New Zealand's festive season
Christmas in New Zealand is a relaxed affair, just as likely to be spent outdoors with a barbeque or a trip to the beach as a formal traditional celebration.
The festive season coincides with summer holidays so, as well as present buying and enjoying Christmas parties, families are preparing for their annual sojourn to the bach, crib or holiday house.
In the coastal regions of the North Island, pohutukawa trees flower from November to January. Their canopy of brilliant red crimson flowers gives the pohutukawa its nickname as New Zealand's Christmas tree.
Festive celebrations
Celebrations focus on the outdoors with crowds converging on public domains and beaches to enjoy open air concerts and festivals. In the build up to Christmas, Santa parades are held in towns and cities nationwide - the irony of sleighs and winter suits lost on the jandals-and-shorts-clad people watching in the summer heat.
In Auckland the Santa parade has brought joy to children for 74 years. Traditionally the parade attracts well over 250,000 people as it kick-starts the Christmas season with a mix of fantasy, excitement, magic and laughter.
New Zealand is one of the best places in the world to celebrate New Year - in fact head to Gisborne on the east coast of the North Island and you can be the first in the world to see the sun come up on New Year's day.
What's more, Gisborne stages New Zealand's largest New Year festival. Known as 'Rhythm & Vines' the three-day event is held in the vineyard at Waiohika Estate, attracting more than 20,000 people eager to hear acts from all over the world and enjoy this uniquely Kiwi event.
Kiwi summer culture
For overseas visitors keen to get the feel of Kiwi summer culture, the list of local events throughout each region is long and varied - from sporting attractions to a festival of lights, a fringe festival and world busking event, sculpture in a coastal park to beach volleyball, jazz festivals and food and wine events - New Zealand is alive with summer activity and entertainment.
While there's always plenty of action on the water during summer, the 2008/09 season will be more than usually active with the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series - a friendly yachting regatta on Auckland's Harbour with the world's top sailing teams competing in America's Cup boats from January 31 - February 14 2009.
This summer also sees great international cricket action when the New Zealand Black Caps host India and the West Indies in the keenly-anticipated 2008/09 National Bank Series.
Whether it’s active or leisure pursuits you're after, New Zealand is the perfect place to celebrate the festive season in summer, and in style!
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