Sir John Key on Hawaiian holidays, Antarctica exploration, and favourite NZ destinations

Sir John Key pictured in the Dry Valleys area of Antarctica in 2013. Key will be returning to Antarctica in 2023 with Viva Expeditions. Photo / Alan Gibson

Former Prime Minister Sir John Key talks to Stephanie Holmes about his favourite travel memories and dream destinations.

You’re travelling next year with Viva Expeditions as a special guest on their VIP Antarctica cruise. Why
did you want to go back to Antarctica for a third time?

It was the most unique and incredible experience. There’s something about the vastness of the place – it’s a desert of ice – and the quietness and the serenity. You go to parts of it where you feel like you’re the only human being who’s ever been there. I remember walking along the dry valleys thinking, “I wonder if there’s ever been a human being that’s ever been in this particular part of it.” We got out of the helicopter one time, we were flying around and got out on this ledge and the pilot said, “I don’t think anyone would have ever landed here before.” So it’s just the scale and beauty of it, really.

What are some of your other memories of being in Antarctica?

When I went in 2007 we got stuck down there because the weather changed and we ended up having all these extra days. The chief of the Defence Force at the time, Rhys Jones, said, “Why don’t we go out and we’ll camp.” So we went to Hillary’s Hut. We had roast chicken, so it was sort of first-class camping, it was probably glamping more than camping. We slept the night on Mt Erebus. It took a few minutes for the sleeping bag to warm up but when it did warm up it was good and it was an incredible experience.

[Another day] we were in a helicopter for pretty much eight hours one day, and Richard Hayes – Hannibal Hayes – was flying us and he said, “I’ll take you up to the crater of Mt Erebus.” These machines are amazing, you get up to 13000 ft or something … you’re in this tiny little helicopter looking down on Mt Erebus. Both the size and scale of it and the significance to New Zealand of that place [made it very memorable].

Sir John Key pictured in the Dry Valleys area of Antarctica in 2013. Key will be returning to Antarctica in 2023 with Viva Expeditions. Photo / Alan GibsonPrime Minister John Key (left) and his police protection (right) pictured in extreme weather conditions experienced during a visit to the Crater Hill Wind Farm in Antarctica. Photo / Alan Gibson

What destination did you dream of most when borders were closed?

Hawaii. We’ve had a home there for a very long period of time, we know it well, it’s kind of part of us really. Our family, the kids have sort of grown up there and had lots of experiences, so it’s all those fun memories that you have. And I kind of love it there, the weather’s always fantastic, the food’s great, and American sport’s pretty good. And American politics is like American sport, so it’s quite interesting.

Max Key and Sir John Key post a selfie to Instagram as they head out for a round of golf in Hawaii in 2014. Photo / Instagram

What’s your favourite thing about travel?

It sounds a funny thing but it’s that feeling of being … one moment you’re sitting in Auckland and the next minute you’re looking at the Eiffel Tower or something. It’s that almost, slightly surreal experience, you think, “Wow, I’m here, and there’s a whole world that happens every day that I don’t necessarily see” and then I get to experience it. Travel makes me feel alive. I really like it. Lots of people complain about travel and lots of people tell you it’s a real hardship. I’m not saying it’s always perfect – going through some of the airports is a little more interesting than others – but I for one, love travel.

What were your family holidays like when you were growing up?

Very modest. Without wanting to tug on the heartstrings, we didn’t have a very financially affluent background, so I remember Mum taking me on the rail car to Greymouth, which I thought was tremendously exciting because we went through Arthur’s Pass. And going down to places like Temuka on the railways bus, but they were pretty basic really.

But I think honestly when you’re a kid, things seem a long way away and it seems really exciting.

What are your strongest memories from the first overseas trip you ever took?

It was with Mum and we went to Australia. I don’t know exactly how old I was, maybe about 12, and I remember going to Luna Park and thinking that was very cool.

Other than Antarctica, what’s the greatest trip you’ve ever been on?

[My family and I have] been on some fantastic trips in our lives. We went to Balmoral [with the late Queen Elizabeth II] and she was an incredible woman. She invited Will and Kate because we had our kids come with us and they were teenagers and she wanted some young people there. It was just her opportunity to talk about all the things she’d seen, the dozens of presidents and prime ministers and people that had been [to Balmoral]. It was an amazingly relaxed environment over two and a half days. There’s some things money can’t buy and that’s clearly one of them. That was an incredible opportunity.

Queen Elizabeth II entertains former prime minister Sir John Key at her castle in Balmoral, Scotland in 2013. Photo / Claire Trevett

I was obviously very sad about her passing but – this is phrased terribly but – I was happy for her that she passed away at Balmoral because that was her happy place. She loved it there, so for her to have her final resting spot there, I think that would have brought joy to her.

What were some of your favourite moments from your time living overseas in Singapore and London?

Singapore, it’s definitely the food. If you like hot and spicy food, man it’s a fantastic place. They have this place called East Coast Parkway where they do seafood – chilli crab, pepper crab, all that sort of stuff – and that is to die for. I love pepper crab, chilli crab, and the Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong – he’s a lovely guy – had a son who also loved it. He was studying in London and I was talking to him one time about how you can’t get chilli crab in New Zealand. You have an exchange of gifts when you go on [an official] visit and he came to New Zealand and said, “I was going to bring you this and this, but I’ve brought you 48 packets of instant chilli crab.” It was a mix you put together – it was actually delicious.

Singaporean chilli crab is one of Sir John Key’s favourite dishes and a highlight of his time living in Singapore. Photo / 123RF

London, I guess my memory of that, it’s what London does best which is the royalty but also the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, all of those kinds of things. It’s the centre of London, the vibrancy, all of it. And there’s something about the history – it’s a very cool place to live in many respects. The weather isn’t fantastic but other than that, it’s pretty good. I enjoyed it.

When you’re travelling, do you prefer city breaks or nature/wilderness holidays?

I would prefer a wilderness type of break. Now, my definition of wilderness might be Gleneagles or something. But that’s why I love Queenstown for instance, it’s just beautiful – the scenery, the things you can do. I probably don’t want to be so remote that I can’t access anything – I’m a bit of a creature of comfort – but if you gave me a choice of being out in the countryside somewhere or parked up by a beach somewhere, I would prefer that to a city. I really enjoy the beauty of these natural environments you can go to.

Do you have a dream destination that you haven’t yet been to?

It’s mainly Africa. I went to South Africa twice – once for {Nelson] Mandela’s funeral and when the All Whites qualified for the World Cup. But I’m just really keen to go back to a big game.

And if I had another opportunity, we’d go to Norway and go up through the fjords. I think it would be a lot like Milford Sound actually. I like Scandinavia. One of the most fantastic things we did, we took the kids to Jukkasjarvi on the top of Sweden to the ice hotel – they were only really young and we were living in London and we thought, “Oh what the hell, we’ll go.” They have artists who come and carve out blocks of ice from the Torne river and they carve individual suites. They’re incredible. We stayed for three nights, we took the husky sled in, and the whole thing was amazing. It’s really incredible, Scandinavia.

The Ice Hotel at Jukkasjarvi in Sweden, where Sir John Key and family holidayed when living in London. Photo / 123RF

What are some of your favourite hidden gems in New Zealand?

It’s a good thing I can answer that now – when you’re Prime Minister, it’s like picking favourite children, which is never a good thing to do.

Stewart Island is incredible. We went down there a couple of times and it really is remarkable.

The West Coast of New Zealand is beautiful. In Covid, when we couldn’t travel overseas, we rented a car and drove over from Christchurch and went down all the way ultimately to Franz Josef and Fox glaciers. That’s a remarkable part of New Zealand.

Another place that I reckon people should go is the East Coast in Gisborne. It’s a little bit out of the way – it’s like New Plymouth, you’ve got to go there as a destination, it’s not really on the way anywhere – but it’s very cool. Beautiful beaches in that part of the world.

What advice would you have for Kiwis who haven’t been out of the country yet since our borders opened and who might be feeling a bit hesitant?

Absolutely dust off the passport and go. Obviously New Zealand is great and as former minister of tourism we want lots of that, but if you’re apprehensive about overseas travel because you’re worried about Covid, or whether the world’s operating, honestly, in my experience, “what Covid?” would be the sense you get when you go [overseas]. People have just moved on.

Everything’s sort of back to normal and I think life’s for living and travel’s one of the great joys of living. For as long as I can I’m definitely going to travel. So, I’d say get your passport and go somewhere, you’ll enjoy it.

Join Sir John Key on a VIP cruise of Antarctica with Viva Expeditions. Photo / Greg Bowker Visuals

Sir John Key will be one of the special guests on Viva Expeditions’ VIP Antarctica Cruise along with polar expeditioner Professor Mike Stroud OBE. The 13-day return trip from Buenos Aires departs on November 23, 2023, with prices from $17,995pp based on a triple cabin. For more information and to book, go to vivaexpeditions.com/travel/nzherald