Cruise among 150 sun-drenched islands, on a silvery smooth sea. Follow a pod of bottlenose dolphins circling in the beautiful Bay of Islands. When the shout goes out, plunge into the inviting sea to dive and frolic with these playful creatures.
Imagine a 'day walk' that will take you into a vast amphitheatre surrounded by 2000 metre high snow-capped peaks on the Main Divide of the Southern Alps.
Stroll along Tennyson Street, Napier, and your wandering eye will catch lightning flashes, sunbursts, zigzags, rising orbs and other weird geometric designs.
Glorious days of sun, sea, wildlife, tramping and kayaking can be enjoyed in the Abel Tasman National Park. These are some of the fondest memories travellers take home with them after a visit to the smallest, yet most popular park in the country.
Just a one hour trip by passenger ferry from Bluff is Stewart Island, which has one of the richest and most varied marine habitats in New Zealand. There is a multitude of fish in the dense, swaying jungles of giant kelp around the entire windswept coast.
The overpowering rugged beauty of the Fiordland World Heritage Area is not confined to the mountains, lakes and rivers. This special place is also the exciting new frontier of scuba diving in New Zealand.
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island and the gateway to a wide range of outdoor experiences throughout Canterbury. The ‘Garden City’ has a fine English heritage, with beautiful park-like gardens and punting on the Avon River.
The glorious beaches and glistening waters of the Marlborough Sounds are made for boating and diving. Combine this with a warm, sunny climate and you have one of the best recreation and holiday areas in the country.
New Zealand’s capital city is surrounded by the turbulent waters of Cook Strait and boasts many natural marine wonders around its three coastlines. The opportunities for shore diving and snorkelling are legion and the powerful Cook Strait currents ensure a plentiful supply of marine life.
The rugged, exposed Taranaki coastline extends for 250 kms around the semi-circular bulge in the west coast of the North Island. From Mokau in the north to Waitotara in the south, a succession of black iron sand beaches invites exploration by divers.
Follow the Pacific Coast Highway around the Bay of Plenty and you reach the least visited, ‘undiscovered’ part of the North Island. This is an outdoor paradise of rocky headlands interspersed with scores of golden sand beaches. It is the first place in the world to see the dawn of each new day.
New Zealand’s most active volcano lies 50 km offshore from Whakatane where it continuously lets off steam and releases clouds of ash. The volcano sits on the continental shelf where the White Island Trench runs parallel to the huge abyss of the Kermadec Trench.
