Terrance Zepke - TERRANCE TALKS TRAVEL: A Pocket Guide to New Zealand

Copyright 2019 by Terrance Zepke

All rights reserved. No part of this bookshall be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,electronic, mechanical, magnetic, and photographic includingphotocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrievalsystem, without prior written permission of the publisher. Nopatent liability is assumed with respect to the use of theinformation contained herein. Although every precaution has beentaken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and authorassume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is anyliability assumed for damages resulting from the use of theinformation contained herein.

All queries should be directed to: www.safaripublishing.net .

For more about the author, visit www.terrancezepke.com and www.terrancetalkstravel.com .

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-PublicationData

Zepke, Terrance

Terrance Talks Travel: A Pocket Guide to NewZealand

1. Travel-New Zealand. 2. New ZealandAdventure Activities. 3. Queenstown. 4. Fiordland National Park. 5.Milford Sound. 6. South Island. 7. New Zealand Guidebook. 9. NorthIsland. 10. Auckland. 11. Christchurch. 12. Wellington. 13.Dunedin. 14. Mount Cook. 15. Southern Alps. 16. Cook Strait &Cook Islands. 17. New Zealand National Parks. 18. Nonfiction-travelbook. 19. Maori. 20. New Zealand and Polynesian history. I.Title.

First edition

Map of New Zealand

Introduction

What I love about New Zealand is that even inpeak tourist season it is never crowded, at least not like otherpopular tourist destinations. That is because this is a sparselypopulated country with more animals than people. The cities andislands are large enough that tourists arent falling over eachother and there are no long lines at most attractions.

Also, the islands are idyllic. There arebeautiful beaches, lovely lagoons, majestic mountains (SouthernAlps), quaint towns and villages, and much more. This is a safe andwonderful place to exploreand to find adventure.

There are more adventure options than youwill have enough time to think about doing, such as paragliding,jet boating, bungy jumping (originated in Queenstown), sailing,cave exploring, canyoning, scuba diving, zorbing, whitewaterrafting, blackwater rafting, swimming, skiing, snowboarding,camping, windsurfing, bicycling, hot-air ballooning, scenicflights, eco-cruises, snorkeling, zip lining, hiking, kayaking,rail trips, wine trails, and sky diving.

Many movies have been filmed in New Zealand,so movie buffs can take a movie locations tour to see thesespectacular spots, including Hobbiton.

You should allow some time to enjoy one oftheir many spectacular beaches. Some you will share with seals andpenguins! Some are so secluded you may have the whole beach toyourself if you make the journey. Or enjoy some down time at a spaor natural hot pool.

There are many special attractions andactivities throughout New Zealand, such as volcano tours of WhiteIsland and scuba diving at Poor Knights. Even typical touristexperiences can be made atypical, such as Milford Sound. Mosttourists take a three-hour day cruise, but you can spend the nighthere and see this special place in a whole new light (punintended!).

There are lots of things you need to knowbefore you go about holiday parks, strict customs regulations,campervans, how to pack, free camping, tipping, island rail travel,and much more. Please be sure to pay attention to the FYIs I haveincluded throughout the book as they provide important informationand fun facts.

I have shared everything that there is to seeand do in New Zealand, but I know I have failed at sharing itssplendor. This is something you have to see and experience foryourself. You will be amazed that there are this small islandnation has maintained its island charm while still satisfying thewants and needs of tourists. There is ample dining, shopping, andlodging for all types of travelersand at affordable prices.

It is a long journey for many of us, but onethat is well worth taking. Just be sure to allow enough time toproperly experience all that New Zealand has to offer. I wouldsuggest a minimum of ten days. You may want to consider a hop-on,hop-off bus that takes care of the logistics, which leaves you ableto focus on having fun. Or another adventurous option is a railtrip for part of your kiwi experience.

Queenstown is known as one of the topadventure destinations in the world, but I think most of NewZealand is full of amazing adventures.

So read on and get ready to go on one of themost thrilling trips of your lifetime

New Zealand is a small nation about the sizeof Japan or Great Britain, but it has a population of <5 millionwhereas Japans population is 127 million & Great Britainspopulation is 64 million.

Fast Facts

SIZE: The country of New Zealand isroughly the same size as the state of Nevada, U.S. (103,798 squaremiles).

New Zealand is comprised of two main islands,North Island and South Island, as well as 600+ smaller islands. TheAustralian state of Tasmania is its closest neighbor and theclosest country is Australia. Other nearby neighbors include Fiji,Tonga, and Samoa. New Zealand is surrounded by two bodies of water- the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Tasman Sea to the west. Itis the Tasman Sea that lies between New Zealand and Australia.

POPULATION: New Zealand has apopulation of 4.9 million.

LANGUAGE: New Zealand has threeofficial languages, including English, Maori, and New Zealand SignLanguage.

TIME ZONE: New Zealand is one of thefirst places in the world to see the new day, twelve hours ahead ofGMT (Greenwich Mean Time). New Zealand follows Daylight SavingsTime with clocks being set forward one hour to GMT+13. DaylightSaving begins on the last Sunday in September and ends on the firstSunday of the following April, when clocks are put back toGMT+12.