ABTN recently highlighted New Zealand, which is as far from Europe as possible and part of the British Commonwealth, with Queen Elizabeth as the titular head. Here we discuss the South Island, the home of sheep and rugby players.
If the weather in the North Island of New Zealand ranges from what one might call a south of England climate to that of the South Pacific, the South Island is much more akin to Scotland and Scandinavia, although it too can have its very hot days. The total population of New Zealand is four million, with one million living on the South Island. Here Christchurch is the largest city, its population of 400,000 making it around the size of Edinburgh and just as interesting.
Christchurch has direct air links from Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney in Australia and there are domestic services to Auckland and Wellington on the North Island. Driving is on the left but the metric measurement system is used. Street signage is for the most part meagre, although Avis do supply some fine maps in their hire cars.
Roll-on, roll-off vehicle passenger ferries link across the Cook Strait every day between Wellington and Picton respectively on the north and south islands. The highway network is excellent making touring a pleasure, but the roads generally are quite narrow by UK standards. If you do not want to drive there are first-rate bus services linking most of the towns, and also package coach tours, all of them using good quality, small hotels.
Christchurch sits on the edge of the Canterbury plains, famous of course for lamb. It is on the Pacific side of the island with Mount Cook and the Southern Alps a stunning background. As with most cities the quickest way to see what is what, is via the circular, get-on get-off bus tour. It is free but does not compete with the nostalgia of the tram, which rattles its way from Cathedral Square past Christ”s College (the Eton of New Zealand pictured above, which now takes girls as well as boys), the University and the Canterbury Museum.
Make sure you get off here.
The museum itself is superb (and free), the exhibits including a Victorian Christchurch street, stories of adventure from the Antarctic, and a look back at the New Zealand International Exhibition 1906. Despite a substantial financial loss it was deemed to be a great success. With nearly two million visitors, attendance exceeded expectations ” New Zealand's total population at the time was less than one million. Housed in one of New Zealand”s finest historic buildings the Canterbury Museum has fascinating sections devoted to Maori times, the European colonization over the last 140 years, and the Antarctic. New Zealand competes with the t
ip of South America as the jumping off point for the great white continent.
Then take a walk through the superb Botanic Gardens and perhaps a ride on a punt. All very English. The park itself covers 74 acres and has undoubtedly the finest collection of exotic and indigenous plants to be found anywhere in New Zealand.
Just outside the city is the Christchurch gondola, on the regular bus routes and in fact a ski-lift where you can gain spectacular 360-degree views, experience the time tunnel or wander along the easy walkways on the mountainside The popular Cavendish Bluff lookout, 1,500 ft above sea level, is a 30-minute return trip from the gondola station.
If Christchurch is the English city of New Zealand, Dunedin is its Scottish counterpart, 225 miles to the south, and five hours by road. If you are driving plan to stop at the pretty village of Mt Cook for your break.
Dunedin is the old Gaelic name for Edinburgh, yet Dunedin is nothing like the Scottish capital except for the street names. Dunedin is even hillier, smaller, much closer to the sea and, it is claimed, a better climate than its namesake. However it is very much Scottish with Robert Burns' statue in the city centre. It even has its own haggis ceremony, plus some quality golf courses, pipe bands, and the finest range of malts and whiskies in New Zealand. It has the Highland Games and a military tattoo. It was once the largest city in New Zealand, the centre of a gold boom in the 1860s, the city”s outstanding Victorian and Edwardian architecture, a reminder of those times.
Baldwin Street, in a quiet suburb is reputed to be the world's steepest street. according to the Guinness Book of Records at 35% there is nothing steeper, San Francisco”s 22nd Street a fraction less.
New Zealand has only one castle, built 1871 by William Larnach, merchant baron and politician, for his beloved first wife Eliza. It sits on the Otago Peninsular in a spectacular setting just outside Dunedin. It took 200 workmen three years working on its construction and Larnach spent a further 12 years embellishing the interior, featuring the finest materials from around the world. It is still privately owned and is a showcase for a unique collection of New Zealand antiques, with a tragic and scandalous history. Spectacular tower views and beautiful gardens complete this exhilarating experience.
Another ”must” is the Taieri Gorge Limited tourist train operating from the historic, and architecturally outstanding Dunedin railway station. A daily event, it travels through the rugged and spectacular Taieri River Gorge, across wrought iron viaducts and through tunnels carved by hand more than 100 years ago.
Both Christchurch and Dunedin are on the Pacific east coast of the South Island.
Completely different, the 400 mile west coast drive is an epic journey through spectacular, coastlines, mountain passes and includes five national parks, seal colonies, a white heron sanctuary and two easy to get to glaciers.
Not quite as accessible and to the very far south west is Fiordland, its name describing a fantastic national park full of fresh water inlets and tiny hamlets. Covering 5,000 square miles it is the largest protected area in New Zealand and one of the largest parks in the world. Fiordland is dominated by the Southern Alps and its ocean-flooded, steep western valleys. Situated within Fiordland are the Browne Falls and Sutherland Falls, which rank among the tallest waterfalls in the world.
For those with deep pockets and limited time an aerial tour is highly recommended. Fixed wing, float plane or helicopter, the choice is yours. It is from the air, and at slow speeds, that you really appreciate the diversity of New Zealand”s South Island; from the fine beaches, rolling planes and mountain scenery.
A week is really not enough for a visit, but it is enough to make you want to come back.