There are also abundant forest reserves, long, deserted beaches and a variety of fauna, such as the kiwi, endemic to its shores. You can swim with dolphins, gambol with newborn lambs, whalewatch or fish for fattened trout in the many streams. The people, bound in a culture that melds European with Maori ancestry, are resourceful, helpful and overwhelmingly friendly.
Accommodation too is cheap and varied.
And the culinary promise of venison, fresh seafood, sublime ice cream and award-winning wines should more than whet the appetite. Environment New Zealand is situated in the South Pacific Ocean, 1600km south-east of Australia. Curiously, native fauna is limited, with the only indigenous mammal being the bat. Bird life, however, has thrived. Temperatures are a few degrees cooler in the South Island, and both islands receive snow in winter.