Wairau RiverThe Wairau River is one of the longest rivers in New Zealand's South Island. It flows for 170 kilometres (110 mi) from the Spenser Mountains (a northern range of the Southern Alps), firstly in a northwards direction and then northeast down a long, straight valley in inland Marlborough. The river's lower reaches and surrounding fertile plain provide the basis for the Marlborough wine region.
Cook StraitCook Strait (Māori: Te Moana-o-Raukawa, lit.'The Sea of Raukawa') is a strait that separates the North and South Islands of New Zealand. The strait connects the Tasman Sea on the northwest with the South Pacific Ocean on the southeast. It is 22 kilometres (14 mi) wide at its narrowest point, and has been described as "one of the most dangerous and unpredictable waters in the world".
Port UnderwoodTe Whanganui / Port Underwood is a sheltered harbour which forms the north-east extension of Te Koko-o-Kupe / Cloudy Bay at the northeast of New Zealand's South Island, on the east coast of the Marlborough Sounds. With only a relatively narrow entrance to the south-south-east it is sheltered from almost all winds. Originally considered part of Cloudy Bay, the port was named after Joseph Underwood of the shipping firm Kabel and Underwood in the early 19th century.
South IslandThe South Island (official alternative name Te Waipounamu, from Māori) is the larger of the two main islands of New Zealand by surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. With a population of 1,256,700 as of June 2025, the South Island is home to 24% of New Zealand's 5.3 million inhabitants. The most populous cities are Christchurch, Dunedin, Nelson and Invercargill.
Blenheim, New ZealandBlenheim ( BLEN-im; Māori: Waiharakeke) is the most populous town in the region of Marlborough, in the north east of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an estimated population of 29,800 as of June 2025. The surrounding Marlborough wine region is well known as the centre of the New Zealand wine industry. It enjoys one of New Zealand's sunniest climates, with warm, relatively dry summers and cool, crisp winters.
Cloudy Bay VineyardsCloudy Bay Vineyards is a winery based in the Marlborough wine region of New Zealand, with vineyards in both Marlborough and Central Otago. Established in 1985 as one of the earliest wineries founded in Marlborough, Cloudy Bay attracted international acclaim for its first Sauvignon Blanc wines in the 1980s and was instrumental in establishing New Zealand's international reputation for white wine.
Marlborough SoundsThe Marlborough Sounds (te reo Māori: Te Tauihu-o-te-Waka) are an extensive network of sea-drowned valleys at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand. The Marlborough Sounds were created by a combination of land subsidence and rising sea levels. According to Māori mythology, the sounds are the prows of the many sunken waka of Aoraki.
RārangiRārangi is a very small town in the South Island of New Zealand which is approximately 15 minutes drive to the north-east of Blenheim, on the coast of Cloudy Bay. A macron was officially added to the name in May 2021.
New ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It comprises two main landmasses—the North Island (Te Ika-a-Māui) and the South Island (Te Waipounamu)—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island country by area and lies east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and south of the islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga.
Marlborough wine regionThe Marlborough wine region is by far New Zealand's largest, accounting in 2020 for three quarters of the country's wine production, 70% of its vineyard area and 85% of its wine exports. It covers the entire Marlborough District and the Kaikōura District of the Canterbury Region in the north-east of the South Island, but in practice the vineyards are concentrated around the Blenheim and Seddon townships.
KupeKupe was a Polynesian explorer who, according to Māori history, was the first person to discover New Zealand. He is generally held to have been born to a father from Rarotonga and a mother from Raʻiātea, and probably spoke a Māoriproto-language similar to Cook Islands Māori or Tahitian. His voyage to New Zealand ensured that the land was known to the Polynesians, and he would therefore be responsible for the genesis of the Māori people.
Clifford BayClifford Bay is a bay in the northeast of the South Island of New Zealand, in the Marlborough Region. It lies between Te Koko-o-Kupe / Cloudy Bay to the northwest, and Cape Campbell to the southeast. The bay's shoreline is dominated by extensive solar salt extraction works at Lake Grassmere / Kapara Te Hau, close to the southern end of the bay.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.