Travel Info: New Zealand Travel

» New Zealand or Aotearoa the Land of the Long White Cloud , is a country of two large islands and many much smaller islands in the south-western Pacific Ocean . Among South Pacific nations, New Zealand has the largest and most industrialized economy. New Zealand is notable for its isolation, being separated from Australia  on the northwest by the Tasman Sea , some 2,000 km wide. The population of New Zealand is mostly of European descent, with the indigenous Maori as the largest minority. Pacific and Asian people are also significant minorities, especially in the cities.

» Most of New Zealand was divided into tribal territories called rohe , resources within which were controlled by an iwi ('tribe'). Usually no two iwi had overlapping rohe. Maori adapted to eating the local marine resources, flora and fauna for food, hunting the giant flightless moa (which soon became extinct), and ate the Polynesian Rat and kumara (sweet potato), which they introduced to the country. New Zealand became an independent dominion on 26 September 1907 by royal proclamation. Full independence was granted by the United Kingdom Parliament with the Statute of Westminster in 1931.

» New Zealand is heavily dependent on trade, particularly in agricultural products to drive growth. Its primary export industries are agriculture, horticulture, fishing, forestry and information technology. There are also substantial tourism and export education industries. The film and wine industries are considered to be up-and-coming. New Zealand has a population of about 4.1 million. About 80% of the population is of European descent.

» Climate: The usual climate throughout the country is mild, mostly cool temperate to warm temperate, with temperatures rarely falling below 0°C or rising above 30°C. Conditions vary from wet and cold on the West Coast of the South Island to dry and continental in the Mackenzie Basin  of inland Canterbury  and subtropical in Northland. Of the main cities, Christchurch is the driest, receiving only some 500 millimetres of rain per year. Auckland , the wettest, receives a little less than three times that amount.

» Religion: Christianity is the predominant religion in New Zealand , although nearly 40% of the population has no religious affiliation. According to census figures, other significant minority religions include Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam.

»  Culture & Sports: New Zealand has a diverse contemporary culture with influences from British, the Maori, and other European immigrants and most recently Polynesian cultures. Cultural links between New Zealand and the UK are maintained by a common language, sustained migration from the UK and the fact that many young New Zealanders spend time in the UK on their overseas experience.

New Zealand 's most popular sports are rugby union, cricket, netball, lawn bowling, soccer (the most popular sport amongst children) and rugby league. Also popular are golf, tennis, cycling and a variety of water sports, particularly sailing, whitewater kayaking and rowing.