New Zealand's two islands - North and South - are known, by the indigenous Maori population, as The Land of the Long White Cloud. Like an inverted fairytale, the wonders are beneath the clouds.
A land of simmering volcanoes, wide sandy beaches, precipitous fjords, glacial lakes, dense rainforests and towering mountains, the coastline runs to 15,000km and there are more than 25 marine reserves. When filmmakers want to depict otherworldly lands such as Middle Earth, Narnia or Skull Island, they book airline tickets to New Zealand.
New Zealand is a country comparable in size to Japan, but just four million people live there. The major cities - Auckland and Wellington on North Island and Christchurch and Dunedin on South Island - are uncrowded but still busy and diverse with no shortage of things to do and places to party.
New Zealanders are a laidback and outdoorsy lot, their friendliness mixed with a famous Kiwi ruggedness.
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