"New Zealand – The Ultimate Sanctuary to Escape the Noise, Where Your Soul Breathes Freely"
New Zealand, located in the South Pacific, is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Its territory consists of two main islands, the South Island and the North Island, separated by the Cook Strait. The South Island is close to Antarctica, while the North Island faces Fiji and Tonga. The capital is Wellington, and the largest city is Auckland. The official languages are English and Māori, and it is a highly developed capitalist country.
Historical Background
• Around 950 AD, the Polynesian explorer Kupe drifted to New Zealand. By approximately 1350, large numbers of Māori migrated and settled here, developing unique economic activities and crafts.
• In 1642, Dutch explorers discovered New Zealand. Between 1769 and 1777, British Captain James Cook visited multiple times, after which Europeans began to immigrate. In 1840, Māori chiefs were forced to sign the Treaty of Waitangi, making New Zealand a British colony. It became a dominion in 1907 and officially independent in 1947, remaining a member of the Commonwealth.
Culture and Traditions
• Ethnicity and Language: 67.8% of the population is of European descent, 17.8% Māori, and 17.3% Asian, among others. The official languages are English, Māori, and New Zealand Sign Language, with English being the primary language.
• Religion and Culture: The main religion is Christianity, but a high proportion of the population (51.6% in 2023) identifies as non-religious. Māori culture is a significant component, featuring the powerful rhythms of the haka dance and intricate carvings made from wood, bone, and greenstone. Due to diverse immigration, architecture, cuisine, and other aspects reflect cultural fusion, blending British, Māori, and Asian culinary elements.
Natural Landscapes
• Glaciers and Lakes: The South Island's Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park boasts stunning lakes like Lake Pukaki, with turquoise waters set against snow-capped mountains.
• Fjord Scenery: Milford Sound features steep cliffs and cascading waterfalls plunging into deep blue waters, best enjoyed by cruise.
• Beaches: The long coastline is dotted with pristine beaches, such as Auckland's Mission Bay, with fine sand and clear waters ideal for vacations and water sports.
Living Environment and Social Welfare
• Quality of Life: Cities and rural areas alike offer beautiful surroundings, clean air, and good public safety. Urban planning is well-structured, with robust infrastructure and public services, along with abundant green spaces, making it highly livable.
• Education System: The education system is comprehensive, with high standards in higher education. Universities like the University of Auckland and the University of Canterbury excel in agriculture, medicine, and technology.
• Healthcare: A universal healthcare system provides residents with free or low-cost basic medical services. Hospitals and clinics are widely distributed, with facilities and technology meeting needs.
• Recreation: Locals love the outdoors, with hiking, mountaineering, skiing, surfing, and fishing being popular. There are also rich cultural activities like art festivals, music festivals, and sports events.
Additionally, New Zealand is predominantly mountainous, with hills and mountains covering over 75% of the land. Plains are limited, and the South Island's Aoraki/Mount Cook stands as the highest peak at 3,754 meters. Its unique geography creates diverse, breathtaking landscapes and fosters abundant outdoor experiences, making it an ideal destination for nature lovers and those seeking a high-quality lifestyle.
Milford Sound is like a magical movie! When you are on a boat, giant waterfalls on both sides of the river crash into the emerald sea from the cliffs, such as Stirling Falls, and the water vapor hits you with rainbows. The steep cliffs are covered with moss, seals lie lazily on the rocks, and the snow-capped peaks in the distance are looming in the clouds. It is even more amazing when it rains and fogs, the mountain peaks are shrouded in mist, the sea is dark blue, as if the whole world is quiet and only the sound of water remains. It is so shocking!
It is recommended not to drive there by yourself, the road is too difficult to drive. We live in Te Anau and drove there by ourselves. Although the scenery on the road is very beautiful, we usually only drive on city roads. This mountain road really left a psychological shadow. Especially the road close to the fjord can be said to be high and steep. New Zealand cars drive fast, so for safety reasons, I sincerely recommend taking a bus so that you can safely enjoy the scenery along the way.
It is very convenient to book tickets on Ctrip. The wind is very strong on the way to Milford Sound. You can see the waterfall on the way back, but it is not the rainy season, so the waterfall is not very big. The scenery from Tiano to Milford Sound is super beautiful, and the scenery changes in various ways!
Milford Fjord is the largest and most famous fjord in New Zealand. The River extends 22 kilometers inland. The water surface of the fjord intersects with the cliffs vertically. Waterfalls can be seen in almost all the mountain streams. When the cruise ship is driving along the fjord river, you can see the beautiful scenery of mountains, cliffs, waterfalls, springs, glaciers and rivers. Milford Fjord is home to bottlenose dolphins, New Zealand fur seals and the fjord crown penguins, often with large numbers of young seals gathering.
Milford Fjord is a world famous natural wonder. Steep, rugged cliffs emerge from calm, dark waters, thick rain forests grow on rock walls, and waterfalls plunge into the sea hundreds of meters high. Milford Fjord's water journey is the most important way to enjoy the beauty of the Fjord. The journey is more beautiful because of seals, dolphins and the almost inevitable downpour, resulting in the ubiquitous waterfalls and the matching graceful mist.
Milford Fjord cruises usually start from Tianau, then take a two-hour cruise to the Fjord, or a 290-kilometer journey from Queenstown to Milford Fjord. The bus from Queenstown is at the AtholSt bus terminal, with a parking lot next to the station. Tourist buses are almost all windows, even the roof is glass, the route is along Highway 6, Kingston to Highway 94 to Lake Tianau for a rest, and then to the fjord. The bus passes through the steep cliffs, the dense forest will cover the blue sky without trace, and soon as the mountain road continues to spiral up, suddenly the willows are dark and bright, the open valley green grassland cattle and sheep flock in groups, after a few minutes, another scene, the snow mountain stands quietly on both sides of the road, snow peaks shining bright, blue sky, verdant forests, white snow, clear lake water. Beauty is stifling. Along the way, the bus will stop for 40 minutes at Fiordland National ParkVisitorCenter on Lake Tianau, a large, commercial and catering stop. It is suggested that friends who are going to the fjord should start as early as possible to avoid the long bus on the road from 9 to 10 o'clock. It is said that there are most boat tours to the fjord at 1 p.m. Also remind self-driving friends that there is no gas station on the way from Tianau to Milford Fjord, please fill Tianau with oil. There are many cruise companies in Milford Fjord. They are famous for Real Journeys, Southern discoveries, Mitre Peak Cruises and Mitre Sound Cruises. In fact, the service quality of each cruise company is almost the same. The difference lies in the length of the tour. Real Journeys, for example, operates 1 hour 45 minutes sightseeing tour and 2.5 hours super-long natural tour. This large company also provides overnight flights. But the price is not cheap, basically between S$300 and S$500. Southern discoveries was the first company to offer cruise cruises in Milford Fjord. Its predecessor is the famous Milford Fjord Red Ship Travel Agency, which has a variety of excellent routes. Other smaller, smaller hulls and relatively fewer tourists. Southern Exploration Company's luxury catamaran, the first floor hull is the buffet area. Lunch on the cruise ship can be booked in advance according to personal needs at a cost of NZ 32. It is recommended to bring food. The cruise ship will provide tea and coffee for free, as well as milk intimately. The second floor is the indoor sightseeing floor. You can sit by the window and drink coffee. From the second floor spiral staircase, the whole platform of the cruise ship is 360. 176; The whole view is unshadowed. Most of the large company cruise ships provide multilingual persuasion services (China, Korea, Japan and Britain).
Milford Fjord departs from Queen Town in the morning to Milford Fjord, more than 300 kilometers away. It takes four hours to drive along the lake and across mountains. Driving all the way, I gradually realized that it was indeed one of the wettest places in New Zealand. The closer to the humidity, the heavier the humidity, and the drizzling rain continued. Tickets were bought before they arrived. The tourist center changed the tickets and went directly on board, sailing along the fjord towards the sea.
The must-see fjord in New Zealand is also the most popular one. There are many small fjords that most tourists cannot reach. You have to cross mountains and ridges to take a bus from Queenstown. You have to leave early in the morning and return after dark. The effect is discounted on cloudy and rainy days, but the advantage is that you can see rainbows. There are some simple meals on the boat that you can buy and eat. It's still quite tiring after a whole day. This fjord is not as magnificent as the fjords in Norway.