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INFORMATION FOR TOURISTS AND TRAVELERS
ELECTRICITY: The electric current in New Zealand is 230/240 volts and 50 cycles, which similar to 220 volts and 50 cycles in Europe but different from the United States. The sockets and plugs are different from those in the United States as well. The most common type of plugs found in New Zealand are 1) the oblique plug with three flat prongs (two flat prongs and a flat ground) and the 2) two-pin plugs. Most hotels provide adapters for 110 volt sockets for electric razors only.
⌚ FACTS: The opening and closing times of shops, businesses and offices are generally the same as those in the United States. Times are often expressed with a 24 hour clock. Business Hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm Monday through Friday. Government Hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm Monday through Friday. Bank Hours: 9:00am to 4:30pm Monday through Friday. Closed on public holidays. Post Office Hours: 8:30am to 5:00pm Monday through Thursday, until 8:00pm on Fridays.
Store Hours: Generally from 9:00am to 5:00pm or 5:30pm Monday through Friday, and 10:00am to 1:00pm on Saturdays. Many stores stay open to 9:00pm only on Thursday or Friday. In the cities some stores stay open until 9:00pm most nights. In many tourist areas shops are open seven days a week. Museums: Most public museums are open seven days a week. They are usually free or charge only a small fee.
Restaurant Hours : 11:00pm to around 9:00pm. Lunch is generally eaten between 12:00noon and 2:00pm and dinner (often called "tea") is generally eaten between 6:00pm and 8:00pm. Tea time is between 3:00pm and 5:00pm. Bar and Nightclub Hours: Pubs are generally open from 11:00am until 11:00pm, Monday through Saturday. They are closed on Sunday. Hotel Bars are open from 11:00am to 10:00pm. Clubs and discos often don't start hopping until 10:00pm and often stay open to 3:00am or 5:00am.
Time Difference: New Zealand is one day earlier than the United States. Auckland is +17 hours from New York. When it is 7:00am in New York it is 12:00noon the next day in Auckland. Auckland is +21 hours from Los Angeles. When it is 7:00am in Los Angeles it is 4:00pm the next day in Auckland. Auckland is +12 hours from London (Greenwich Mean Time). When it is 7:00am in London it is 7:00pm in Auckland.
Daylight Savings Time is observed in the summer from October to mid-March, not April to October like in the United States and Europe. This means there is a +18 hour difference with New York and +13 hour with London between late October and March; and +17 hour difference with New York and +12 hour with London between mid-March and early April and between early October and late October; and +16 hour difference with New York and +11 hour with London between early April and early October.
POST OFFICES: The New Zealand Postal Service generally offers excellent service. The best place to have mail sent to you if you are traveling is an American Express Office. Letters sent out of New Zealand can be mailed at a post office or dropped in a mailbox. A customs form must be filled out for packages leaving the country. Stamps are available at post offices, some newspaper stands and hotels. Post Office Hours: 8:30am to 5:00pm Monday through Thursday, until 8:00pm on Fridays; To the United States : ??? From the USA: a half ounce letter is 50 cents. Shipping: DHL and Federal Express offer good service in New Zealand.
TRAVEL ADVISORIES: New Zealand is one of the world's safest countries. Crime: Major crime is not a problem. Petty theft does occur, mostly in the cities. Crime is increasing though among gangs and juveniles. Be careful around groups of teenage boys. Watch your bags and cameras. It is not a bad idea to wear a money belt or neck pouch. Don't take valuables to the beach. Leave them in a hotel safe if one is available. Measurements: New Zealand uses the metric system. Clothing: Men and women should dress modestly as a matter courtesy.
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS
A passport that won't expire for at least six months after arrival in New Zealand is required. A visa is not required for stays up to 90 days for citizens of the United States, Canada, Australia, Britain and the European Union. A tourist card is filled out on arrival to New Zealand.
Visas: If you need a visa generally you have to submit the following to a New Zealand embassy or consulate: 1) a valid passport; 2) two filled out copies of the application form; 3) two passport-size photos; and 4) a round-trip plane or evidence of purchase thereof. For information on work permits, business visas, student visas and immigration contact a New Zealand embassy or consulates. Work visas require sponsorship of a person or company in New Zealand.
Round Trip or Onward Ticket may be required. Proof of Sufficient Funds is sometimes required; Departure Taxes are usually included in airplane tickets; Currency Restrictions: There are no restrictions on the amount of foreign currency brought in and out of New Zealand. But people who carry NZ$10,000 cash in or out of the country are required to complete a Border Cash Report.
Customs: 200 cigarettes and 4.5 liters of wine or beer, 1 bottle or liquor. Duty free items collectively must be valued less than a certain amount to avoid paying duty. Agricultural Products: As a deterrent against disease and introduced pests, New Zealand has very strict rules regarded the importation of foods, plants, animals and agricultural products. These items, plus things like sporting and camping equipment, have to be declared when entering New Zealand and are often inspected at immigration. Visitors and their possessions are sometime sprayed with insecticide when they enter New Zealand. Dogs , cats and other animals may not be brought into New Zealand by visitors.
MONEY
New Zealand is slightly less expensive than Europe. Accommodation in particular is often quite reasonable. The currency of New Zealand is the New Zealand dollar (NZ$), which is divided into 100 cents. Denominations: There are 5, 10 20, and 50 cent coins and NZ$1 and NZ$2 coins. There are also NZ$5 NZ$10, NZ$20, NZ$50 and NZ$100 banknotes.
Where to Change Money: Money can be changed at banks, hotels, some travel agencies and Bureau de Change kiosks found at international and domestic airports and most urban centers. Most people change their money at the airport (the rates are usually good there) and banks (the rates are usually pretty much the same from bank to bank). The worst rates are offered in hotels. Remember it can be difficult to change money in rural areas and smaller towns so stock up with New Zealand currency while you are in the cities.
Travelers Checks can exchanged for New Zealand currency at most banks. You generally can not use U.S. dollar travelers checks to buy stuff though. Major Credit Cards are generally accepted at major hotels, stores, restaurants, and at airlines and car rental agencies. ATM Machines are widely available at banks, along main shopping streets and malls. International credit cards and ATM cards will work as long as they have a four-digit PIN number encoded. Check with you bank before leaving home. Tipping: New Zealanders as a rule don't tip, even in restaurants. New Zealand taxi drivers don't expect to be tipped unless they carry luggage. Sometimes tips are given to porters at hotels. Website: www.tipping.org, information on tipping around the world.
Tax: New Zealand has a 12.5 percent Goods and Services Tax (GST), similar to a Value Added Tax (VAT), which is added to purchases of most items and is usually included on the displayed price. Visitors can get out of paying this tax if the have items sent to their home country (but you have to pay shipping). Hotels and Restaurants: Neither service charges or taxes are added to restaurant or hotel bills. Bank Hours: 9:00am to 4:30pm Monday through Friday. Closed on public holidays.
HEALTH
Inoculations: No vaccinations are required unless you are coming from a place infected by yellow fever, usually in tropical Africa or South America, infected with yellow fever. within the last six days.
Sun Protection: New Zealanders don't have high rates of skin cancer like Australians do and New Zealand isn't as intensely sunny as Australia is, but even so when you are in the sun make sure you use a sun screen rated "15" or above. Sun glasses, protection for your lips, a hat and long sleeve shirt are also a good idea.
Food and Water : The tap water is safe to drink. Few visitors have stomach- and bowel-related problems with the food in New Zealand.
Medical Facilities are first rate in New Zealand. Larger hotels and motels often have a list of doctors that are on call for visitors. Pharmacies are called "chemists" in New Zealand. Twenty-hour all-night "urgent" chemists are listed in the phone book. Insurance and Payment: Visitors to New Zealand are covered under the country's Accident Compensation Scheme (ACS) for personal injury accidents and are entitled to care, irrespective of fault. Benefits include the payment of many medical and hospital expenses. This only covers accidents. Check with your medical insurance company to make sure you are covered overseas. Payment in cash or credit card is usually required after treatment in local hospitals and clinics.
ACCOMMODATION
Tourist facilities are first rate and often reasonably priced. And, there are also a lot of options. In New Zealand, it is possible to travel around the entire country without ever setting foot inside a hotel or motel. Some of the accommodation options include hiking lodges, exclusive retreats, deluxe condos and villas, home and farmstays, pubs and inns and backpacker hostels. Camping options include motorhomes, campgrounds, huts and conservation campsites. There are also deluxe hotels, medium priced hotels, motels and motor inns.
Hotels are classified using the star (or diamond) system which is determined by the New Zealand Automobile Association (NZAA) not the government. 1) One star hotels are basic. 2) Two star hotels are more comfortable and often have access to a telephone and laundry facilities. 3) Three star hotels are comfortable with a quality mattress and bed and pleasant surroundings. Most motels and motor inns fall into this category. 4) Four star hotels are first class and 5) five star hotels are luxury hotels and exclusive retreats.
Hotel Comments: 1) Sometimes price reductions are offered for travel in off peak season. Ask about them. 2) Laundry is often done free of charge at hotels. All motels are equipped with washing machines. 3) Rooms often have an electric tea kettle. 4) Neither service charges or taxes are added to restaurant and hotel bills. 5) Deposits are sometimes requested to hold reservations, especially for long term stays. 6) Hotel Discount Coupons are available with motel chain such as Best Western and Flag International. Check in and Checkout Times : Check-in is usually after 1:00pm or 2:00pm and check-out is before noon, often before 10:00am. Reserved rooms must generally be occupied by 6:00pm on the day of arrival. Unless the hotel has been notified of a late arrival or the reservation have been guaranteed by a deposit, it has the right to dispose of the room.
First Class Hotels in Auckland and other major cities are up to United States and European standards. They usually have a choice of restaurants, coffee shops that stay open late, expensive room service, conference services, a business center, a health club, a small swimming pool, beauty salon, shopping/travel counter, baby sitters, safe deposit lockers, currency exchange banks, rooms with attached baths, channel music, cable TV, and telephones with direct dial facilities. Some hotels have secretarial services and access to fax machines and computers. Most deluxe and first-class hotels have direct connections on limousine buses to the airport. Reservations can obtained through travel agencies.
Lodges , exclusive retreats and sporting lodges are located in scenic locations throughout the country, usually overlooking lakes, rivers or streams. They are often geared for wealthy fishermen, hunters or hikers.
Hotels in New Zealand usually offer clean, tidy accommodation and are often centrally located. Some offer a cafe or restaurant, a guest lounge and laundry. Other options that they may or may not be available are mini-bars and room service. Most budget rooms do not have private bathrooms.
Motels with modern and comfortable facilities are located on along major tourist routes. They are similar to motels in the States. Units have beds, bathrooms and either tea or coffee making facilities. Ones with kitchen units include facilities and utensils sufficient for preparation of substantial meals. Beds in a motel unit may be in the main living area or in separate bedrooms or a combination of both. Television, radio, heating and electric blankets are usually supplied and facilities such as swimming pools, spa, sauna, laundry and children's play areas may be available.
Motor Inns share features of both hotels and motels. They usually have a bar and a public restaurant. All rooms contain a bathroom and usually have tea and coffee making facilities. A small number have kitchens. Motor inns usually offer parking either outside of very near to rooms. Some motor inns have facilities such as swimming pools, spas, sauna, children's play areas and courtesy transport.
Cheap Accommodation
Cheapest accommodation options include hostels, backpacker hotels, country pubs and camping. Budget travelers should consult the Lonely Planet books.
Hostels are simple, neat and inexpensive accommodation facilities geared particularly for young people. New Zealand has about 50 youth hostels. Most major cities and tourist centers have at least one. Although all ages are usually welcome people under the age of 25 are sometimes given priority when the hostel is full. Almost all hostels want to see a national or international youth hostel card. If you don't have a card you can often buy one at a hostel or pay a higher room fee.
Backpacker Hotels offer economical private rooms. They are similar to pensions, hostels and cheap guest houses and often have private rooms and dormitory-style accommodation. Often located near ski resorts or near lakes, these lodging are strongly associated with outdoor sports. Most are located in rustic lodges and run by young couples. Sometimes they have a restaurant, a bar, laundry services or a notice board. The atmosphere is usually friendly and the owners are often times very helpful. They are also good places to meet other travelers. Sometimes Backpacker hotels are hostels.
Country Pubs are basic, cheap accommodations geared for budget travelers and usually found in towns near natural or historical sights. Rooms generally are pretty cheap. Breakfast, simple meals and cold beer are available.
Guest Houses and Bed and Breakfasts are usually located in well-restored older buildings, or are smaller private hotels. Guest may have to share bathroom facilities but some rooms (usually more expensive ones) have private facilities. When "breakfast" or "breakfast and dinner" is offered it is usually part of the room rate.
Farmstays and Homestays offer an ideal chance to get to know New Zealanders in their own homes. Visitors often help with chores such as shearing sheep, collecting eggs, milking cows and feeding the pigs, and do outdoor activities such as fishing, bush walking, rafting, trekking, and sometimes skiing or horseback riding. You don't have do the chores or activities if you don't want.
Homestays are usually located near urban areas. Farmstays are usually in modern and comfortable farms. In both homestays and farmstays, visitors are expected to share home-cooked meals with the host family. Bedrooms may be in the family home or in a sperate unit or farm cottage. Guests often have their own bathrooms but sometimes must share.
Over 3,000 farms and private homes host overseas guests. Visitors can choose between homes in the cities or provincial towns or select either a sheep, dairy, beef cattle, deer or goat farm or a horticultural or crop property such as a kiwi fruit orchard.
Tourist Flats (also known as motel flats) are apartments or units, each with an individual modern kitchen, bathroom, toilet facilities, and one or two open separate bedrooms and sometimes a sofa bed. They are not considered completely self-contained because occupants supply linen or blankets or crockery. Some establishments have these items for hire.
Cabins are units that come in various forms and are usually not self-contained. Cabins and tourist flats are rated by the New Zealand Automobile Association using a one diamond to four diamond rating system that is similar to the rating system for hotels. One diamond facilities usually have an outdoor toilet and an indoor water supply. Four diamond units have pleasant furnishings and a self-contained kitchen and bathroom and other amenities.
Camping: New Zealand has a good network of campgrounds. There are about 450 motor camps and caravan parks scattered all over the country. They usually have campsites for recreational vehicles and cabins and tent sites for independent travelers. These camping sites are geared for motorhome campers and are a great place to meet people and have a beer around the Bar-B-Q. Most backpacker campgrounds are in the national and forest parks. There are hundreds of them as well as hiker huts. See the "Hiking" section for more information on them. If you are sleeping in a tent keep in mind it rains a lot. Budget travelers tend to stay in backpacker hotels. The New Zealand Automobile Association (NZAA) regularly inspects caravan and motor camps and rates them on one star to five star rating system. Tent sites are inexpensive and cabins are a little more depending on how well they are equipped. Most of the camping grounds have modern facilities with showers, toilets and laundry machines. For more information contact the New Zealand Tourism Board or Zealand Automobile Association (NZAA). A Camp and Cabin Accommodation Guide is available at the airport.
FOOD
New Zealand has no real definable cuisine of its own but that doesn't mean the food isn't good. What makes eating in New Zealand such a delight is the variety of ethnic cuisine and the availability of fresh fruits, vegetables, seafood, meats and cheeses.
Asian cuisine is particularly popular and delicious. Almost every town and city has Japanese and Chinese restaurant and often Thai, Korean, Vietnamese, Malaysian, Indian and Indonesian ones. Italian, Mexican, Cajun, French, Swiss and German cooking are also available. In Turkish and Middle Eastern restaurants in the cities you can get things like kebabs, grilled chicken in pita bread and pumpkin soup.
New Zealanders tend to eat light lunches with sandwiches, salad, bread and butter, or bread and cheese. Home-cooked dinners (often called "tea") usually consist of meat, potatoes, cabbage and dessert. At tea time around 3:00pm, Kiwis often have tea with scones or pancakes served with butter and jam or whipped cream.
While in New Zealand try the wonderful tropical fruits and vegetables, such as kiwifruit, tamarillo (an egg shaped red or yellow fruit served as a vegetable and sometimes called a tree tomato), babaco (a yellow fruit that looks like a papaya and tastes like a banana), feijoa (a round fruit similar to a gauva), yams, passion fruit, apricots, pears, apples, citrus fruit, strawberries, boysenberries, avocado and melons.
New Zealand Dishes
If you love lamb you'll love New Zealand. It is the main source of protein and often served with mint sauce or orange sauce. Other traditional Kiwi dishes include “hogget” (older lamb), roast of lamb, trim pork and thick juicy steaks. Meals are often served with kumara (a kind of sweet potato).
Games dishes made with venison (often called Cervena), wild pork, rabbit, hare and muttonbird (a salty gamey bird) are common. Traditional English dishes like meat pies, fish and chips (french fries) and boiled meat and gravy are also available. The varieties of pie include minced beef, beef and kidney, and bacon and egg.
New Zealand seafood dishes are excellent. They include ones made with paua (New Zealand abalone), tua tua, toheroa shellfish, bluff oyster, crayfish (rock lobster), green oyster and fishes such as orange roughy, trevally, shark (often called "flake" or "lemon fish"), terakihi, whitebait, marlin and John Dory.
Menus at upscale restaurants features dishes like crayfish with melted cheese, whitebait fritters, scallops with cream sauce, chicken with an herb chicken sauce, Cervena fillet with apple and pear relish, rabbit ravioli with artichokes, lamb with goat cheese, baked moonfish seasoned with miso, king prawns with crab-corn stuffing, and grilled salmon with dill and citrus sauce.
A typical breakfast includes porridge with brown sugar and cream, boiled or scrambled eggs, and British-style bacon. Many Kiwis eat Wheetabix cereal and have Marmite and toast. Similar to Australian Vegimite, Marmite is a kind of bread spread that is made from beer waste.
Pavolova (a dessert with meringue and whipped cream with kiwi fruit, strawberries or passion fruit) is the national dessert. Other delicious desserts include pastries, tarts, pies, steamed pudding (in the winter) and custard (in the summer). New Zealand ice cream is delicious. Hokey-pokey, a kind of butterscotch, is recommended. New Zealand also produces many kinds of cheese. New Zealand brie, Camembert, blue de Bresses and montagne bleu are excellent.
Restaurants
Restaurants that serve ethnic food, seafood and Western food are similar to the those in the United States and Europe. Pubs serve both hot and cold dishes. Tea shops serve lunch, cakes, buns, coffee and tea. Most cities and towns have take away shops that have both take away and sit down food. They often serve good sandwiches and homemade meat pies.
Fish and chips restaurants, pizza places and fast food outlets such as McDonalds and Kentucky Fried Chicken are common. There are also brasseries, stir-fry restaurants, sushi places, cafes, and vegetarian restaurants.
Some restaurants have a BYO (bring tour own bottle) policy for wine. Others sell wine only or alcohol and wine (but to be licensed they have to sell more food than alcohol). Neither service charges or taxes are added to restaurant bills. Tipping is not practiced.
Restaurant Hours : 11:00pm to around 9:00pm. Lunch is generally eaten between 12:00noon and 2:00pm and dinner (often called "tea") is generally eaten between 6:00pm and 8:00pm. Tea time is between 3:00pm and 5:00pm.
DRINK
Kiwis are big beer drinkers. They don't consume as much as Australians but they still drink a lot. When out drinking you can save money save money by ordering small pitchers of beer called "jugs of draft." The most popular brands of beer are Speights and Monteiths.
In recent years wine has become popular. Even though its wine industry is in its infancy, New Zealand produces some pretty good wines. Chardonney, Savignon Blanc and other white wines are particularly good. Wine-tasting tours are very popular in New Zealand. In the summer some wineries host pop concerts. Many have restaurants.
Bottles of liquor can be bought only at bottle departments at pubs or at bottle stores. As for non-alcoholic drinks, Kiwis are bigger tea drinkers than coffee drinkers. Tea is often served British-style with heated milk and sugar. Good fruit drinks are also available.
Bar and Nightclub Hours: Pubs are generally open from 11:00am until 11:00pm, Monday through Saturday. They are closed on Sunday. Hotel Bars are open from 11:00am to 10:00pm. Clubs and discos often don't start hopping until 10:00pm and often stay open to 3:00am or 5:00am.
THINGS TO BUY
New Zealand is known for it its designer knitwear, sweaters and woolen goods made with New Zealand wool. It is also famous for greenstone (a kind of jade found only in New Zealand). In the old days greenstone was used by Maori warriors for make spear points and ax heads. Today it is used to make pendants, carvings and jewelry.
Among the other things you can buy are Maori wooden carvings, bones items, grass skirts, items woven from flax, paintings, art works, pottery, iridescent paua (abalone) shells, handwoven textiles, porcelain, sheepskin, gold items, leather, hand-blown glass, wooden bowls and other items made from native timbers, and jewelry made from precious stones, semi-precious stones, metals greenstone, shell, wood and bone.
Quaint and hippie-style craft shops are located in most tourist towns. Public art galleries are found in all the main cities. Of particular interest are those in Auckland, New Plymouth, Wanganui, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch and Dunedin. Flea Market are held at Auckland's Victoria Market, Wellington's Wakefield Market and Christchurch's Art Center Market. Shoppers can avoid paying tax by having items shipped home (but you have to pay shipping costs).
Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons
Text Sources: National Geographic, Live Science, Natural History magazine, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian magazine, Discover magazine, The Conversation, The New Yorker, Time, BBC, CNN, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP, Lonely Planet Guides, Wikipedia, The Guardian, Top Secret Animal Attack Files website and various books and other publications.
Last updated September 2025