Lonely Planet lauds New Zealand
19 Aug 2008
New Zealand’s natural beauty, Māori cultural experiences, small towns and main tourist centres have earned high praise in The Lonely Planet’s new guidebook released today.
There are "few countries on this lonely planet as diverse, unspoiled and utterly, utterly photogenic" as New Zealand, according to the international tourist bible.
Māori culture
The guidebook praised the country's recognition of Māori culture and how "grass-roots small-scale Māori tourism operators give a more genuine experience for travellers".
Some of the top Māori experiences include exploring the East Cape, taking a Footprints Waipoua tour, and attending the Kawhia Kai festival.
Small town New Zealand
The authors embraced small-town New Zealand, including "cute as a button" Naseby, "best-kept secret" Opoutere, and Takaka: "laid-back to near horizontal ... dreadlocked types rub shoulders with hardened farmers and crusty fishermen in equilibrium: the bike shop sells guitar strings; the pub serves chai".
Queenstown looked "like a small town, but displaying the energy of a small city ... if Queenstown didn’t exist, someone would have to invent it."
The main centres also received good press from the authors: "rock into Wellington for a big city hit" and experience its "red-hot arts scene", Auckland should "justifiably respond to its detractors, `Don't hate me because I'm beautiful' ", and Christchurch’s "easy-going provincial charm with the emerging energy and verve of a metropolis".
Green status
For the first time all listings in the Lonely Planet have been evaluated for their sustainability, with the best included in a ‘GreenDex’ - an index of all the tour, accommodation and eating choices that demonstrate an active sustainable tourism policy.
"We hope that this, and other similar initiatives, will encourage other operators to see that there's a clear financial advantage in operating an environmentally-responsible business," co-author Charles Rawlings-Way said.
Traveller poll
In a recent Lonely Planet poll of 17,500 travellers worldwide, New Zealand was voted fifth most popular destination for travellers to visit next, rising from ninth place in last years’ survey.
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