My Holiday: Nicky Sinden
What was your greatest holiday? Has to be my honeymoon. Four countries in four weeks. Swimming with manta rays, catching swordfish, almost being eaten by a shark. I guess if I was actually eaten it wouldn’t have been so flash, but thankfully I wasn’t.
And the worst? On a dive charter in Mexico this massive storm rolls in while we’re 50km offshore. The waves get up, the wind comes in sideways and we’re all wearing our masks to see through the rain. The screws in the roof come loose and we have to stop and sort the motors out because they keep getting filled with seaweed. We were borderline hypothermic, and everyone was seasick. I thought we were going to die. If we bump into you on holiday, what are you most likely to be doing? Most of my holidays are working holidays so I’ll usually be filming the show or hosting fishing trips overseas.
If we could teleport you to one place in New Zealand for a week-long holiday, where would it be? Motiti Island in the Bay of Plenty. It’s my spiritual home. I spent a lot of my childhood there at my family’s place, and I learned to fish there, so I love going back. How about for a dream holiday internationally? Exmouth, Western Australia. When the Ningaloo Reef spawns each year in May, the whale sharks visit. It also has one of the most insane fisheries in the world. Catching five marlin in a day there is not uncommon. What’s the dumbest thing you’ve ever done when travelling? I guess jumping into shark-infested waters in Florida is pretty up there.
Aisle seat or window? Aisle — I drink a lot of water. Complete this sentence: I can’t travel without . . . coffee. It’s my No 1 essential travel item so I take a plunger with me everywhere, and a thermos on the boat. What’s the best travel tip you’ve ever been given? Pack your bag and then unpack half of it.
What was the most memorable meal you’ve had while travelling? I heard about this awesome sushi place while in Nicaragua, so my husband and I hitched a ride expecting a sushi shop. When we arrived it was a flash restaurant on the waterfront with a band playing, waiters serving fresh yellowfin, and everyone was dressed to the nines. Everyone except us. We were in shorts, singlets and jandals.
What’s the best thing you’ve brought back from a trip? My husband. I was hosting a group of fishos in Niue and filming the show, and I met my greatest catch. Matt was working on the island managing a team of builders at the resort we were staying at. It was love at first sight and we’ve been inseparable ever since. Favourite airport at which to land? The grass paddock airstrip at Motiti Island, because it feels like I’ve come home.
What’s the next trip you’ve got planned? I’m planning another hosted fishing trip to Exmouth. Last time I took nine anglers and we had an absolute ball. Primo warm weather, crystal clear water, swimming with whale sharks and absolutely insane fishing.