After being 'shouted' a night away in Hanmer Springs a couple of weekends ago, my husband and I were very excited to get away for the weekend, leaving the hustle and bustle of Christchurch for the weekend.

We left Christchurch at the rather 'lady-like' time of 10am and were surprised to find ourselves in Hanmer Springs in a relatively short time, I had forgotten how quick it was to travel from Christchurch to Hanmer, but it did make me realise why this place is such a popular place for Canterbury couples to plan a romantic weekend getaway!

We enjoyed a leisurely lunch in a local cafe, and I must say, that we had coffee at a couple of places and it was always superb - it is great to be able to get away and still enjoy a fabulous expresso or latte!

We were surprised at the large number of cafes and how well run they were, clean and offering a great selection of food and drinks. We enjoyed lunch in a cafe just 2-3 minutes walking distance from Drifters Inn.

Infact I can be totally honest and say that Drifters Inn has got to be in the best location for people that don't want to drive around Hanmer Springs. The accommodation is located within minutes walking distance from everything good - including all the top restaurants, cafes, mini golf, hot spring pools, weekend markets, grocery store and tourist shops.

After a delicious lunch we had a look through the weekend markets before heading off to the Hot Spring Pools to indulge in a bit of luxury with some health spa treatments. First up was a chance to detox in the private Steam Room, thankfully it comes with a shower head so you can spray yourself with refreshingly cool water when the steam gets a bit too much. After the steam it was off for a 1/2 hour indulgent neck and back massage... utterly fabulous and very relaxing.

By this stage it was getting late in the afternoon so we checked into our accommodation and freshned up in time for dinner.

We decided to treat ourselves with dinner at The Heritage restaurant (which is an easy walk from Drifters Inn as well). There is a very lovely fine-dining restaurant just a very, very short walk from Drifters Inn, but unfortunately it was fully booked when we went in. If fine dining isn't on the agenda, there are plenty of affordable yet stylish cafes, pizza restaurant, chinese, or good old fashioned take aways to be enjoyed.

The following morning we enjoyed a game of mini-golf (there are quite a few to select from) before some lunch and off back to Christchurch again.

Even though it was only 1 night away, we both came back feeling like we had enjoyed a 'mini break' and felt recharged and refreshed for the week ahead!

I would recommend a 1 or 2 night weekend getaway in Hanmer Springs for any couple that is looking for some quality time away together in a beautiful environment with plenty to see and do that doesn't take lots of time or lots of money!