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IF YOU GO ...

§ Rotorua is three hour’s drive from Auckland International Airport.

§ Skyline Skyrides is at Fairy Springs, Road, Rotorua, on the main highway into Rotura.

§ Telephone: +64 7 347 0027

§ More information FROM www.skylineskyrides.co.nz

POSTED: 06 JULY 2009

Rotorua's Skyline Skyrides ... fine food and adventure aplenty

If anyone had told me I’d be rushing down a mountain at great speed on a low, flat board-like contraption I would never have believed them. I am, after all, a woman of a certain age — I didn’t even think I’d be able to get so low down to the ground in a sitting position to get on this thing called a Luge.

But there I was whizzing down Mt Ngongotaha around twisting bends flanked by magnificent redwood trees, the wind slapping my face, as carefree and exhilarated as a teenager.

The Luge, a three-wheel cart with a unique, locally designed braking-and-steering system, is just one exciting experience to be enjoyed at Skyline Skyrides, Rotorua’s family attraction set high on the side of Mt Ngongotaha.

“Once in never enough’’ is the motto regarding the Luge ride, and I couldn’t have agreed more.

At the end of my ride down the two-kilometre beginner’s track through those beautiful redwood trees, my cheeks flushed, my spirits lifted, I was ready to head back up the mountain on the chairlift and tackle the immediate track. I even felt up for the challenge of the advanced track with the big dipper section. Luge riding really is that addictive.

A small group of us had been swept gracefully up Mt Ngongotaha in an eight-seater gondola where, at 487 metres above sea level, the views of Lake Rotorua, Mt Tarawere and the city became more breathtaking by the minute.

At the top of the mountain, our instinct was to head straight inside the spacious Cableway Restaurant where we knew the views would be spectacular, the wine list would boast some of New Zealand’s best vintages, and the menu would overflow with more offerings of the fresh seafood and juicy lamb we’d so enjoyed over the past few days in Rotorua. But the gravity ride on the Luge ride came first. And we were delighted with the experience.

Then, with the night settling in and the lights of Rotorua beginning to twinkle way down below, it was time to eat and drink.

Skyline Skyrides is an attraction for people of all ages and tastes. As well as five kilometres of Luge track options down the mountain, there are scenic walking tracks, lookout stops and sumptuous dining options. The Terraces Cafe is good for daytime al fresco dining with uninterrupted the views of Rotorua. The Cableway Restaurant is as perfect a location for functions as it is for romantic mountain-high dinners for two.

We were more than two, but up for the romantic dining experience all the same. While the city twinkled beguilingly below us, we ate South Island salmon with kina and caviar sauce and cinnamon-smoked breast of duck, all accompanied by a never-ending flow of Marlborough sauvignon blanc.

As well as the Cableway Restaurant (which can be opened up to provide space for large numbers), the Redwood Forest Sails venue, half way down the mountain among 250 acres of redwood trees, can accommodate up to 250 guests.

We’d stopped to check out on our Luge ride and a young woman in our group told us she’d recently celebrated her wedding in this distinctive venue ... having all her guests arrive by Luge to ensure the party got off to a riotous start. This unique venue can be themed to accommodate any type of function, and 4WDs can ferry guests up and down the mountain.

The gondolas stay open at Skyline Skyrides until the last diners have been transported back down the mountain.

Late at night, as our group glided down, bellies full of delicious food and wine, heads full of romance at the lights below and the stars above, who could blame us for bursting into a rowdy chorus of Starry Starry Night? Don McLean might have shuddered at our rendition of his beautiful song, but Skyline Skyrides had weaved its magic on us that starry night and we all thought we sounded lyrical.

DECLARATION: Ann Rickard was a guest at Skyline Skyrides.