Airlines:
New Zealand is served by Air New Zealand, Qantas, Emirates, Singapore
Airlines, Korean Airlines, Thai International, Air Pacific, Polynesian,
Japan Airlines, Cathy Pacific and some others. These airlines have co-share
flights with most of the international airlines.
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Banking/Currency:
Decimal currency - New Zealand Dollar (NZD/NZ$).
Coins are 10c (Copper), 20c and 50c (silver), NZ$1 and NZ$2 (Gold). Notes
are available in NZ$5, NZ$10, NZ$20, NZ$50 and NZ$100.
NZ Dollar is a floating currency and will vary daily against the major
currencies like - A$, C$, US$, GBP, Euro, etc.
To check the current value of your currency against the
NZD/NZ$.
New Zealand has an advance, electronic based banking system.
Banks are open 9:00am until
4:30pm Monday through Friday. Banks do not operate Saturdays, Sundays or
public holidays. Major Credit/Debit Cards (American Express, Diners Club,
Visa, Mastercard, JCB) are accepted throughout New Zealand.
All Banks provide currency exchange facilities and in addition there are various Currency Exchange outlets operating
(government regulated as to their operation) through out the country where you
can change
currency at the same international rate.
All
Banks offer a wide range of telephone and Internet banking services. If
you are going to be in New Zealand for a while it may be convenient to
open a New Zealand bank account and set up a local debit card, to avoid
carrying a lot of cash around.
New Zealanders are amongst the highest users of electronic banking
services in the world. Automatic teller machines (ATMs), locally known
as 'the hole in the wall', are available in just about every town, even
those without a bank. Most shops have EFTPOS (Electronic Funds Transfer
at Point Of Sale) terminals for debit and credit cards transactions, so most
purchases can be made electronically. Credit cards are not accepted by
some merchants with EFTPOS, especially smaller food retailers such as
dairies, takeaways and cafes that do not serve alcohol. Also smaller
retailers may often set a minimum purchase of around NZ$10 when obtaining
cash, if they agree to provide cash.
New Zealand is introducing multiple currency EFTPOS (Electronic Funds
Transfer at Point Of Sale) terminals especially in the major tourist centres
in New Zealand. This means you can select the currency you want to make your
transaction in and the conversion from NZ$ to your currency
automatically. Multiple currency EFTPOS (Electronic Funds Transfer at
Point Of Sale) terminals will be phased in through out New Zealand over the
next 2-3 years.
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Climate:
New Zealand's climate is an oceanic, temperate one with no close land mass
to modify it. Situated in the westerly wind belt with alternating patterns
moving steadily eastwards, the weather follows a relatively steady 6 to 10
day cycle but with many contrasts throughout the country.
We enjoy long sun hours and the seasons are
reverse to those of the northern hemisphere - warm October through April,
cooler May through September.
Temperatures throughout New Zealand vary due
to the diverse nature of the country, but average North Island Summer
temperatures range between 16°C - 26°C and in winter 7°C - 18°C. South
island Summer temperatures range between 12°C - 25°C and in winter 3°C -
12°C.
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Customs/Duty
Free:
200 Cigarettes, 1125 ml bottle of spirits plus 6 bottles of wine are
permitted. There is no need to carry this stuff onboard the aircraft as Inbound
Duty Free shops are available on your arrival at Auckland, Wellington and
Christchurch airports with some of the lowest Duty Free prices for booze and
cigarettes anywhere in the world.
Do not be
tempted to try bringing any Drugs (non-medicinal) into New Zealand. There
are strict Drug and Trafficking laws in New Zealand with major emphasis on
boarder control including drug dogs operating at all International airports.
Our Customs people are generally pretty cool - but this changes rather
dramatically if you have dope stashed in your baggage! And you don't need
drugs here to have a good time.
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Departure
Tax:
NZ$25.00 (Depending on airport) is payable (cash or credit/debit card) by all
international passengers upon departure - except same day international
transit passengers (coming from country-1 and departing to
country-3) and children under the age of 11.
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Driving:
New Zealand because
of its size, is an easy country to travel around by car. A few hours
drive will take you city to city on either island and there are many
small towns and points of scenic or historic interest in between.
There is no national
network of multi lane freeways, so travel is on standard 2 lane
road network except in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and
Dunedin, where there is multi lane highway system located in their region's.
Traffic conditions with the exception of the high density population
areas around Auckland, Hamilton, Christchurch, Wellington and
Dunedin, is generally light.
We drive on the
LEFT side of the road (the correct way to drive). ie:
keep the white line on the right hand side of the car at all times).
Speed limit on the open main roads is 100kph, 70kph on secondary
roads and in urban areas is 30-50kph. Road speed is rigidly enforced by
New Zealand Police road policing service.
Drink/Driving is
not
permitted and the penalties are tough so
don't
do it.
When driving in New Zealand, allow approximately 5 hours a day of
driving. This allows you to have driving breaks on the way and
plenty of time for sightseeing.
For further information on travel distances and driving in
New Zealand.
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Embassies:
Almost all major countries are represented in New Zealand.
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Electrical
Voltage:
The electrical zap through the country is 220-240 volts, 50 hertz and a 3-pin
plug (Australia Type 1). Most hotels and motels have 110-volt AC sockets (20 watts) for
electric razors only - there is not enough
woomph in them to drive anything else such as hair dryers etc. Best to
borrow a local hair dryer before the big party. If you're interested, we
produce about 36 billion kWh of electricity each year - mostly from
Hydro Dams (water power!). If you're not interested then just
remember the light & plug switches work the correct way here: Up=Off
and Down=On.
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Emergency
Services:
Extensive emergency services are in operation throughout New Zealand. The
emergency service telephone number is 111
(Police, Medical/Ambulance, Fire) and can be dialed free of charge from ANY
telephone (including pay, card and cell phones).
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Entry
Requirements:
All visitors who are not citizens of New Zealand need a passport to
enter. Australian passport holders and current permanent residents
of Australia may enter New Zealand without a visa and stay as long
as they wish without restrictions including on employment. British
passport holders can be granted a visa-free Visitor's Permit for up
to six months on arrival. Citizens of a large number of other
countries can be granted a visa-free visitor's entry for up to three
months on arrival, check the list of Visa Free Countries
on Immigration New Zealand
web
site.
All these waivers, including the one for Australians, can
be refused. In particular, potential visitors with criminal records
or who have been refused entry to or deported from any country
should check with New Zealand immigration about whether they need to
apply for a visa.
Visitors from countries not in the
visa-free list or those wishing to stay longer than the maximum
visa-free period for their nationality, will need to apply for an
appropriate visa. Check the Immigration New Zealand
web
site for details.
You must also
have an onward or return ticket to a country that you have permission to
enter, and sufficient funds to support your stay (NZD2,000 per month per
person). Visa requirements vary so please
check with your travel agent.
Check the NZ Immigration website for the
current list of countries:
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/visit/.
Visa's are NOT issued on arrival!
To work in New Zealand you need to be a citizen or current permanent
resident of either New Zealand or Australian, or else have a
work permit or appropriate visa. If you are intending to work in New
Zealand you should obtain a work permit along with any tourist visas
you might apply for.
Check
Immigration New Zealand
website for details.
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Quarantine/Bio
Security:
As an island nation, New Zealand has very strict bio security laws. The economy is based
on agriculture and importing even small quantities of food, as well
as unprocessed animal or plant materials is tightly controlled.
These restrictions are designed to prevent the introduction of
foreign animal and plant diseases and pests.
At ports of
international entry, both the Agriculture and Customs Services may
inspect passenger baggage and confiscate and fine for any prohibited
items. There are air-side amnesty bins available to cater for
accidental importation. Items that must be declared include: any
kind of food; any plant material; any animals, animal material or
biological specimens; dirty or soiled sports gear, footwear, and
used camping gear and anything that may have been in contact with
soil, been used on a farm or has been used with animals. If
declared, the owners of dirty items are often required to clean them
thoroughly, if not declared fines are often applied. Expect random
inspections by sniffer-dogs - you may need to have your luggage
inspected if you have had food in it recently that the dogs can
smell. If in doubt, ask a Bio Security or Customs Officer.
Commercially-packaged or
processed food is usually allowed through by the Agricultural services, but
you can still be fined if you do not declare them. If you are unsure it is
best to declare any questionable items to a Bio Security or Customs officer
who will be able to tell you if it needs to be
cleaned or disposed of before entry. Some items may be allowable
such as wooden souvenirs but be taken for sterilization or
fumigation before being released to you. You may be charged a fee
for this.
On the spot fines of
$200 are issued for not declaring controlled items. The law provides
for deliberate breaches to receive a fine of up to NZ$100,000 or a
prison term of up to five years. Either declare items as required or
dump them in the amnesty bins before you reach customs. If you have
difficulty with the arrival card, most airline staff are able to
assist you, there are also officials at the major airports air-side
who can assist.
In addition,
importation or possession of most recreational drugs, including
cannabis, is illegal and results in arrest. If found guilty, you
would be subject to a range of penalties from; hefty fines for minor
offences to lengthy imprisonment for larger offences, after which
you would be deported and prohibited from re-entering.
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Food:
New Zealand is a major producer of pasture-fed lamb (little sheep), venison
and beef. Our seas yield a variety of fish, rock lobsters (crayfish),
oysters and scallops. Fruit and vegetables are locally grown, fresh and
tasty. Heaps of restaurants (both fully licensed and BYO) in the cities and
towns, with quite a few out in the county as well, offer a wide range of
local and international cuisine. Prices obviously vary but if you have
$NZ20-30 you can get a good two course meal and for an extra $NZ12 get
sloshed on a reasonable bottle of wine. For $60 you can have a really really
good feed.
If you are on the cheap, many fast food
outlets abound throughout New Zealand from the local corner 'Take Aways'
(burgers, fish, chips, oriental etc) to the big names like McDonalds, Burger
King, Wendys, KFC etc (yep, there is no escaping - and we also make Coke and
Pepsi).
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Goods
and Service Tax (GST):
To help the government make money, a 12.5% Goods and Service Tax (GST) is
payable on everything you buy. Generally this is included in the advertised
price but if it starts to make things look too expensive, there will be a
note on the price tag, brochure or menu that states GST is additional. On
all receipts issued, the GST content must be shown as a separate item (ie
Condoms $12, GST $1.50, Total $13.50 - or the words GST Content $1.50).
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Health:
New Zealand is free of health hazards - biological and animal (no snakes,
wild bears, lions or tigers except in the Zoo's). Nothing dangerous will
leap out at you in the middle of the night, except if a tiger escapes from
the zoo or your partner gets aroused. No vaccination certificates are
required.
The most dangerous things we have are goats (they tend to
"bunt" a lot), some Pitt Bull Terriers (don't open the gate),
New Zealand has a very high level of ultraviolet radiation and skin cancer,
around 40% more intense than you will find in the Mediterranean during the
summer. Sunglasses and sunscreen are highly recommended, especially if you
are of European descent.
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Medical
Services:
New Zealand provides a high standard of medical treatment and care, both
public and private facilities. Please note that medical services are
not
free to visitors (Except of Australia or British citizens) or non-residents - except as a result of an accident
(and you don't want to go around having those all the time). It is strongly
recommended that you carry adequate medical insurance.
Visiting the doctor will cost about NZ$70 and may vary between
practices and localities. The New Zealand public hospital system is
free of charge to Australian, British and New Zealand citizens but
will charge other nationals for treatment received. An exception to
this is in the case of any accident when the Accident Compensation
Commission (ACC) will pick up the tab. Travel insurance is highly
recommended.
New Zealand has high and equitable
standards of professional health care comparable with Sweden or
Australia.
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Language:
English,
Maori and New Zealand Sign Language are the official
languages of New Zealand. English is universal, and is written with
Commonwealth (British) spelling.
New Zealand English
is one of the major varieties of English and is different enough
from other forms to justify the publication of the Oxford New
Zealand English dictionary.
Word usage may also
differ occasionally, in potentially embarrassing ways for the
traveller. Several words that Americans may consider offensive, or
have euphemisms for, are considered acceptable usage. For example: A
New Zealand bathroom refers to a room containing a bath while the other facilities that an American might refer to
as a bathroom or washroom are known as a toilet.
The American habit of "bleeping" swear words from broadcasts is
considered quaint and rarely done in local programming. The New
Zealand broadcasting media are unusually tolerant of swear words
when used in context.
The New Zealand
accent is somewhat nasalised with flattened vowel sounds and vowel
shifting. New Zealanders consider their accent to be markedly
different from the Australian one and are often mildly offended when
mistaken for or confused with Australians. New Zealand terminology
and slang are also different from Australian usage. Americans find
New Zealand accents easy to understand, so do Australians and
British. Some European dialects find it slightly harder and Asians
may find it rather hard to understand; New Zealanders are quite
happy however to repeat what they just said if necessary.
Offensive language in a public place is not too smart and you could end up
staying with the local police. The police dress in blue and wear blue/white
chequered caps - most generally looking quite cool.
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Stay Safe:
While difficult to make international comparisons, the level of
crime in New Zealand is similar to many other western countries.
Dishonesty offences, such as theft, are by far the most frequent
type of crime. Travellers should take simple, sensible precautions
such as putting valuables away out of sight or in a secure place and
locking doors of vehicles, even in remote locations, as much of this
crime is opportunistic in nature.
Violent crime in
public places is generally associated with alcohol or illicit drug
consumption. Rowdy bars or drunken crowds in city centres, or groups
of youths in the suburbs, are best avoided, especially late at night
and in the early morning. New Zealanders can be somewhat lacking in
a sense of humour when their country or their sporting teams are
mocked by loud or drinking tourists.
There are occasional
disturbing high profile media reports of tourists being targeted in
random violent robberies and/or sexual crimes. These crimes tend to
happen in more isolated places, where the chances of the offender
being observed by other people are low. The chance of falling victim
to such misfortune is still low.
Law enforcement is by New Zealand
Police - the national police force. Police officers are
generally polite and helpful and are unarmed but are trained to handle firearms.
Police officers carry only batons and offender control pepper spray. Tasers
are currently being introduced in Wellington and Auckland. However,
first response patrols will generally have recourse to firearms
locked in their vehicle and will used if a situation requires such
weapons, such as an armed offender.
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Politics:
Yes we have one of those. The Government of New Zealand is a party approach
to politics (in more ways than one) with an independent judiciary. New
Zealand is a constitutional monarchy, the Head of State - Her Majesty, Queen
Elizabeth II - is represented within the country by a resident Governor
General. Most of us ignore the whole thing and just get on with living.
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Religion:
Christian - predominantly Church of England and Roman Catholic. Almost every
other religion is also represented. If you don't have a religion that is not
a problem either.
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Respect:
Maori cultural experiences are popular tourist attractions enjoyed
by many, but as with any two cultures encountering one another,
there is room for misunderstanding. Some tourists have found
themselves more confronted than they expected by ceremonial
challenges and welcomes. These are serious occasions, and chatter
and laughing during rituals is not recommended. People have been
attacked by their entertainers to date for appearing to not treat it
with the highest sacredness. You'd best have jokes and laughs later.
There will be plenty of time to relax later when the hangi is
lifted.
Maori and Pakeha New
Zealanders are generally on good terms, but from time to time there
have been frayed relationships between the two. Enter discussion
about this with politeness and caution, or, of course, not at all.
Remember also, that
New Zealand is still a very young nation by many standards and its
identity is still being formulated. Commenting that New Zealand is
subservient to the United Kingdom is sometimes admired and other
times despised, and although New Zealand coinage is adorned with
British royal figures New Zealand is an independent member of the
Commonwealth and saying that New Zealand is almost identical can be
offensive to some.
While Australia and New Zealand have close foreign policy ties,
considerable inter-immigration, and cultures that overlap, saying
New Zealanders are basically Australians will not gain you any New
Zealander or Aussie friends. Although Australians and New Zealanders
may seem the same to you they do not consider themselves the same.
It is pretty much the same relationship as with Canadians and people
from the United States or Irish and British. Some Australians may
joke about New Zealand being another state of Australia, but that
does not make it one. In many ways Australia and New Zealand have a
similar outlook towards the other, with the same cliched jokes being
made.
Despite the jokes
about New Zealand, many Australians have a genuine affection for the
New Zealanders. This can be traced back to ANZAC, Australia and New
Zealand Army Corp, participation in two world wars, particularly the
Gallipoli campaign, Korea, Viet Nam, the Malaya Crisis, Timor,
Solomon Islands, etc.
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Shopping:
Shops are mostly open 9am to 5:30pm Monday to Friday. Also in most areas 9am
to 4pm Saturdays and 10am-4pm Sundays. Late night shopping in the main
centres is Friday until 9pm. In some areas, particularly in the suburbs,
late night shopping is on Thursdays until 9pm. Shopping hours are now quite
flexible and some shops remain open longer - particularly in the tourist
areas (we need your money). It is also expected that you pay for items you
want, we are not a free country!
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Telephones and Internet:
New Zealand is isolated geographically so we have a heavy requirement for
telecommunications to connect us to the world via satellite, fibre optic,
digital and analog
circuits. All the modern stuff is here and well used.
There are about 4000 payphones in NZ which can be easily identified
by their yellow and blue colours. All of them accept major credit
cards and a variety of phone cards available from retailers. You may
have to look harder for a payphone that accepts coins.
New Zealand uses the British Telecom BT600
phone plug (if that information helps!).
If you have a world traveling capable bat-phone (Mobile phone) it
should work here OK, as long as it is GSM (2G & 3G) digital. Mobile phones are also available
for hire by rental car/campervan operators or you can purchase
prepaid GSM Sim cards that can operate of one of three major
mobile carriers in New Zealand - Vodafone, Telecom, and 2degrees.
A
prepaid Sim card connection pack from Telecom or Vodafone costs
around NZ$30.00 and a prepaid Sim cards from 2degrees costs NZ$2.00. Telecom has
broader coverage even in remote areas away from major cities
compared to Vodafone and 2degrees but both operators are upgrading
their networks to full 3G networks.
Mobile telephone coverage is effectively national in near urban
areas although the mountainous terrain means that outside the urban
areas, and especially away from the main highway system, coverage
does have dead patches. Do not rely on mobile phones in hilly or
mountainous terrain. Mobile telephone users can call *555
only to report Non-emergency Traffic Safety incidents,
such as a breakdown, road hazard or non-injury car crash, to the Police.
Telecom and Vodafone offer nationwide 3G data network for your laptop as long as you have a 3G USB stick.
Some hotels offer plug-in-the-wall sockets for laptop connection so
you can hook into your email and pick up messages from friends and
lovers.
Very few cafes, motels, etc include free
Wi-Fi, although it may be available for a charge. Internet access is
available in cyber cafes and there are generally many of these in
major cities.
Be warned that some cyber cafes may
not be maintained properly, but there are places around that
maintain a high level of security when it comes to their systems. If
you have your own laptop, many cyber cafes allow wired & wireless
access. It is slowly becoming more common to allow tourists to use
their own laptops to access the Internet. It's not recommended to
travel between cyber cafes without using a trusted & reliable
AntiVirus application. Firewall software is not needed as cyber
cafes should have their own firewall in-place.
Many public libraries have public
Internet access. There may be a charge although that is changing.
The Auckland City Public Library allows for two 15minute sessions a
day at no charge. Hourly rates for are usually in the range of $4 to
$8, with cheaper rates of around $2 to $4 at cyber cafes within the
main city centres. Some providers, such as the Christchurch City
Library network offer free access to some sites, usually ones of
interest such as Google, BBC and CNN and those in the .nz top level
domain.
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Time
Zone:
New Zealand is almost right on the International date line and is 12 hours
ahead of GMT Mid-MAR through Early-OCT, and 13 hours ahead of GMT Early-OCT
through Mid-MAR (NZ Daylight Saving Time).
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Tipping:
Persons employed in New Zealand do not depend upon tips or gratuities for
their income, and tips are not expected for normal service. However, when
you get good restaurant service or if the waiter is real spunky - give them
a tip. It is accepted and will make you feel good!
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Transport:
A comprehensive network of scheduled
road,
rail and
air transportation operates throughout
New Zealand.
Rental cars,
campervans,
motorhome hire and taxi services are readily available.
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Water
Supply:
New Zealand cities and towns have excellent public water supplies. In all
cases, tap water is fresh and is safe to drink - unless you are allergic
to fresh water without whiskey in it. Ice Cubes in drinks are SAFE to chew
on or let melt. In most country places there are usually 'filters' over the
water inlet pipes to prevent dead possums (fury things similar to cats - but
with sharper claws & teeth) getting into the water supply - so the water
is kewl.
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New Zealand is a land where nature is at its most spectacular. In the south,
soaring, majestic peaks and fathomless fiords while in the north there are
thermal regions where the mud boils and the fractured earth sends jets of steam
and water metres into the air. From hills cloaked in multi-toned layer of native
bush to beaches stroked by the Pacific Ocean, New Zealand is a country where
enjoying the outdoors has become a way of life. World class wines increase that
enjoyment from local vineyards which are the first in the world to see the sun
each day. It is a land of awesome beauty - a land of contrasts. Come and enjoy
it with us.