What is the country like?
The Maoris, some of the country's earliest inhabitants, called it Aotearoa, "the land of the long white cloud", and New Zealand's most striking feature is indeed its natural beauty. The larger South Island has a mountain chain as well as forests, lakes and glaciers. Both islands have a coastline of sheltered bays and superb beaches.

And the people?
Friendly folk and voracious travellers themselves, Kiwis have a reputation for making tourists feel welcome. Their impressive history of social reform includes giving women the vote in 1893 and establishing a free health system in 1938. Maoris are still compensated for the early European settlers taking their land, while Maori art and culture are actively supported.

A little history
Polynesian ancestors of the Maoris first settled in New Zealand around 1300. New Zealand was discovered by Europeans in 1632, when Dutch sailors encountered a less than warm welcome from the locals and named their landfall Murderers' Bay. After Captain Cook charted the islands, in 1769, Europeans began to trickle in. In 1840, when NZ became a colony, the Treaty of Waitangi, between Maori chiefs and the British Government, enshrined the Maoris' right to their lands and granted them the privileges of British subjects. Its contents and meaning cause controversy to this day.

What is New Zealand famous for?
It excels in rugby and yachting and had a starring role in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy. Famous exports include opera singer Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, and, since the 1980s, great wines. A New Zealander, Ernest Rutherford, was first to split the atom. Another, Sir Edmund Hillary, was first to reach the summit of Everest.

When to travel
During UK winter is best, unless you crave rain. New Zealand enjoys the most sunshine from November to March, when you can count on a good seven hours per day, and the Kiwis take their summer holidays in December and January. Autumn is from March to May, and the coldest, wettest month is July.

Diary dates
The Auckland Anniversary Regatta, a magnificent sight, with over 1,000 boats, is the biggest one-day regatta in the world. The Wellington Cup, the highlight of the horse racing calendar, is held annually in the capital. Both events are in January.

Where to visit
The highlights are the natural world: the volcanic landscape of Tongariro National Park and the massive kauri trees of Waipoua Forest, both on North Island, and the lakes and waterfalls of Fiordland National Park, on South Island. Oenophiles must explore centres such as Hawke's Bay and the Wairarapa valley, near Wellington, on North Island, and Wairarapa, north of Christchurch, on South Island.

Best buildings
Most New Zealand homes are wooden, with notable exceptions in Victorian Dunedin and Christchurch, where handsome stone buildings abound. The Provincial Council Buildings in Christchurch, South Island, finished in 1865, are gorgeous examples of Gothic Revival.
Rebuilt after an earthquake in 1931, Napier, in the Central North Island, is a perfect pastel Art Deco city, set in the lush wine-producing territory of Hawke's Bay. Other gems include the Kerikeri mission house, built in 1822, in Northland (at the top of North Island, above Auckland), the oldest surviving wooden building in New Zealand. Sky Tower in Auckland, opened in 1997, at 328 metres, is the tallest tower in the southern hemisphere, with magnificent views from the revolving restaurant.

Where to buy New Zealand arts and crafts
In New Zealand's largest conurbation, Auckland, on North Island, try Queen Street, which cuts through the centre of the city, and the waterfront, where the duty-free store in the 19th-century Old Custom House stocks local woollen and sheepskin gifts, woodwork and jewellery alongside the Louis Vuitton bags.

Jutting out into the ocean, to the east of Auckland, is the Coromandel Peninsula, a magnet for painters, potters and weavers since the 1960s, and a great place to buy arts and crafts, from kauri furniture to greenstone carvings and brilliantly painted, hand-thrown ceramics.

In Nelson, on the northern tip of South Island, is Hoglund Art Glass gallery, where there are bargains at the factory shop (www.hoglund.co.nz). All around are art galleries and studios where you can buy pottery, jewellery, and eccentric fashion (the Wearable Art Awards take place each September in Nelson).

WORDS KATRINA BURROUGHS