Country Information

Food and Drink

New Zealand has a reputation as a leading producer of meat and dairy produce with lamb, beef and pork on most menus. Venison is also widely available. A variety of fish is available, including snapper, grouper and John Dory. Seasonal delicacies such as whitebait, oysters, crayfish, scallops and game birds are recommended. New Zealand is also establishing a reputation for French-type cheeses: bleu de Bresse, brie, camembert and montagne bleu.

Things to know: Picnic areas with barbecue facilities are provided at roadside sites. Restaurants are usually informal except very exclusive ones. Waiter service is normal, but self-service and fast-food chains are available. Some restaurants invite customers to ‘BYO’ (bring your own liquor). Bars have counter service and public bars are very informal. Lounge bars and ‘house bars’ (for hotel guests only) are sometimes more formal and occasionally have table service. There is some variation in licensing hours in major cities and some hotel bars open Sunday, providing a meal is eaten. In most hotels and taverns, licensing hours are 1100-2300 except Sunday.

National specialities:
•Kumara (native sweet potato) in Auckland.
•Feijoa (local fruit) and golden-fleshed Zespri Gold kiwi fruit from the Bay of Plenty.
•Battered fish and chips from Gisbourne.
• Salmon and green-lipped mussels from Marlborough.
•Paua (abalone) from Stewart Island.
• Toheroa (clam) from Ninety Mile Beach.

National drinks:
New Zealand boasts world-class domestic wines and beers, some of which have won international awards. A wide range of domestic and imported wines, spirits and beers is available from hotel bars, ‘liquor stores’ and wine shops.
• Merlot (Auckland and Wairarapa), Chardonnay (Bay of Plenty, Gisbourne, Wairarapa and Canterbury), Pinot Gris and Noir (Auckland, Wairarapa, Marlborough and Central Otago), Sauvignon Blanc (Marlborough and Wairarapa).
• New Zealand draught beer and lager.

Legal drinking age: The minimum drinking age in a bar is 18.

Tipping: Service charges and taxes are not added to hotel or restaurant bills. Tips are not expected.

Nightlife

New Zealand has an active and varied entertainment industry. Theatres offer good entertainment ranging from drama, comedy and musicals to pop concerts and shows. Concert tickets can be booked online (website: www.ticketek.com). In large cities, there are often professional performers or guest artists from overseas. Visitors should check ‘What’s On’ in local papers. There are also cinemas and a small selection of nightclubs in larger cities.

Shopping

Special purchases include distinctive jewellery made from New Zealand greenstone (a kind of jade) and from the beautiful translucent paua shell. Maori arts and crafts are reflected in a number of items such as the carved greenstone tiki (a unique Maori charm) and intricate woodcarvings often inlaid with paua shell. Other items of note include woollen goods, travel rugs, lambswool rugs, leather and skin products.

Shopping hours: All shops and businesses are open Mon-Sat 0900-1700, as a minimum; there are local variations but many stores and most malls are also open Sun 1000-1300. In resorts, most shops are also open in the evenings.

• In Auckland, enjoy fantastic views of the city, its beaches, the coast and the mountains from the distinctive Sky Tower. It is also possible for the particularly brave tourist to abseil down the side of the building to the street (a drop of over 100m/328ft).

• Hang out on Auckland’s Karangahape Road, New Zealand’s funkiest street, eat along Ponsonby Road and check out Otara Market for the country’s finest expression of Polynesian culture. Search out the Maori and Pacific Island collection at the Auckland Museum.

• In Rotorua’s arts centre, see how young Maori learn the skills of traditional bone, wood and greenstone carving. Visit a Marae (a Maori meeting house) and enjoy a concert of traditional songs, the haka (a Maori challenge usually witnessed before All Black rugby matches) and a hangi (a delicious feast cooked in an earth oven).

• Visit the bubbling mud pools and performing geyser at Wai-O-Tapu to see the best of Rotorua’s thermal attractions. Check out the volcanoes at Tongariro to see the explosive power of these eruptions.

• In Napier, immerse yourself in art deco. Razed by an earthquake in 1931 and subsequently rebuilt in the art decostyle of the time, this laid-back coastal town now boasts one of the world’s finest collections of lovingly preserved art deco buildings.

• Relax in the ‘Garden City’ of Christchurch, whose neo-gothic architecture is reminiscent of an old English university town. Visit the Christchurch Art Gallery, New Zealand’s newest major gallery, which is home to an impressive collection of local, home-grown art.

• Discover New Zealand’s wildlife: Go birdwatching at Taiaroa Head (near Dunedin), known for colonies of royal albatrosses, and Stewart Island, where kiwis can be observed. Cape Kidnappers in Hawkes Bay is the only gannet colony in the world. In Dunedin, in the Otago Peninsula, see rare yellow-eyed penguins, royal albatross and fur seals.

• See Wellington’s star attraction, the spectacular Te Papa Museum of New Zealand (website: www.tepapa.govt.nz), on the city’s pretty waterfront. Window shop and people watch on ‘alternative’ Cuba Street, stroll through the Botanic Gardens and tramp up to the top of Mount Victoria for panoramic views.

• In the forests of the Northland Forest Park, see some of the world’s oldest trees, including the famous kauri, many of which date back centuries.

• Explore the Southern Alps around Aoraki Mount Cook, where short walks repay the effort of steep climbs with outstanding views over alpine glaciers, snow-capped peaks and crystal-clear lakes. If that all seems like to much effort, take the TranzAlpine train and enjoy one of the world’s finest rail trips, journeying coast to coast through the Alps.

• In Queenstown, test your nerves on any of the many adrenaline-fuelled activities on offer in New Zealand’s main centre for outdoor sports, then retreat to the shores of Lake Wakatipu, beneath giant craggy mountains to draw breath.

• Check out the fjords that indent the lower west coast of South Island. Cruise around Milford Sound in the shadow of iconic Mitre Peak or dive into its icy-cold waters to see red and black corals. Kayak around Doubtful Sound to escape the crowds and enjoy similarly stunning scenery.

See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.

• Take the plunge: this is the world’s prime destination for bungee jumping. Famous jump-off points include the Kawarau River Bridge,theSkippers Bridge, thePipeline, the Ledge (near Queenstown),Taupo and Mangaweka (North Island) andHanmer Springs (South Island). Also try bridge swinging, falling then swinging along a gorge whilst harnessed to a cable.

• Test your paragliding skills; beginner’s courses are available near Queenstownand Wanaka, while experienced paragliders head to Christchurch, the Daney Pass or Wanaka.

• Experiment with zorbing,whichinvolves being strapped into an inflatable transparent plastic ball that is then rolled down a grassy hill or onto a river. Queensland is a good place for this.

• Opt for jetboating, another New Zealand invention, which consists of high-speed boat trips in special power boats. It is popular on many of the country’s best-known rivers, including Queenstown’s Shotover River and on the Waikato River beneath the Huka Falls.

• Take advantage of New Zealand’s long coastline and ideal conditions for swimming, diving and windsurfing. The Poor Knights Islands (near Whangarei) are particularly renowned among divers. For many more suggestions, contact New Zealand Underwater (website: www.nzunderwater.org.nz).

• Go surfing, with some of the best breaks located at Mahia Peninsula (near Gisborne),Murawai,Palliser Bay (near Wellington) andPiha,. You can also ride one of the best left hand breaks in the world at Raglan.

• Go swimming with dolphins in the Bay of Islands (north of Auckland), the Coromandel Peninsula,Kaikoura (South Island) and Whakatane. Whale watching is also possible on the eastern coast of South Island all year but with most sightings from April to August. Contact Whale Watch (website: www.whalewatch.co.nz).

• Go sailing and yachting in Auckland - ‘the city of sails’. Excursions to the remote maritime reserves in the Bay of Islands,Hauraki GulfandMarlborough Sounds are also possible.

• Seek the thrill of white-water rafting.Popular rivers include theWairora (near Tauranga), the Mohaka(in Hawke’s Bay) and the Kaituna(near Rotorua), which features the world’s highest commercially rafted waterfall at 7m (23ft). Black-water rafting through underground caves is also available. Tackle the 3-5 day Whanganui River Journey to see some of North Island’s finest scenery.

• Hit the slopes for skiing, snowboarding and mountaineering from June to October. On North Island, the best ski regions are on Mount Ruapehu. Other good slopes are found in the Southern Lakes region and Mount Hutt. Alternatively, glacier ski and glacier walk in the Southern Alps.

• Go caving: the Waitomo Caves, whose ‘Lost World’ cave can be abseiled into through shafts of sunlight, are the most visited. Also available is cave rafting or tubing, where participants float through the cave system on custom-made tyres keeping an eye out for glowworms.

• Go fishing: brown and rainbow trout are particularly popular. Salmon fishing is best in the Rakaia,Rangitata,WaimakaririandWaitaki rivers. For further information on seasons and permits, contact the New Zealand Professional Fishing Guides Association (website: www.nzpfga.com).

•Tramp though stunning national parks and protected forest areas. Popular walks include the Abel Tasman Coastal Track, the Lake Waikaremoana Track, the world-famous Milford Track and the remote Rakiura Track. Contact the Department of Conservation (DOC) (website: www.doc.govt.nz) for more information.

• Enjoy a tipple or three in the wine-growing region of Hawke’s Bay. Around 70 wineries allow visitors in to sample the region’s respected red wines, particularly Pinot Noir. The Marlborough province also has world-class, new-world wineries producing white, sharp Chardonnay and crisp Sauvignon Blanc.

• Visit the whisky distilleries of Dunedin(Gaelic for Edinburgh), reputedly the world’s southernmost distillery. It’s located at the bottom of South Island, which has strong Scottish roots and retain a distinctive Celtic flavour.

See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.