General Information

Kiwis (New Zealanders) speak the same language as Aussies (Australians). To help understand them better before you leave home, you should visit Goway's Downunder Dictionary.

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FUN FACTS:

At lambing time there are over 130 million sheep in New Zealand.

sheep and lamb bitmap

Deer farming is very big in New Zealand...for venison, and the antlers called "velvet&. Velvet brings high prices in the Orient when it is sold as an aphrodisiac

FUN FACT:

Fiordland, one of the largest National Parks in the world and a World Heritage Area, offers some of the most wild and dramatic scenery anywhere. It's also referred to as "the walking capital of the world".

FUN FACT:

Christchurch has a very strong link with Antarctica. The United States, New Zealand and Italian Antarctic programs are based at the International Antarctic Centre. Hundreds of scientists (etc.) pass through the Centre enroute to Antarctica on over 100 flights from Christchurch each year.

Goway's MOST POPULAR INDEPENDENT TOUR OF NEW ZEALAND

Goway's Classic New Zealand which can go in either direction, can be joined any day.

You can choose from economy to First Class hotels.

we can help with the best airfares
itineraries can be modified
Itinerary combines well with classic Australia and other Pacific stops

For more information visit Classic New Zealand, see Goway's DOWNUNDER catalogue, complete the information request form, call your favourite travel agent or call 1-800-387-8850.

New Zealand

COUNTRY QUICKFACTS

Geographical Location

1600 km (1000mi) in length, New Zealand consists of two major islands - North 115,000 km² (44,000mi²) and South 151,000 km² (58,300mi²). Stewart Island 1700 km² (656mi²) is located immediately south of the South Island. The country is situated 10,400 km (6,462mi) south-west of North America, 1700 km (1056mi) south of Fiji and 2250 km (1400mi) east of Australia.

Time Zones

New Zealand has a single universal time zone. The country, close to the international date line, is 12 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (including 30 minutes permanent saving time). Daylight Saving Time - an advance of 1 hour - is observed from October to early in March.

Government

The Government of New Zealand is modelled on the British system of parliamentary democracy with elections based upon universal adult suffrage, a party approach to politics and an independent judiciary. Like Britain, New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy. The Head of State - Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II - is represented within the country by a resident Governor-General. His or her appointment is for a term of 5 years.

Agriculture:

New Zealand's agricultural products provide the major source of the country's income through export. Although meat, dairy products and wool earn about 50% of the total export income, manufactured goods, fish, forest products and horticultural products are growing in importance.

Most of New Zealand's farm land is used for the pastoral production of meat, wool and dairy products. The majority of animals grazed are sheep, but cattle and more recently, deer and goats can also be seen in quite large numbers. Land used for meat and wool farming is mainly steep hill country and rolling downs. The downs and also the coastal plains support dairy, arable and horticultural production.

Wool:

New Zealand is ideally suited to sheep farming. High-country farms concentrate on wool production, while the more fertile lowland farms specialize in meat production. With around 68 million sheep, New Zealand's sheep flock ranks fourth in the world, and the country's raw wool production is second only to Australia on a clean mass basis.

New Zealand contributes over 40% of the world's coarse wools. The nature of the New Zealand wool clip makes it suited to manufactured products such as carpets, hand knitted yarn and blankets. Probably less than a quarter of production ends up as apparel.

Meat:

New Zealand is one of the few countries in the world with a significant level of meat exports. The major markets for New Zealand meat are the United Kingdom and Iran for lamb; Japan, the United States and Canada for beef.

There are about 4.6 million beef cattle and about 68 million sheep - more than 20 times as many sheep as people. Grasslands have been developed to the extent that the best dairy farms can carry three and a half cows to the hectare and the best sheep farms can support up to 25 sheep to the hectare.

The beef production industry is largely concentrated in the North Island but sheep farming is more evenly distributed between the North and South Islands.

Dairying:

Because of the mildness of the climate in New Zealand, no housing of stock is necessary as grass grows nearly all year round. This good growing climate, coupled with stable rainfall, has assisted the dairy industry in its role as one of the world's biggest and most efficient exporters of dairy produce. There are some 3.3 million dairy cows in New Zealand. The country's cow population has benefited from long-term scientific breeding programmes. In one year the average production of milk per cow is about 3,200 litres and 153 kg of butterfat. Amongst dairy products exported from New Zealand, butter and cheddar cheese have been principal commodities to date, with skim milk powder products also figuring prominently.

Crops:

Grain production, fruit growing, and berry fruit cultivation are important agricultural pursuits in New Zealand. In traditional arable production regions in both the North and South Islands there have been increased arable plantings, particularly of malting barley for the export market. Other crops include wheat (mainly for domestic use), herbage seeds and some herbs and oilseed rape (for both domestic and export markets). Horticultural production can be found in pockets on the two main islands. The most dramatic increases in plantings in the past decade have occurred in the Bay of Plenty during the development of kiwi fruit production. However, in other areas which have traditionally grown horticultural crops, such as Northland, Hawke's Bay, Poverty Bay, Horowhenua, Nelson, Marlborough, and Otago there have also been increased plantings and changes in crops planted.

Forest Industry:

There are about 1.1 million hectares of production plantation forest in New Zealand; mostly conifers native to California and southern Europe. The main species grown is radiata pine, which grows to sawlog size in 25-30 years. These plantation forests, concentrated in the centre of the North Island, provide the raw material for most of the country's forest industries.

Native Forests:

New Zealand's natural forests cover about 6.2 million hectares. Because the country has been isolated from Gondwanaland for over 100 million years, many ancient plants survive. The prime role of these forests is in soil and water conservation and for recreation. There is only very restricted production from natural forests.

Export Receipts:

Forest products exports in the form of timber, wood chips, wood pulp, paper and fibre boards, earn the country about $770 million. The largest customers are Australia and Japan.

NATIONAL ANTHEM

God of Nations, as Thy feet
In the bonds of love we meet,
Hear our voices we entreat,
God defend our Freeland.
Guard Pacific's Triple Star,
From the shafts of strife and war,
Make her praises heard afar,
God defend New Zealand.

Men of every creed and race,
Gather here before Thy face,
Asking Thee to bless this place,
God defend our Freeland.
From dissension, envy, hate,
And corruption guard our state.
Make our country good and great,
God defend New Zealand.

Peace, not war, shall be our boast,
But, should foes assail our coast,
Make us then a mighty host,
God defend our Freeland.
Lord of battles, in Thy might,
Put our enemies to flight,
Let our cause be just and right,
God defend New Zealand.

Let our love for Thee increase,
May Thy blessings never cease,
Give us plenty, give us peace,
God defend our Freeland.
From dishonour and from shame,
Guard our country's spotless name,
Crown her with immortal fame,
God defend New Zealand.

May our mountains ever be
Freedom's ramparts on the sea,
Make us faithful unto Thee,
God defend our Freeland.
Guide her in the Nation's van,
Preaching love and truth to man,
Working out Thy glorious plan,
God defend New Zealand.