Hi everyone

I am thinking of going ovet to NZ next year on my own. I understand you can get a 2 year work visa. Has anyone done this and how easy was it to get around. I don't have a driving license so it would all have to be public transport. I spent 8 months in oz with a boyfriend last year, but we split up. Is NZ like Oz? I loved it over there and would love to go to New Zealand but it's a bit daunting alone!!
Any advise would be really appreciated.
Ta muchly
kelly

To go to any country alone can be daunting and potentially dangerous for a girl or women. New Zealand is a beautiful place but the culture is very different from both English and American cultures. I have never been to Australia so I cannot compare New Zealand to Australia. Your experience would depend very much on which part of NZ you plan to go, either North or South and what cities you may intend to visit while there. I imagine that you would be looking for employment while travelling. I found that in some of the towns and cities in the North there were many companies that were very apprehensive about employing foreigners especially English and Irish. Unless your interested in cleaning in hotels, childcare or working in restaurants or fast food joints. Clerical and office work is the most difficult to get into, even if you sign with recruitment agencies unless you can type between 60 and 70wpm they’ll tell you they cant get you work. If you are willing to take anything basic like I said above working in pubs, restaurants, childcare or cleaning you will be able to get a job between 1-4 weeks.

As far as the visa is, concerned New Zealand will only give you a visa if you can show that you have the available funds to support yourself until you obtain employment. When I went in 2004, I have to provide copies of bank statements that showed I had at least $4,000 NZ dollars before I was given a visa and I was only going for a year and half.

If you are going to be travelling on a budget, I would suggest that on arrival you look at cheap B&B’s. Many people go for hostelling, and although there are many cheap and reasonable priced ones in all towns and cities throughout NZ. My personal experience is that they can be very dangerous, not to mention grotty and dirty.

If you require anymore info and you think I can help, then ask away

http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_cairo.php
http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_paris.php
http://www.journeybeyondtravel.com/travel/articles/guides/backpack-ireland.shtml

hei kel24,

if I hadn't just been to NZ, travelling on my own for 4 1/2 months as a girl, freelanceTravelwriters posting would certainly have scared me off...

I think, NZ is a great country to travel alone, many travellers do it, many of them girls. Of course you should be cautious - just as you would be in your hometown - and trust your instincts. But in gerneral, NZ is perfectly safe! I even hitch-hiked once in a while (the car I bought in NZ broke down so I really had to save money...), but mostly I found lifts with other travellers in the hostel (a fun AND cheap way to travel).

I hardly ever encountered a dirty hostel, as freelanceTravelwriter claimed... I mostly stayed at BBH Hostels (www.bbh.co.nz) - a network of cheap but high quality hostels (around 20 NZ dollars for a bed in a shared room). The hostels get ratings from the guest. If you choose hostels with an excellent rating, you can't go wrong. ALso ask fellow travellers - I always did, marking recommendations in my BBH guide. I ended up in the most beautiful places! I preferred small places, too (some even only had 10 beds) - easy to meet people and often it just felt like home.

I haven't been to Australia, but I heard, its a lot more about partying in OZ, whereas in NZ its more about nature. But of course you can also go out and have fun in NZ.

I didn't like the Bus Companies cause I prefer independent travelling. It's also more expensive. But if you are afraid to do the trip on your own, check this out:
www.kiwiexperience.de
www.magicbus.co.nz/
www.straytravel.com/
Apparently it's also a lot more about partying on board those busses...
Of course, there's also a regular bus company, just to get you from A to B:
www.intercitycoach.co.nz/

Have fun in NZ!!!!!
Any questions, just email me :)

Depending which country you are from, it can be very easy or impossible for you to get a WORKING HOLIDAY VISA. Just check this out:
http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migrant/stream/work/workingholiday/
For me (german) it was easy. I just filled in an online application, paid about 60 Euro and a couple of days later I had my permit, allowing me to work for up to 1 year in NZ.
BUT: even if you plan to work a lot during your trip, it will be a lot easier for you if you DO have some savings at the beginning of your trip. Fruit picking, work on vinyards and as a cleaner in hostels (for free accomodation only) are quite easy to find. To find a cool and well-paid job is a different thing...

I wasnt trying to scare you off kel, just trying to show you the real NZ.

I think to hitch hike in any country, town or city is absolutely crazy and not exactly the sensible thing to do. I also dont think that 4 and half months in a country like NZ makes anyone an expert.

As a professional travel writer who has traveled over 5 continents, I gave my opinions through my experiences. I've lived, worked and travelled throughout New Zealand, both North and South. Of course I did find some clean hostels but I also found that the standards of budget priced hostels are not to the same standards of budget hostels found in Europe, US and Canada.

Also it is common knowledge among many travellers of whom I interviewed, that hostels are not always the safest places to stay. I was told that it is better to stay in cheap hotels if one can afford it. If you travel to NZ and decide to stay in one city or town for more than a few months, you could also try to rent accomodation which I found was quite good and reasonable priced.

As far as Visa's are concerned there are several programme's which can help you get to NZ for at least a one year stay. One in particular is the international available programme 'Bunac', and this was the programme I mentioned in my first post. That needed proof of a certain amount of available funds before going.

Should you require any further information, I would be happy to give you any information you require.

http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_cairo.php
http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_paris.php
http://www.journeybeyondtravel.com/travel/articles/guides/backpack-ireland.shtml

[This message was edited by FreelanceTravelWriter on June 14, 2006 at 01:43 AM.]

I also found through my travels in NZ, that there are jobs like working on farms, picking fruit etc. Though these are the low paying jobs, that provide housing to the standard of camping or group sharing accomodation. Most times food is not part of the working contract so you need to feed yourself as well as trying to socialise on a very low budget.

NZ is not one of the cheaper countries to live and travel in, unless your a resident of the country. Even then it's not a cheap place to live. So it's important if your going to travel that far to find a decent enough job, that will allow you to afford trips, good healthy food and money for that all important socialising with people of a different culture.

The countryside is beautiful and there are a lot of wonders to see, like everywhere else in the world you can meet both friendly and un-friendly people. Where you go to, whether it is a big city or a small town very much depends on the response you will get from the natives.

My responses to your question was in no way trying to scare you, but I feel that it is never wise to only concentrate on the positives and ignore the negatives of any country you visit. By looking at both I feel you begin to see an honest and clear picture, that isn't looking through un-realistic rose coloured glasses.

http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_cairo.php
http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_paris.php
http://www.journeybeyondtravel.com/travel/articles/guides/backpack-ireland.shtml

I forgot to mention public transport which through my experience is very good. Trains and buses are reasonably priced and are great for traveling to and from destinations of interest.

Although the three links provided by 'DSH' are well known group bus travel tours in NZ. All three of them can be quite expensive, for some they can start at around $100 NZ Dollars and go up to $600 - $700 NZ Dollars for certain trips around New Zealand. So for the traveler on a budget there not much help.

Staying way from group bus tours and deciding to go with ordinary public transports, buses, coach travel and trains is a far cheaper way to travel.
Check out this link for more info on traveling in NZ:

http://www.tourism.net.nz/transport/bus-and-coach-services/

http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_cairo.php
http://www.exinthecity.com/city/archives/cat_paris.php
http://www.journeybeyondtravel.com/travel/articles/guides/backpack-ireland.shtml