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New Zealand

New Zealand is situated in the South Pacific Ocean, 1600km south-east of Australia. The country consists of two large Islands and several smaller ones, stretching 1600km from north to south.

The North Island has a number of large volcanoes, including the currently active Mount Ruapehu situated in world heritage Tongariro National Park and highly active thermal areas of Roturua and surrounding regions. New Zealand’s largest lake, Lake Taupo is found in the North Island, one of many vast lakes across New Zealand. The north of the North Island is an area renowned for its beautiful beaches and coastal scenery, with dramatic coastline, giant sand dunes and vast beaches stretching north to the meeting of the Tasman sea and the Pacific ocean.

The Southern Alps are a major feature of the South Island, spectacular mountains, the majority snow capped or covered depending on the time of year, running almost the entire length of the island. The South Island boasts more breathtaking lakes, including Wanaka in the south, set amongst a typical New Zealand backdrop of rising snow capped mountains. The West coast glaciers are unique, ending within km of the sea through temperate rainforest and providing excellent hiking and skiing opportunities. The Fiords of the southern lake area include the dramatic Milford Sound with cascading waterfalls and towering peaks rising up from the water.

The major cities of Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin all have something unique to offer and are all good starting points from which to explore the surrounding wine regions, beaches, mountains, lake and rivers and coastlines. New Zealand boasts fourteen national, twenty forest, three maritime and two marine parks in which the environment and wildlife are protected.

Nature

New Zealand’s flora is unique and varied having evolved in isolation for millions of years. There are enormous gum-producing Kauri and kohekohe forests; rainforests home to rimi, beech, tawa, matai and rata; flax and fern; duneland spinifex; tussock and scrub; and alpine herbs.

Wildlife

Many of New Zealand\'s native animals are found nowhere else in the world. Apart from bats and marine mammals (such as seals), New Zealand has no native mammals but have many unique native fish, insect, bird, lizard and frog species. The variety of fish in New Zealands waters includes tuna, marlin, snapper, trevally, kahawai and shark. The most common species of birds are the morepork, tui, weak and the kea, a mischievous bird that can be a pest to humans, rummaging through rubbish and making irritating noise.

The flightless Kiwi, New Zealands national symbol is unfortunately endangerourd and only really spotted on the offshore islands. The numbers of Kiwis and other wildlife and plants have decreased because of the introduction of species such as pigs, goats, possums, dogs, cats, deer and the ubiquitous sheep. New Zealand’s marine life attracts many visitors with dolphins, seals and whales in abundance in the surrounding waters.

Weather

Due to New Zealand’s geographical position it is affected by a continual wind blowing over the country from west to east, ranging from a gentle breeze in summer to a strong gale in winter. The South Island has a wet climate to the west and a drier climate to the east as the Southern Alps acts as a barrier from the rain brought across from the Tasman sea winds. The north Island’s rainfall in distributed more evenly as there are no dominating geographical features.

The south island is generally cooler than the north but both islands receive snow in the winter which is from June through to August. Summer in New Zealand is between December and February but the weather can change quickly and dramatically at any time due to the maritime climate.

The busiest time to visit New Zealand is not surprisingly the warmest months between November and April, which include the school holidays from the end of December until the end of January. The ski resorts, especially Queenstown in the south are very busy during the winter. Whatever the weather, there is something to do or see in New Zealand at anytime of the year and visiting out of the busiest periods ensures you will see the country at its most beautiful and least crowded.

Camping in New Zealand is a popular at any time of year, both for locals and visitors. There is a great network of established campsites set up around the country providing all the facilities you may need. If you prefer to get into the real outdoors and can manage more basic camping, the many national parks and state forests offer great camping opportunities. If offsite camping, ensure you are never on private land without permission and respect no camping signs.