caribbean Society has been getting together for 50 years and they’re celebrating the fact with one of their fundraising parties in Auckland’s CBD. A DJ will play Soca and reggae, there will be grog, Caribbean food and a limbo competition, and the theme is a pirate party. You can’t lose!
$150 for two tickets, book here.
Natalia Osipova & Guests, Auckland, March 24-26.
If you only ever see one ballet in your life, this wouldn’t be a bad choice. Headlining star Natalia Osipova is one of the greatest dancers alive, performing a programme of new works she commissioned from hot contemporary choreographers. Among the guests joining her is Sergei Polunin, a virtuoso with a reputation as the bad boy of ballet, who’s the kind of talent that comes along only once every few decades. Put on a tuxedo for this one.
Around $150 for two, book here.
A flotation tank session at Float Culture, Auckland, whenevs.
For anyone who’s super stressed, has back pain, or who could use a bit of total sensory deprivation, an excuse to spend some time floating weightless in the darkness of a flotation tank could be a welcome gift. An hour-long session is meant to be so restful it’s equivalent to four hours of sleep.
$100 for a one-hour session, book here.
