Nature / Sustainable Tourism

Wairere, a valley of basalt boulders in the Hokianga, may be one of the Far North’s most remarkable, yet undiscovered rock formations.

The Manawatu Gorge in the North Island of New Zealand is often called a unique landform because its river flows from one side of a mountain range to the other rather than from a divide, as do most rivers.

Within the unfenced boundaries of Fiordland, one of the largest national parks in the world, is some of the most wild and dramatic scenery in New Zealand.

Was it a massive volcanic eruption or an upturned totara tree that created Lake Taupo, the glistening jewel in the centre of the North Island?

Everybody who has visited Rotorua, New Zealand and gasped in awe of its calderas, crater lakes, trout, native bush walks, geothermal mud pools and geysers, skied or snowboarded, owes it to the presence of volcanoes.

Background informaton on a few of New Zealand's natural wonders including the Catlins region; New Zealand National Parks; Muriwai Regional Park; Frying Pan Lake and Waikoropupu Springs in Nelson.

Background information on New Zealand's three World Heritage sites: Te Wahipounamu, Tongariro National Park and the Sub-Antarctic Islands.

Isolated for around 80 million years, New Zealand became a paradise for birds; some, in the absence of predators, developing unusual and interesting characteristics. Plus other animals.