12 Day New Zealand Discoverer | Auckland, New Zealand 12 Day New Zealand Discoverer 12 Day New Zealand Discoverer By APT (Australian Pacific Touring), Travelmarvel See all New Zealand has to offer as you explore the North & South Island. Highlights include visiting the glowworm caves of Waitomo, and Maori culture. Add to Wishlist By Day 1. Arrive Auckland Be met on arrival into Auckland and transferred to your hotel, which is centrally located in the beautiful harbourside city of Auckland. Copthorne Hotel Auckland City Day 2. Auckland, Waitomo, Rotorua Travel to Waitomo, home to the famous glowworm caves where thousands of tiny luminescent creatures radiate a remarkable glow. Like a Local - discover the magical natural spectacle of Waitomo Caves with a local guide before continuing to Rotorua. Visit Te Puia - New Zealand’s premier cultural centre - and enjoy a guided tour of the Maori Arts and Crafts Institute. Then head over to the Whakarewarewa Thermal Valley and witness the phenomenal natural spectacle of erupting geysers and bubbling mud pools.

A Taste of New Zealand - later, at Te Puia, enjoy a Maori Hangi Feast with performances of song and dance. Delight in an evening of local customs and cheerful hospitality. Two Nights: Copthorne Hotel Rotorua B, FD Day 3. Rotorua Rotorua captures the essence of New Zealand with its geothermal geysers, fascinating Maori culture and rich heritage. A Taste of New Zealand - for an extraordinary start to your day, begin with a buffet breakfast aboard the Lakeland Queen as you cruise over the still blue waters of Lake Rotorua. Your sightseeing continues with a visit to one of New Zealand’s best-loved attractions, the Agrodome, with its entertaining sheep shearing demonstration. FB Day 4. Rotorua, Taupo, Wellington Meander along the Thermal Explorer Highway to Lake Taupo - the largest freshwater lake in Australasia - and thundering Huka Falls with its striking blue water. Later, travel south across the vast volcanic plateau of World Heritage-listed Tongariro National Park en route to Wellington, the nation's capital. Ibis Wellington Hotel B Day 5.

Wellington, Cook Strait, Ashburton The Cook Strait separates the North and South Islands and was named after Captain James Cook, the first European to sail across in 1770. Like a Local - this morning, enjoy one of the world’s most scenic voyages as the Interislander ferry traverses Cook Strait through the breathtaking Marlborough and Queen Charlotte Sounds. Here, you’ll weave through unspoilt islands and admire coastlines defined by tiny coves on the way to the seaside port of Picton. Continue through breathtaking scenery via Kaikoura, nestled at the foot of majestic mountains, to Ashburton. Hotel Ashburton BD Day 6. Ashburton, Fox Glacier Today, ascend into the Main Divide and journey through the towering, captivating Southern Alps. Continue along the coast to Westland National Park and see Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier. Over thousands of years, these remarkable natural wonders have created immense glacial valleys and their magnificent rivers of ice can be seen cascading through the lush rainforests. Heartland Hotel Fox Glacier BD Day 7.

Fox Glacier, Queenstown Travel across the snow-capped peaks of the Southern Alps, skirting the tranquil shores of lakes Wanaka and Hawea to the alpine resort of Queenstown. Special Stay - settle in for a two-night stay admiring the dramatic backdrop of mountains overlooking the waters of Lake Wakatipu. Two Nights: Copthorne Hotel and Apartments Queenstown Lakeview B Day 8. Queenstown Queenstown is perfect for adventurers and leisure-seekers alike with endless activities on offer within the city and its surrounds. Today, enjoy a day at leisure and explore. B Day 9. Queenstown, Fiordland National Park, Te Anau Today, follow The Remarkables and Lake Wakatipu to Fiordland National Park. Journey along the Milford Road, thought to be one of the world’s best alpine drives, to Milford Sound. Like a Local - cruise Milford Sound, a magnificent fiord with views of cascading waterfalls, dense rainforest, sheer cliffs and the surrounding mountains of this World Heritage-listed area. Afterwards, make your way to your hotel and enjoy dinner. Kingsgate Hotel Te Anau BD Day 10.

Te Anau, Dunedin Leaving the Fiordland region, today, you’ll journey through rolling Southland countryside before arriving in Dunedin. Enjoy a tour taking in the city’s most significant landmarks and learn of its rich history. Later, head to the nearby hills to take an intriguing tour of Lanarch Castle, New Zealand’s only castle. Steeped in scandal and tragedy, filled with magnificent antiques and offering breathtaking views, Lanarch Castle provides a memorable holiday highlight. Mercure Dunedin Leisure Lodge BD Day 11. Dunedin, Mt Cook, Lake Tekapo See the Moeraki Boulders. These large spherical stones were formed over 60 million years ago and can be found along a stretch of Koekohe Beach. Continue to Oamaru to see some of New Zealand’s finest 19th-century architecture. Like a Local - journey into Mt Cook National Park to view Australasia’s highest peak, Aoraki (Mt Cook). Special Stay - arrive at your hotel, situated on the shores of Lake Tekapo. A Taste of New Zealand - dine on fresh local produce at your Farewell Dinner. Lake Tekapo, Peppers Bluewater Resort B, FD Day 12.

Lake Tekapo, Depart Christchurch Visit the tiny Church of the Good Shepherd, which was built as a tribute to the region’s early pioneers. Your tour concludes on arrival at Christchurch airport. B Includes 17 delicious meals - Enjoy 10 Breakfasts (B), 4 Dinners (D), 1 Feature Breakfast (FB) and 2 Feature Dinners (FD) Crossing Cook Strait with your New Zealand Hire Car, New Zealand Hire Car, Hire Car NZ Home » New Zealand Rental Cars » Crossing Cook Strait with your New Zealand Hire Car Crossing Cook Strait with your New Zealand Hire Car The Cook Strait is the stretch of water between the North and South Islands of New Zealand. At its narrowest point, about 19km separates Wellington on New Zealand's North Island from Picton on the South Island. How do I take my New Zealand Hire Car across the Cook Strait? If you want to take your hire car across the Cook Strait, you will need to book your hire car and passengers onto a Cook Strait ferry. Here are some tips to bear in mind for your crossing: Check to see if your hire car company can book tickets for you on either the Interislander or Bluebridge ferry services .

Check to see if your car hire company offers any special rates or deals for your hire car, which may include the cost of the crossing. Ask if you can drop off your hire car in Wellington, book / pay for passenger crossings only and pick up a hire car in Picton. If booked in advance, this can be quite easily arranged, especially with larger hire car companies with branches in both destinations. Sailing times are between 3 hours and 3 hours 20 minutes depending on the service booked and weather conditions. Book your ferry crossing well in advance as ferries can get extremely busy especially in New Zealand school holiday periods. Bookings can be made up to six months in advance. Note that there are no ferry services on Christmas Day (25 December). Allow if possible, extra time in your trip planning for possible cancellations due to unfavourable weather or sea conditions. An alternative to taking your hire car across the Strait is to arrange pick up and drop off at hire car offices in Wellington and Picton. You may have to co-ordinate sailing times and hire car office times carefully to avoid waiting. Booking your New Zealand Hire Car It is easy to book a rental car in New Zealand.

Simply browse our range of rental cars by choosing one of the options below. New Zealand New Zealand Area: 268,680 square kilometers (103,737 square miles) Highest point on mainland: Mount Cook (3,764 meters/12,349 feet) Lowest point on land: Sea level Hemispheres: Southern and Eastern Time zone: 12 midnight = noon GMT Longest distances: 1,600 kilometers (994 miles) from north-northeast to south-southwest; 450 kilometers (280 miles) from east-southeast to west-northwest Land boundaries: None Coastline: 15,134 kilometers (9,404 miles) Territorial sea limits: 22 kilometers (12 nautical miles) 1 LOCATION AND SIZE New Zealand lies in the southwestern Pacific Ocean and consists of two main islands and a number of smaller ones. The main North and South Islands, separated by the Cook Strait, lie on an axis running from northeast to southwest, except for the low-lying Northland Peninsula on the North Island.

With a total area of 268,680 square kilometers (103,737 square miles), New Zealand is roughly the size of the state of Colorado. 2 TERRITORIES AND DEPENDENCIES New Zealand has three island dependencies in the Pacific Ocean. The Cook Islands are located roughly halfway between New Zealand and Hawaii, in the middle of the South Pacific. The islands have local self-government but voluntarily rely on New Zealand to represent their interests in foreign affairs and defense. The Cook Islands consist of two island chains: seven low-lying coral atolls in the north, and eight larger and more elevated volcanic islands in the south. Niue Island, which extends over more than 263 square kilometers (102 square miles), is one of the world's largest coral islands. Located east of the Cook Islands, Niue also governs itself in local affairs but depends on New Zealand in international matters. Tokelau, another territory of New Zealand, is an island chain in the middle of the South Pacific northwest of the Cook Islands. It consists of three small coral atolls and surrounding islets. Besides these three Pacific island groups, New Zealand also claims land in Antarctica in and near the Ross Sea.

3 CLIMATE New Zealand has a mild oceanic climate with little seasonal variation. Mean annual temperatures range from about 11°C (52°F) in the southern part of South Island to 15°C (59°F) in Northland, the northernmost part of the North Island. Daytime high temperatures in summer generally vary from 21°C to 27° C (70° to 81°F); winter highs are usually at least 10°C (50°F). Temperatures rarely extend beyond the extremes of -10°C (14°F) and 35°C (95°F). Due to prevailing westerly and north-westerly winds, the western mountain slopes of both islands receive the heaviest rainfall. Average annual rainfall for the country as a whole ranges from 64 to 152 centimeters (25 to 60 inches). Precipitation amounts vary widely, however; on South Island, for example, central Otago Harbour receives as little as 30 centimeters (12 inches) per year, while southwestern Fiordland can get as much as 800 centimeters (315 inches).

4 TOPOGRAPHIC REGIONS New Zealand is very mountainous; more than 75 percent of its land exceeds an altitude of 200 meters (656 feet). The South Island covers an area of 149,883 square kilometers (57,870 square miles). Its major regions are the Canterbury Plains to the east; the central mountain highlands, which cover much of the island; and a narrow western coast. The North Island, which spans an area of 114,669 square kilometers (44,274 square miles), is characterized by hill country. The mountain highland here is narrow and lies to the east. North and west of the Kaimanawa Mountains is a volcanic plateau. There is little coastal lowland; even in Taranaki, where it is widest, Mount Egmont (also called Mount Taranaki) rises well over 2,438 meters (8,000 feet). The narrow northern peninsular section of the North Island is mostly low-lying, though its surface is broken and irregular in many places.

5 OCEANS AND SEAS New Zealand lies in the South Pacific Ocean to the southeast of Australia, across the Tasman Sea. At the Tamaki Isthmus on the North Island, these two bodies of water are separated by only 2 to 3 kilometers (1 to 2 miles) of land. Sea Inlets and Straits The North and South Islands are separated by the Cook Strait, which is 26 to 145 kilometers (16 to 90 miles) wide. The Foveaux Strait lies between the South Island and Stewart Island to the southeast. The North Island's bays include North and South Taranaki Bights to the west, Palliser Bay to the south, the wide Hawke Bay to the east, and the even wider Bay of Plenty to the northeast. The South Island's major bays include Golden Bay and Tasman Bay in the north, Karamea Bight at the northern end of the west coast, and Canterbury Bight and Pegasus Bay to the east.

Islands and Archipelagos New Zealand's largest island, aside from its two primary landmasses, is Stewart Island to the southeast, which covers an area of 1,746 square kilometers (674 square miles). Other islands include the Chatham Islands (963 square kilometers/372 square miles) to the east and several other mostly uninhabited outlying islands, including the Auckland Islands (567 square kilometers/219 square miles). Coastal Features North Island has a more heavily indented coastline than South Island. The long arm of land that juts out to the northwest has so deep an indentation at its midsection that the land mass narrows to a width of only 2 or 3 kilometers (1 or 2 miles) at Auckland. The east coast and northern tip of Northland have multiple bays and harbors, while the west coast is almost completely smooth. The northern and southern ends of the South Island have numerous indentations, while the long eastern and western coastlines are smoother. In the east, the Banks Peninsula juts out somewhat less than halfway down the coast. The coast of Fiordland to the southeast is broken up into numerous sounds and inlets.

The northernmost part of North Island has many sand dunes. 6 INLAND LAKES New Zealand has many lakes. Those in the South Island are particularly noted for their magnificent scenery. The country's largest natural lake is Lake Taupo on the North Island, followed by Lakes Te Anau and Wakatipu on the South Island. 7 RIVERS AND WATERFALLS The rivers are shallow and swift, and only a few are navigable. The longest river is the Waikato (425 kilometers/264 miles), which flows north-westward across the North Island and empties into the Tasman Sea, as do the Wanganui and Rangitikei. Rivers that flow into the Pacific from the South Island include the Clutha, the Taieri, and the Clarence; the Mataura, Wairau, and Oreti flow from the South Island into the Foveaux Strait. The Clutha is the South Island's longest river, and its volume is the greatest of any river in the country.

8 DESERTS Ferry from the North Island to the South Island of New Zealand | Marlborough, New Zealand Ferry from the North Island to the South Island of New Zealand Ferry from the North Island to the South Island of New Zealand By Ron Laughlin One of the highlights of New Zealand travel is the 3 1/2 hour ferry ride between the North and South Islands. Find out more about traveling via the ferry over Cook Strait, and visiting the cities at either end - Wellington and Picton. Add to Wishlist By ronlaughlin Sooner or later everyone traveling New Zealand boards a ferry to cross Cook Strait some with positive anticipation and others with deep trepidation. After several years we basically take it in stride and look upon it as an enjoyable part of our journey. We always keep a close eye on the weather and plan our crossings in favourable conditions if at all possible. This is the best way to alleviate the rough ones if you have the opportunity. If not at least prepare for the worst and arm yourself with seasick pills, a good book and perhaps a pillow. Reading material is a must on all trips. The entry into and out of the ferries with your vehicle is always handled very professionally so don’t worry about that phase.

The first time you have the experience don’t panic you will be guided into the boarding area you need to be at and into and out of the ferry so easily you will wonder why you worried. Our cats aren’t real thrilled about any crossing though. We have been using the Bluebridge Ferry exclusively the last couple of years. They have always gone out of their way to accommodate the motorhome travellers. Even at the 3am crossing we have commented on how the staff are so happy and friendly as we pull into the hold of the boat. Another item we like is if we need to change reservations, even at the last minute, there have been no problems. Now that they have two boats working there is even more of an opportunity for catching a good crossing. Prices are right too. Something I think is very important to mention are the communities at either end of the ferry route, Wellington and Picton. Most people in a motorhome hurry through and as a result miss out on two of the finest places in New Zealand. We’ll begin our crossing from the North. Here is a little information for driving into Wellington city in order to get on the ferry and, time permitting, also to enjoy the city.

The roads to Wellington converge whether you are approaching on either Route 1 or Route 2. Entering you will go though several kilometres of road congestion but it is easy to drive. Try not to be there during the usual busy times when people are going to and from work if possible. When you are driving in via Route 1 there are signs directing where to turn into the Interisland Ferry terminal. If you are planning to use the Bluebridge Ferry ignore these signs. Continue on towards Wellington. Stay in the left lane and turn left onto Aotea Quay (first turnoff and well posted). This will take you to Waterloo Quay. On the right is the Westpac Stadium. The turn off to the Bluebridge Ferry terminal is on the left and well-marked not too far along the street. Parked at Bluebridge terminal you are in walking distance of the major shopping district of Wellington. If you are planning to hang around a bit continue on along the waterfront. Stay in the left lane. The street names will change from Aotea Quay, Waterloo Quay, Jervois Quay (all the same street you will stay on) and then Cable Street. The National Museum of Te Papa is on your left.

Remain in the left lane and turn at the next light past the Museum and park in the parking lot on the right. You can even stay overnight here and be in the middle of the Wellington action. The downtown area is very compact and it is easy to walk everywhere. A New World supermarket is just a block away. From the parking lot walk two blocks to Courtney Place and you are in the cafe and restaurant centre of Wellington. You can also walk back along the waterfront past Te Papa where you come to the Rowing Club. Cross over the walking bridge to City Centre. The Wellington Information Centre is located here. Don't miss the funky part of town down Cuba Street right off the City Centre beginning across from the Michael Fowler Centre. Our favourite place for coffee is Plum on Cuba. The top shopping area is Willis Street and Lambton Quay just a short walk through from the City Centre. Best to pick up a city map at the Information Centre. Time permitting the places to visit are: Te Papa Museum , the Maritime Museum (also on the waterfront), and off Lambton Quay take a ride up the cable car with its spectacular view of the city at the 186m summit where there is a very pleasant Park.

You also are not far from the Parliament Building and the heart of New Zealand government if you care to have a look first hand at your representatives in action. Across the street is the Backbencher Bar. Have a look at the caricature puppets of the politicians. Even the menus are done with political satire. Maybe you can even arrange to have your representative buy you lunch there. Take your time and enjoy Wellington. It is a busy atmosphere with the cafe scene, great music and plenty of activity all year round. Grab a local paper to see what’s happening in the city. We are great fans of the Blues Night every Thursday at the Bristol on Cuba Street. Now that you have visited Wellington we better get ready to head for the ferry and, weather permitting, enjoy a few hours at sea heading to the part of the country with unbridled beauty in its natural form. I don’t care how jaded one becomes after traveling; the South Island of New Zealand has one of the most spectacular styles of scenery ever experienced. We spend the summers from September through May every year constantly traveling through this area and are still finding new and exciting places to roam. From the ferry terminal building it is a 3 hour 20 minute crossing to Picton.

Approximately one-third of the cruise is going out the Wellington Harbour, the next one-third crossing the Cook Straight and the last third going up fabulous Queen Charlotte Sound. If you hit one of those magic days of great weather it will be one of the most wonderful panoramas of an introduction to an area one could hope for. Even under the worst scenario the middle part through the Straits is the only really bad area even on the hardest of days. At the ferry landing in Picton when you drive your vehicle off the boat you will be directed to Lagoon Road. At the traffic circle if you plan to continue on and by-pass Picton go straight ahead on Kent Street that will take you directly to Route One. Turn right and you are on the way to the Marlborough wine region and Blenheim. If you choose to have a stay or a short look at Picton (highly recommended) turn left at the traffic circle (Dublin St) and drive into the main part of Picton. High Street is the main street. One street over is Wellington Street where parking is available on the street and also in a parking area right on the waterfront. There is a parking lot in the centre of town where Council recommends parking camper vans.

It is a very small community but quite vibrant. Le Cafe restaurant on the waterfront gets our vote for best place to hang out. They have music most weekends. The Irish Pub is a great place to meet new friends. Lots of backpackers and motels and several very good camp grounds. Close to town are the Blue Anchor Top Ten and the Picton Campervan Park . Blue Anchor can be reached by continuing on Dublin Street after the traffic circle on High Street. It becomes Waikawa Road and not too far along the road the Park is on the right. To reach the Picton Campervan Park continue straight along Kent Street from the ferry and on the left after Oxford Street you will see the entrance. There are other parks close to town as well. For a special place to go drive along Waikawa Road leaving the main part of Picton area, but still in town, take a left on Surrey Street (just past the Blue Anchor Holiday Park). This will take you down to the Marina in the area across from the main part of town. Continue along the Marina driving past the old sailboat restaurant on the left to an area where you can park during the day. Grand place to hang out.

There is a walking bridge over the Marina back into town central. If you go up the road overlooking the town (the Queen Charlotte Scenic Drive) to have a panoramic view there are adequate pull off areas to view the town, harbour and the ferry terminal. Great place for photos. This is also the best route to enjoy seeing the Marlborough Sounds. Hilly and twisting it is still easy to negotiate. This is the inner route to get to Havelock and on to the town of Nelson and beyond. Picton is an area nestled in the heart of the Marlborough Sounds. The Sounds is a place of seemingly unlimited bays, coves and islands. Lots of world class lodges scattered throughout and some of the best walking tracks. A place where water sports prevail including sailboat rentals, fishing excursions, kayaking along with all kind of cruises offered. One favorite is the world famous Mail Boat Cruise offering top quality excursions. Diving is popular with the Mikhail Lermontov lying in 33 metres of water. It is one of the largest divable shipwrecks in the world. All in all this is a very special region of New Zealand. Take it easy and enjoy this part of your journey.

Don’t hurry on through. You may be surprised by how much you will discover at the beginning and end of your ferry crossing. For more information go to Ron's New Zealand Travel Guide . Add to Wishlist Have you got a great story to tell? Add your own article Related tags BBC - Travel - Living in: New Zealand New Zealand Living in: New Zealand The other Down Under draws immigrants from near and far, looking for a new lease of life. By Sunshine Flint 14 December 2011 Filled with towering peaks, icy glaciers, lush fields and dales, all balanced on two islands fringed by beautiful beaches, New Zealand -- the other Down Under --draws immigrants from near and far, looking for a new lease of life. Its cities are consistently ranked as some of the best places to live in the world, and with a population of only 4.4 million spread across the North and South Islands, there remain plenty of untouched landscapes to explore and enjoy. Related article: Living in... remote islands What is it known for?

If you are a rugby fan, you would probably say the All Blacks, New Zealand’s national rugby team (who won the 2011 Rugby World Cup in October); if you are a movie fan, you would say orcs and elfs (the Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed in many of the country’s most spectacular spots); and if you are an adventure traveller, you would say bungee jumping and glaciers. All of the above is true, along with the great wines, the music scene, a robust Maori culture and all more sheep than people. While New Zealand was originally settled by Polynesians 700 years ago, Europeans came along in serious numbers in the 19th Century. A serious recruitment effort to get Scots to emigrate to New Zealand took place in the 1850s and 1860s so Scottish place names abound, especially on the South Island. The country is 900 miles across the Tasman Sea from Australia, and like its larger neighbour to the west, it is part of the British Commonwealth.

The overwhelming draw for modern-day visitors is the country’s jaw-dropping scenery and natural wonders, from the Franz Josef Glacier to the Waitomo Caves to the Otago Peninsula. Sailing, surfing, hiking, camping, luging — name almost any outdoor activity and New Zealand has it in spades. With an increasing number of visitors arriving every year, environmentalists and the government are concerned about preserving the unspoiled nature that is the country’s richest natural resource. Sustainability is now the tourism watch-word. Where do you want to live? Auckland is by far the largest city in New Zealand, with a population of 1.3 million. Known as the City of Sails, it sits on a narrow stretch of land between the Waitemata and Manukau Bays. The city’s suburbs stretch for many miles up and down the coast. The most popular places to live, such as Westmere, Ponsonby, Grey Lynn, Ellerslie and Meadowbank, are within a roughly five kilometre radius of the Central Business District (CBD). These are the areas seeing the highest home prices in the country.

Nearby Hamilton, a smaller, inland city about an hour and a half drive from Auckland, attracts many immigrants, particularly from Great Britain. Here the most popular neighbourhoods, such as St Andrews, Flagstaff and Chartwell, are in the eastern and western parts of the city, but all are close the Waikato River. At the southernmost tip of the North Island sits Wellington, the capital and diplomatic centre of country, built in the hills above the Cook Strait that separates the North Island from the South Island. It has the country’s best public transport, Metlink, and considers itself the coolest city in New Zealand (as well as the windiest). “The areas closest to the city are the most popular,” said Carey Smith, chief executive of Ray White New Zealand real estate. “They include Khandallah, Newtown and Hataitai.” Christchurch in the Canterbury region is the largest city on the South Island and the second-largest in the country. It is also the country’s electrical and engineering hub. The February 2011 earthquake and the aftershocks that followed have caused people to look for properties in the northwest of the city, in areas such as Hornby, or suburbs like Lincoln and Rolleston.

Side trips Kiwis are spoiled for choice no matter where they live, but “beach culture has always been a big part of our culture,” said Shane Mason, an Aucklander and video editor. “It’s pretty common to leave town during the summer and spend Christmas and New Year’s at the beach.” From Auckland, popular getaways in the Northland region for all sorts of water sports are Mautauri Bay, the Tututaka Coast, Waiheke and the Great Barrier Islands. The Coromandel Peninsula and Raglan, a surfing town, are hugely popular with North Islanders, as is the wine region of Martinborough and Hawke’s Bay. Christchurch residents and Cantabrians head to the west coast, Akoroa and the thermal pools at Hanmer Springs for their breaks. “Most Kiwis have their own secret spot they can slip away too,” said Mason. “I basically am happy anywhere with a beach and a barbecue.” Australia, or the “West Island”, as it is cheekily nicknamed, is popular for short, inexpensive shopping and sightseeing trips in Sydney or Melbourne, or even for a rugby match. There are hundreds of thousands of Kiwis living in Australia, so many go over to visit family as well.

Flying to any other major cities takes a long time: London is almost a full 24 hours and it is 13 hours to Los Angeles. Even holiday spots in Asia like Bali can take up to 11 or 12 hours. Practical info Renting can be difficult in New Zealand, as most people buy, so ex-pats may only rent for a short time before buying a property. But be warned, rents are expensive, as high as NZ$500 to 600 a week for a two-bedroom flat in the city. House sales are recovering, but have not reached the boom levels of 2007. At the same time, all regions have had an increase in the number of properties sold. Auckland sale prices reached a new high last month: the median price of a house there is NZ$490,000. “Prices have continued to firm, particularly across Auckland,” said Smith.

“The Official Cash Rate (interest rate) will remain at 2.5% until March 2012, giving confidence to home buyers and investors and keep the second- and third-home buyer market active.” Sales in Hamilton remain flat, with an average sale price of NZ$315,000, and Wellington prices are rising, with an average sale price of NZ$392,000. The earthquake in Christchurch lowered sales and prices in 2011. “New Zealand is a good place to visit but a great place to live,” said Mason, who currently lives in Berlin. “I’ve discovered there is no place like home.” Further information Islands - 8 | Britannica.com Islands any area of land smaller than a continent and entirely surrounded by water. Displaying 601 - 700 of 726 results Santiago largest and most populous island of Cabo Verde, in the Atlantic Ocean, about 400 miles (640 km) off the West African coast. The land rises to its highest elevation at Antónia Peak, 4,566 feet (1,392 metres) above sea level. Santiago is Cabo Verde’s most...

Santo Antão Island northwesternmost island of Cape Verde in the Atlantic Ocean, about 400 miles (640 km) off the western African coast. It rises to Tope de Coroa (6,493 feet [1,979 metres]). Coffee, bananas, oranges, sugarcane, tobacco, and cinchona are cultivated on the... São Jorge Island volcanic island of the central Azores of Portugal, east-central North Atlantic Ocean. São Jorge lies 35 miles (56 km) south of the island of Graciosa. It measures 36 by 4 miles (58 by 6 km) and has an area of about 95 square miles (246 square km). Its... São Miguel Island island, largest of the Azores archipelago of Portugal, in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is situated about 740 miles (1,190 km) west of Cape Roca on Portugal’s west coast. São Miguel is up to 40 miles (65 km) long and 9 miles (15 km) wide and has an area...

São Nicolau Island island of Cape Verde, in the Atlantic Ocean, between the islands of Santa Luzia and Boa Vista, about 400 miles (640 km) off the West African coast. Of volcanic origin and mountainous, it rises to 4,277 feet (1,304 metres) at Mount Gordo. Settled since... São Vicente Island island of Cape Verde, in the Atlantic Ocean, between the islands of Santo Antão and Santa Luzia, about 400 miles (640 km) off the western African coast. It rises to Monte Verde (2,539 feet [774 metres]). The main economic activities are subsistence agriculture... Sardinia island and regione (region) of Italy, second in size only to Sicily among the islands of the western Mediterranean. It lies 120 miles (200 km) west of the mainland of Italy, 7.5 miles (12 km) south of the neighbouring French island of Corsica, and 120... Sark one of the Channel Islands, a dependency of Guernsey, located in the English Channel, south of England’s coast.

Sark lies 7 miles (11 km) east of Guernsey and about 25 miles (40 km) west of the Cherbourg Peninsula of France. The island, which is 3 miles... Savai‘i westernmost and largest island of Samoa, in the South Pacific Ocean. It is separated from Upolu to the east by the Apolima Strait. Savai‘i is about 50 miles (80 km) long and 25 miles (40 km) across at its widest point. The island is extremely mountainous,... Savo island in the eastern Solomon Islands, southwestern Pacific Ocean, just north of Guadalcanal. Rising to 1,673 feet (510 metres), the island is about 5 miles (8 km) long and 2 miles (3 km) wide. It has no good anchorages, but boat service is available... Scotia Arc island arc system consisting of the submarine Scotia Ridge, mountainous south Atlantic islands (clockwise from the north, the South Georgia, South Sandwich, and South Orkney islands), and the Antarctic Peninsula. This arc trends northward along the Antarctic...

Selayar largest of an island group off the southwestern tip of Celebes (Sulawesi), which is administered from Makassar as part of South Sulawesi propinsi (province), Indonesia. The other islands are Pasi, Bahuluang, Pulasi, and Tambulongang. All the islands... Serendib name for the island of Sri Lanka (Ceylon). The name, Arabic in origin, was recorded in use at least as early as ad 361 and for a time gained considerable currency in the West. It is best known to speakers of English through the word serendipity, invented... Seymour Island one of the smaller (area 1 sq mi [3 sq km]) of the Galapagos Islands, in the eastern Pacific Ocean directly north of Baltra Island, about 600 mi (965 km) west of mainland Ecuador. A large colony of land iguanas has been imported from Baltra because of... Seymour Island island in the Weddell Sea, lying off the coast of and near the northern tip of Graham Land (Antarctic Peninsula).

Seymour Island is 13 miles (21 km) long and from 2 to 5 miles (3 to 8 km) wide. It lies east of James Ross Island and within the Antarctic... Sheppey, Isle of island at the mouth of the River Thames in Swale borough, administrative and historic county of Kent, England. It covers 35 square miles (91 square km), and its extremely fertile low-lying land supports grain and vegetable crops and sheep. Although it... Sherbro Island island in the Atlantic Ocean off the southwestern coast of Sierra Leone, separated from the African mainland by the Sherbro River (north) and the Sherbro Strait (east). It is 32 miles (51 km) long and up to 15 miles (24 km) wide. The western extremity... Shikoku island, the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is separated from Honshu by the Inland Sea (north) and the Kii Strait (east) and from Kyushu by the Bungo Strait (west). The island is divided into the prefectures of Ehime, Kagawa, Kōchi, and...

Siberut Island largest island in the Mentawai group of islands, Sumatera Barat provinsi (province), Indonesia. Siberut lies off the western coast of Sumatra, about 90 miles (145 km) west-southwest of and across the Mentawai Strait from Padang city. The island is 25... Sicily island of Italy, the largest and one of the most densely populated in the Mediterranean Sea. Together with the Egadi, Lipari, Pelagie, and Panteleria islands, Sicily forms an autonomous region of Italy. It lies about 100 miles (160 km) northeast of Tunisia... Silhouette Island granitic island, third largest of the Seychelles archipelago, Republic of Seychelles, in the western Indian Ocean. It has an area of 7.6 square miles (20 square km), rises to 2,467 feet (751 metres), and is 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Mahé Island.... Simeulue Island island in the Indian Ocean, Aceh daerah istimewa (special district), Indonesia.

Simeulue lies off the northwestern coast of Sumatra, about 170 mi (274 km) southwest of Medan city. The island, 65 mi long and 20 mi wide, covers an area of 712 sq mi (1,844... Sint Eustatius island and special municipality within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in the Lesser Antilles, in the northeastern Caribbean Sea. It lies about 16 miles (26 km) southeast of Saba and 5 miles (8 km) northwest of the island of St. Kitts. Its capital is... Siphnus Greek island of the Cyclades (Modern Greek: Kykládes) group, consisting of a limestone ridge whose principal peaks, Profíts Ilías (2,277 feet [694 m]) and Áyios Simeón (1,624 feet [495 m]), are crowned by Byzantine churches; the island is 28 square miles... Siquijor island, south-central Philippines.

Part of the central Visayan Islands archipelago, it is located in the Bohol (Mindanao) Sea, 19 miles (30 km) southeast of Negros island. Siquijor town on the north coast is the largest settlement. It was called Isla... Skye the largest and most northerly of the Inner Hebrides islands of Scotland. It is the nearest of these islands to the mainland, which lies only a few hundred yards away at Kyleakin, where the Skye Bridge provides access to the mainland by road. Administratively,... Skyros island, the largest and easternmost of the northern Sporades in the Aegean Sea, Greece. The island has an area of 81 square miles (210 square km). On the island’s western coast is found the main harbour, Linariá, while in the north is Skíros, the capital,... Socotra island in the Indian Ocean about 210 miles (340 km) southeast of Yemen, to which it belongs. The largest of several islands extending eastward from the Horn of Africa, it has an area of about 1,400 square miles (3,600 square km).

The Hajīr (Hajhir) Mountains... Sohano Island coral islet in Buka Passage (the body of water that separates Buka and Bougainville islands), northern Solomon Islands archipelago, southwestern Pacific Ocean. It is part of the autonomous region of Bougainville within Papua New Guinea and served as... Sol, Isla del island in the Bolivian (eastern) sector of Lake Titicaca, just northwest of the Copacabana peninsula. The island, whose name is Spanish for “Island of the Sun,” was an important centre of pre-Columbian settlement in the eastern part of the Andes mountain... Somerset Island island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Nunavut. It is separated from Boothia Peninsula (south) by the narrow Bellot Strait, from Prince of Wales Island (west) by Peel Sound, and from Baffin Island (east) by Prince Regent Inlet. It is about 160 miles... Sorenarwa Island island, in Cenderawasih Bay, off the northwest coast of Papua province, Indonesia.

It has an area of 936 square miles (2,424 square km) and an elevated central ridge that rises to 4,907 feet (1,496 metres). The chief settlement is Serui on the central... Sotavento Islands island group in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of western Africa and the southern of two island groups that constitute Cabo Verde. The archipelago consists of the islands of Brava, Fogo, Maio, and Santiago, as well as the islets of Grande, Luís Carneiro,... South Georgia mountainous, barren island in the South Atlantic Ocean, 800 miles (1,300 km) east-southeast of the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas). It is part of the British overseas territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, although Argentina also... South Island island, the larger and southernmost of the two principal islands of New Zealand, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. South Island is separated from North Island to the north by Cook Strait and from Stewart Island to the south by Foveaux Strait. Mountainous...

South Orkney Islands island group lying between the Scotia Sea to the north and the Weddell Sea to the south in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is composed of two large islands (Coronation and Laurie) and a number of smaller islands and rocky islets and forms part of the British... South Uist island of the Outer Hebrides, Western Isles council area, historic county of Inverness-shire, Scotland. It lies west of the island of Skye, from which it is separated by about 25 miles (40 km) of water. The island is 20 miles (30 km) north to south and... Southampton Island island in Keewatin region, Nunavut territory, Canada. It lies at the entrance to Hudson Bay and is separated from the mainland by Roes Welcome Sound. Roughly triangular, it is about 210 miles (340 km) long and 220 miles (355 km) wide and has an area... Spitsbergen largest island of the Svalbard archipelago, part of Norway, in the Arctic Ocean.

Spitsbergen, with an area of 15,075 square miles (39,044 square km), is approximately 280 miles (450 km) long and ranges from 25 to 140 miles (40 to 225 km) wide. The terrain... Sri Lanka island country lying in the Indian Ocean and separated from peninsular India by the Palk Strait. It is located between latitudes 5°55′ and 9°51′ N and longitudes 79°41′ and 81°53′ E and has a maximum length of 268 miles (432 km) and a maximum width of... Staffa uninhabited Atlantic island of the Inner Hebrides, Scotland, situated 6 miles (10 km) off the island of Mull and 33 miles west of Oban. Columns of basalt surmount a basement of tufa and form a rugged coast with numerous caves, among them Clamshell Cave... Starbuck Island coral atoll in the Central and Southern Line Islands, part of Kiribati, southwestern Pacific Ocean.

It lies 2,000 miles (3,200 km) south of Hawaii. A barren formation rising only to 26 feet (8 metres), it has a land area of 8 square miles (21 square... Staten Island island and borough, New York City, southeastern New York state, U.S. The island lies in New York Harbor south of Manhattan and between New Jersey and Brooklyn. With several smaller islands it forms Richmond county and the Staten Island borough of New... Stewart Island third largest island of New Zealand, in the southwest Pacific Ocean off the southern tip of South Island. Roughly triangular and measuring 45 by 25 miles (70 by 40 km), the island has a total land area of 674 square miles (1,746 square km). It is generally... Stonington Island island, eastern Marguerite Bay, west of Palmer Peninsula, Antarctica. The island, about 2,500 feet (760 m) long and 1,000 feet (300 m) wide, was named for Stonington, Conn., the home port of the sloop Hero, from which Nathaniel Palmer saw Antarctica...

Stromboli Island northeasternmost of the Eolie (Lipari) Islands, in the Tyrrhenian Sea (of the Mediterranean), off northeastern Sicily. It has an area of 5 square miles (12 square km). Of volcanic formation, the island is still active, and fluid lava flows continuously... Sumatra Indonesian island, the second largest (after Borneo) of the Greater Sunda Islands, in the Malay Archipelago. It is separated in the northeast from the Malay Peninsula by the Strait of Malacca and in the south from Java by the Sunda Strait. In the 11th... Sumba island, one of the Lesser Sunda Islands, southern Nusa Tenggara Timur provinsi (East Nusa Tenggara province), southern Indonesia, in the Indian Ocean across the Sumba Strait from Flores and west of Timor across the Savu Sea. Sumba has an area of 4,306... Sumbawa island of the Lesser Sunda Islands, west-central Nusa Tenggara Barat provinsi (West Nusa Tenggara province), southern Indonesia.

Sumbawa has several deeply cut bays producing numerous peninsulas and the excellent harbour of Bima. The island has an area... Surtsey Icelandic “Surts Island” volcanic island off the southern coast of Iceland, southwest of the Vestmanna Islands (Vestmannaeyjar). It emerged from the Atlantic Ocean in a fiery eruption in November 1963. During the next three and one-half years its volcanic... Suwarrow Atoll one of the northern Cook Islands, a self-governing state in free association with New Zealand in the South Pacific Ocean. It is a coral atoll comprising 25 islets, the most important of which is Anchorage Island. Sighted in 1814 by the Russian-American... Swains Island coral atoll, American Samoa, southwestern Pacific Ocean, 280 miles (450 km) north of Tutuila. The atoll is 15–25 feet (5–8 metres) above sea level; it is circular in shape, with 8 miles (13 km) of shoreline, and encloses a freshwater lagoon. Probably...

Sylt largest and northernmost of the North Frisian Islands, in the North Sea, Schleswig-Holstein Land (state), Germany. Sylt, which occupies an area of 38 square miles (99 square km), is connected by rail with the mainland via the 7-mile- (11-km-) long Hindenburgdamm... Syros island near the centre of the Cyclades (Modern Greek: Kykládes) group, in the Aegean Sea, Greece. Its chief town and port, Hermoúpolis, on a bay of the east coast, is the capital of the nomós (department) of Cyclades. The island, with an area of 32 square... Taboga Island island in the Bay of Panama, central Panama. Taboga and its small neighbour, Taboguilla Island, lie 11 miles (18 km) south of Panama City, with which they are connected by boat service. Taboga, about 2 miles (3 km) long and 1 mile (1.6 km) wide, is known...

Tabuaeran Atoll coral formation of the Northern Line Islands, part of Kiribati, in the west-central Pacific Ocean. Discovered in 1798 by an American trader and explorer, Edmund Fanning, the atoll is composed of several islets that surround a lagoon 32 miles (51 km)... Tagula Island volcanic island of the Louisiade Archipelago, Papua New Guinea, southwestern Pacific Ocean. It lies 175 miles (280 km) southeast of the island of New Guinea. The largest island of the archipelago, measuring 50 by 15 miles (80 by 24 km), Tagula has an... Tahiti largest island of the Îles du Vent (Windward Islands) of the Society Islands, French Polynesia, in the central South Pacific Ocean. Its nearest neighbour is Moorea, 12 miles (20 km) to the northwest. The island of Tahiti consists of two ancient eroded... Taiwan island, located about 100 miles (161 km) off the southeast coast of the China mainland.

It is approximately 245 miles (394 km) long (north-south) and 90 miles across at its widest point. The largest city, Taipei, is the seat of the government of the... Takutea raised coral atoll of the southern Cook Islands, a self-governing state in free association with New Zealand in the South Pacific Ocean. Its first sighting by a European (1777) was by the English navigator Capt. James Cook. The island is very low and... Tanna island, southern Vanuatu, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It is volcanic in origin. It is 25 miles (40 km) long and 12 miles (19 km) wide and occupies an area of 212 square miles (549 square km). It rises to 3,556 feet (1,084 metres) at Mount Tukuwasmera.... Tarakan Island island in northern Kalimantan Utara provinsi (North Kalimantan province), northern Indonesia. It is situated in the eastern Celebes Sea, off the northeastern coast of Borneo.

The island has a length of approximately 10 miles (16 km) and an area of 117... Tarawa coral atoll of the Gilbert Islands and capital of Kiribati, in the west-central Pacific Ocean. It lies 2,800 miles (4,500 km) northeast of Australia and is the most populous atoll in the Gilberts. Tarawa consists of a lagoon fringed by a V-shaped reef... Tasmania island state of Australia. It lies about 150 miles (240 km) south of the state of Victoria, from which it is separated by the relatively shallow Bass Strait. Structurally, Tasmania constitutes a southern extension of the Great Dividing Range. The state... Taveuni Island third largest island of Fiji, South Pacific Ocean. The island has an area of 168 square miles (435 square km). It lies off the southeast coast of Vanua Levu and was sighted by the Dutch navigator Abel Janszoon Tasman in 1643. Volcanic in origin, it has...

Tawi Tawi island, southwestern Sulu archipelago, Philippines, lying between the Celebes Sea (southeast) and the Sulu Sea (northwest). Tawi Tawi’s westernmost tip is a scant 40 miles (64 km) east of Borneo. Of volcanic origin, Tawi Tawi Island is about 34 miles... Tenerife island, Santa Cruz de Tenerife provincia (province), Canary Islands comunidad autónoma (autonomous community), Spain, located in the Atlantic Ocean opposite the northwestern coast of Africa. It is the largest of the Canary Islands. The narrower northeastern... Teraina Island coral atoll of the Northern Line Islands, part of Kiribati, in the west-central Pacific Ocean. With a circumference of 9 miles (14 km), it rises to about 10 feet (3 metres) and has a freshwater lake at its eastern end. It was sighted in 1798 by an American... Terceira Island island, part of the Azores archipelago of Portugal, in the North Atlantic Ocean. It occupies an area of 153 square miles (397 square km).

Terceira (The Third) was so called because it was the third island in the Azores to be discovered by the Portuguese.... Ternate Island one of the northernmost of a line of Indonesian islands stretching southward along the western coast of the island of Halmahera to the Bacan Islands east of the Molucca Sea. Ternate Island lies within the propinsi (or provinsi; province) of North Maluku... Thanet, Isle of island in the northeastern corner of the administrative and historic county of Kent, England, bounded by the Thames Estuary and two branches of the Great Stour River. It is 42 square miles (109 square km) in area and is composed mainly of a chalk outlier... Thasos large, wooded island of the northernmost Aegean Sea, Kavála nomós (department), Greece. It is located southwest of the delta of the Néstos River in Thrace (Modern Greek: Thráki) and has an area of 146 square miles (379 square km) and a total coastline...

Thera island, southernmost island of the Cyclades (Modern Greek: Kykládes) group, Greece, in the Aegean Sea, sometimes included in the Southern Sporades group. The island has an area of 29 square miles (76 square km) and, together with other islands, forms... Three Kings Islands outlying island group of New Zealand, in the South Pacific Ocean, 40 miles (64 km) northwest of North Island. Of volcanic formation, the islands have a total land area of 2.7 square miles (7 square km). Great Island, the largest (875 acres [354 hectares]),... Thursday Island island in the Torres Strait off northern Queensland, Australia. It is surrounded by Prince of Wales, Friday, Good’s, Hammond, Wednesday, and Horn islands, and it is the administrative centre for the area. The principal town is Port Kennedy, on the eastern... Tidore Island one of the Moluccas (Maluku) islands, east-central Indonesia.

With an area of 45 square miles (116 square km), Tidore lies off the western coast of central Halmahera and forms part of Maluku Utara provinsi (North Moluccas province). The southern part... Timor island of the Malay Archipelago, easternmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands between the Savu and Timor seas. Western Timor, with an area of 6,120 square miles (15,850 square km), is administered as part of Nusa Tenggara Timur provinsi (“province”), Indonesia.... Tinian one of the Mariana Islands and part of the Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth of the United States, in the western Pacific Ocean. It lies about 100 miles (160 km) north of Guam. Of volcanic formation, it rises to an elevation of 614 feet (187 metres)....

Tínos island in the Cyclades (Modern Greek: Kykládes) group of Greek Aegean islands; in antiquity it was known as the “island of the winds,” the modern name being derived from the Phoenician tenok, meaning “snake”; in ancient times it was also called Ophiousa.... Tioman Island island in the South China Sea, about 40 miles (65 km) off Kuala Rompin, Peninsular (West) Malaysia. It has an area of 53 square miles (137 square km) and is 13 miles (21 km) long and 2 to 8 miles (3 to 13 km) wide. Tioman’s economy, traditionally based... Tokelau island territory of New Zealand, consisting of three atolls in the South Pacific Ocean. Tokelau lies about 300 miles (480 km) north of Samoa and 2,400 miles (3,900 km) southwest of Hawaii. Tokelau does not have a central capital; each atoll has its own...

Torcello island-village in the Laguna Veneta (Venice Lagoon) and an eastern environ of Venice, Italy. Founded in ad 452 by refugees from Altino on the mainland, the bishopric of Altino was transferred there in the 7th century. The island, a flourishing city in... Torres Strait Islands island group in the Torres Strait, north of Cape York Peninsula, Queensland, Australia, south of the island of New Guinea. They comprise dozens of islands scattered over some 18,500 square miles (48,000 square km) of water and organized into four clusters:... Tortola largest of the British Virgin Islands, part of the Lesser Antilles chain, which separates the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. Its name is from the Spanish tórtola (“turtle dove”). It lies about 60 miles (100 km) east of Puerto Rico. Tortola is composed... Tortue Island Caribbean island off the northern coast of Haiti opposite Port-de-Paix. European adventurers settled Tortue in 1629, in conjunction with trying to establish a foothold on the neighbouring island of Hispaniola (now comprising Haiti and the Dominican Republic)....

Trinidad and Tobago island country of the southeastern West Indies. It consists of two main islands—Trinidad and Tobago—and several smaller islands. Forming the two southernmost links in the Caribbean chain, Trinidad and Tobago lie close to the continent of South America,... Tulagi town and island in the Solomon Islands, southwestern Pacific Ocean, north of Guadalcanal. The island has a circumference of 3 miles (5 km). The town of Tulagi was the administrative seat (from 1893) of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate until it... Turks and Caicos Islands overseas territory of the United Kingdom in the West Indies. It consists of two groups of islands lying on the southeastern periphery of The Bahamas, of which they form a physical part, and north of the island of Hispaniola. The islands include eight... Tutuila Island largest island in American Samoa, in the south-central Pacific Ocean, about 1,600 miles (2,600 km) northeast of New Zealand. Some 18 miles (30 km) long and 6 miles (10 km) across at its widest point, the island has a densely wooded, broken, mountainous...

Ulithi Atoll coral atoll, Federated States of Micronesia, in the western Pacific Ocean. It comprises roughly 40 islets and has a total land area of 1.75 square miles (4.5 square km). Ulithi was probably sighted by the Portuguese in 1526, but it remained undisturbed... Ullŭng Island volcanic island, North Kyŏngsang do (province), South Korea. It lies in the East Sea (Sea of Japan), 75 miles (120 km) off the northeastern coast of South Korea, and has an area of 28 square miles (73 square km). Before its domination by the Silla kingdom... United States Virgin Islands organized unincorporated island territory of the United States, situated at the eastern end of the Greater Antilles, about 40 miles (64 km) east of Puerto Rico, in the northeastern Caribbean Sea. The territory is geographically part of the Virgin Islands... Upolu most populous island of Samoa, in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies across the Apolima Strait from the island of Savaiʿi to the west.

Upolu is about 46 miles (74 km) long and 16 miles (26 km) across at its widest point. Its volcanic central mountain range... Vancouver Island island lying off of southwestern British Columbia, Canada. With an area of 12,079 square miles (31,285 square km), it is the largest island on the Pacific coast of North America. Vancouver Island is separated from mainland Canada by the straits of Georgia,... Vanua Lava volcanic island in the Banks Islands of Vanuatu, southwestern Pacific Ocean, 75 miles (120 km) north-northeast of Espiritu Santo. The island, 15 miles (24 km) long by 12 miles (19 km) wide, was first explored in 1859 by Bishop George Selwyn, who located... Vanua Levu Island second largest island of Fiji, bordering the Koro Sea in the South Pacific Ocean, 40 miles (64 km) northeast of the island of Viti Levu.

Sighted by the Dutch navigator Abel Janszoon Tasman in 1643, the volcanic Vanua Levu (“Great Land”) was formerly... Vendsyssel-Thy island at the north end of Jutland, Denmark, known as Vendsyssel in the east and Thy in the west. The Limfjorden separates it from the mainland, to which it was attached until 1825, when water erosion cut a channel through the narrow isthmus at Thyborøn.... Venice city, major seaport, and capital of both the provincia (province) of Venezia and the regione (region) of Veneto, northern Italy. An island city, it was once the centre of a maritime republic. It was the greatest seaport in late medieval Europe and the... Vestmanna Islands group of 14 small Icelandic islands off Iceland ’s southern shore. They have a total area of about 8 square miles (21 square km). Volcanic in origin, the islands are rocky and barren, with precipitous cliffs up to 1,000 feet (300 m) in height rising... Victoria Island second largest island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago.

Divided administratively between the Northwest Territories and the territory of Nunavut, it is separated from the mainland on the south by Dolphin and Union Strait, Coronation Gulf, Dease Strait,... New Zealand Vacations, Tours & Travel Packages - 2017/18 | Goway Chat What would be the major reasons for booking a New Zealand vacation? This makes for a long list. One has to say that one reason is nature at her best offering breathtaking landscapes of stunning and diverse natural beauty which include majestic and dramatic fjords, spectacular glaciers, rugged mountains, vast plains and farmland, long coastlines, wonderful sandy beaches and active geothermal regions plus so much more. The country also has history, culture and, not least, winelands producing excellent wines. The size of New Zealand is comparable with that of Great Britain or Japan . The coastline in its entirety measures 1500 kilometres/900 miles in length strangely enough, the same distance that separates New Zealand from Australia across the Tasman Sea. 20% of the country is covered in national parks, forests and reserves. An interesting fact is that 80% of the flora here is native.

New Zealand is a country made up of two major islands, simply called the North and South Islands which are separated by the Cook Strait which is 22 kilometres/14 miles in width at its narrowest point. They contrast in not only terrain and physical features but also in character and attractions. The North Island is volcanic and thermal .The South Island is two thirds mountains and one third plains. The North Island offers lush sub-tropical vegetation, exotic flora and fauna, beaches and attractive small friendly towns. Approximately 75% of Maori culture exists on the North Island although only 15% of the total New Zealand population is Maori. The Polynesians from whom the Maoris are descended, settled here many centuries ago. The South Island has spectacular scenery consisting of sweeping plains, snow-covered mountains and rugged coasts and abounds in natural breath-taking landscapes. The Southern Alps mountain chain which runs through the centre, divides the South Island. It is also the location of New Zealand’s highest peak, Mount Cook at 3750 metres/12,315 feet and highly visible from a long distance away.

For enthusiasts of outdoor pursuits and activities, one can find in abundance any of the following – hiking, swimming, snorkeling, rafting, jet boating, skydiving, paragliding and hang gliding, parasailing, sailing, bungee jumping, climbing, hunting, fishing, caving, skiing and hot air ballooning. As mentioned, the two major islands are very different and have unique features. Starting with the North Island, the largest city is Auckland known as the “City of Sails” due to having around 135,000 registered sailboats bobbing in its harbour. The city sits on a volcanic field and the nearby Rangitoto Island is an unpopulated land mass formed by volcanic activity. Auckland is fortunate to have a beautiful harbour which provides some attractive beaches some located in the suburbs of Kohimarama, Devonport and Mission Bay to name a few. The harbour is also home to the Auckland Bridge which connects the centre of the city with its northern suburbs and is the gateway to the far north of the island.

A landmark is the Sky Tower, the tallest freestanding structure in the Southern Hemisphere which provides excellent panoramic views of Auckland and just one of the many photo opportunities available while on your New Zealand vacation. The harbour area teems with life both in the daytime and the evening with its many cafes, restaurants and bars and other entertainments. A popular pastime is to take a harbour cruise for a different visual perspective of Auckland. The city has several green areas and parks. The best known is the Auckland Domain, the oldest and one of the largest here with its remains of a volcanic crater. Other major parks are Mount Eden and One Tree Hill which both afford great views. Culturally, one can choose from a number of venues such as the Auckland Art Gallery with its 15,000 works of art, the War Memorial Museum which not only depicts life during World Wars and others but also has an excellent exhibition of Maori and Polynesian people’s arts and crafts. A very popular attraction is Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater World where one comes close up to a diverse collection of aquatic life which includes penguins, stingrays, sharks and jellyfish.

Wellington is the national capital and is a very attractive city renowned for its natural beauty and also for its arts and culture. It is ringed by mountains and rolling hills and has a rugged coastline. A vibrant city, it offers trendy cafes, restaurants, boutiques and several art galleries. To discover the city, take the cable car to Mount Victoria or Mount Kaukau to enjoy a panoramic view of Wellington and its surroundings. Rotorua is the centre of most of the geothermal activity in New Zealand. It is known as a thermal wonderland due to its many gushing hot springs and geysers and because of these natural phenonmen, Rotorua is included on most New Zealand vacations. There is a distinct smell of sulphur in the air here but don’t let that put you off discovering these natural phenomena. Also in Rotorua are other attractions such as the Rainbow Springs National Park, beautiful landscaped gardens featuring fish and birds including the flightless Kiwi bird and the Agrodome with its exhibition of rural New Zealand life including sheep shearing demonstrations. Nearby are the Waitomo Glow Worm Caves with their interesting limestone formations.

The subtropical Bay of Islands is a very pretty region made up of around 150 islands and a wonderful destination to both relax and explore – a good place to see dolphins, whales and penguins. The main centre is Pahia with its superb beaches and the site of the Waitangi Treaty signed in 1840 to unite the country. Russell is a short ferry ride from Pahia and is a charming township with an interesting history. Hawkes Bay is one of the major centres of New Zealand’s wine producing regions. It is also home to the cities of Napier and Hastings which offer unusual architecture. An earthquake destroyed much of the unique Art Deco buildings here in 1931 but they have now been restored to their original structures. The South Island boasts many choices to confirm its overwhelming natural beauty that makes up this region. Starting with the largest city, Christchurch , one finds a very “English” metropolis with its buildings, gardens and Avon River which flows through the heart of the city. Stroll along the banks of the tree-lined Avon River and observe the neo-gothic architecture. Largely rebuilt after the devastating recent earthquake, the city has not lost its charm.

Take in Christchurch Cathedral, the Botanical Gardens and the Christchurch Art Gallery as well as simply stroll its streets and parks. One can take a cable car up to the Port Hills for a panoramic view of both Christchurch and the port of Lyttelton on the coast. Probably the most visited destination city in the South Island is Queenstown , a charming and scenic resort town located on Lake Wakatipu surrounded by mountains called the Remarkables. Apart from its natural beauty, it is also a centre for many sporting activities. It also has a lively nightlife. One iconic excursion is to take a cruise on a restored steamship on Lake Wakatipu. Also one can take the gondola to Bob’s Peak for great views of the region. Not too far from Queenstown is the Fjordland National Park with its sheer rock walls rising straight out of the sea. The best known natural attraction is Milford Sound, an amazingly dramatic and striking fjord and a must inclusion on all New Zealand tours. One can take a cruise on the Sound watching seals, dolphins and penguins while sailing past flowing and cascading waterfalls.

Te Anau is a small town which is the gateway to the Fjordland National Park nestled on the edge of a lake and the perfect location for setting off on hikes or walks or simply relax and take in the surrounding beauty. The famous Milford Track running from Te Anau to Milford Sound offers 500 kilometres/ 300 miles of walking trails to satisfy the most energetic. The city of Dunedin in the south of the island is known as the Edinburgh of the South due to its Scottish heritage. Stately architecture and steep streets give the city its character. It is also home to the largest and oldest university in New Zealand. The Marlborough Region on the north coast is the gateway to the South Island and is where the ferries arrive from the North Island. It is an important wine producing region and is known for its wine festivals. It is also a great place to watch dolphins and to go sailing. Picton is an attractive seafront town with a number of arts and crafts centres. Blenheim has one of the sunniest climates in the country and has a rugged coastline suitable for interesting walks. Nelson is surrounded by snow-capped mountains, lush green forests, rolling vineyards and golden beaches.

The sea here is a beautiful turquoise colour. To sum up, New Zealand is truly a paradise and a country in which to invest a good deal of time to discover its magical and unique charms. "Globetrotting with Goway" blog articles For some additional reading, the following articles are from our blog “ Globetrotting with Goway ”….. a great source of information for those people who are, or who want to be, world travellers!

Question: What is the name of the strait that separates the north and south islands of New Zealand?
Answer: THE COOK STRAIT