It is a country where myths and traditions mean everything to many people. It is a country where nature celebrates triumphs in all its facets and fascinates holidaymakers from all over the world. It is a country where there is much more than cows in the meadows and shy kiwis in the forests. It is the country of which Europeans say that only the moon is further away than New Zealand. A journey to the other end of the globe leads to scenic wonders, pastures, wilderness and an almost unbelievable expanse. New Zealand is a country for people who have retained a sense of the important things in life and of originality.
![New Zealand, Auckland](https://reisemagazin-online.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Neuseeland-Auckland_529150330-300x200.jpg)
New Zealand is simply a destination of longing for many holidaymakers. Some shy away from the long flights, but those who go to this distant country can interrupt this journey. For example, halfway – in Singapore. And if you go on a round trip by car or motorhome, you probably choose the right form of holiday. Because these different landscapes in New Zealand make almost every visitor euphoric. It is the residence of the “Lord of the Rings” and it is the ancestral home of the Maori. Only four million people live in New Zealand – and this in a territory that is as large as Germany with its two main islands. Even Sydney Parkinson, whom the legendary navigator and explorer James Cook took with him as a painter on his first voyage, raved about the landscape at Tolaga Bay in 1769, where the “Endeavour” anchored: “The area is indescribable and beautiful. It could represent a second paradise.”
![Diversity New Zealand](https://reisemagazin-online.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Neuseeland-Vielfalt_318859955-300x190.jpg)
For the Maori, their homeland is the “Land of the Long White Cloud”. According to tradition, the seafarer Kupe once sailed from Hawaiki, the legendary homeland of the Maori, to New Zealand – and a white cloud showed him the way. The children of the Maori celebrate the old rites in their schools. They move to the beat of the historical incantation dances of the Polynesians. Anyone who passes by such a school should not be afraid to present themselves there, because guests from another world are always welcome.
For all the inhabitants of New Zealand, their homeland is a promised land, created on an extraordinary day in the story of creation. This is a country full of contrasts, with green pastures where a few million sheep graze, with the romantic beaches of the Bay of Islands, with a colourful mix of vibrant metropolises such as Auckland and Wellington, with the ski slopes of Mount Ruhapehu and with the huge glaciers on the South Island.
![Manuka Honey New Zealand](https://reisemagazin-online.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Manuka_427308088-380x253.jpg)
These two islands between Australia and Antarctica are home to friendly people and strange birds. One of them is the kakapo, a parrot that can neither fly nor talk. On the coasts, visitors will meet many albatrosses on their round trip and, with a bit of luck, the increasingly rare kiwi, New Zealand’s national bird, in the forests.
While the North Island is blessed with a subtropical climate, the icy mountain giants of the South Island present themselves with a tart charm. In the north, the muddy deserts of the active volcanoes swirl near Tongariro, in the south there are penguins and sea lions on the wild coasts. New Zealand is undoubtedly a godsend for people who can’t get enough of the beauties of nature.
Travel information New Zealand
Capital | Wellington |
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Form of government | Parliamentary monarchy Parliamentary democracy (Westminster system) |
Currency | New Zealand Dollar (NZD) |
Area | 269,652 km² |
Population | approx. 4,793,700 (2017 est.) |
Languages | English |
Electricity grid | 230 volts, 50 Hz |
Area code | +264 |
Time zone | UTC+12 NZST UTC+13 NZDT (October to March) |