9 things you may or may not know about traveling to New Zealand

Because there’s been a drastic increase in Filipinos visiting New Zealand in the past year, the country is totally checking us out, trying to lure more of us in and giving Filipinos special attention.

“The Philippines has grown as an interesting emerging market for Tourism New Zealand. For the year ending in August 2017 alone, more than 22,780 Filipinos visited New Zealand, and stayed an average of 13.7 days,” says Steven Dixon, Regional Manager for South and South East Asia for Tourism New Zealand. He adds that the numbers are highest across his markets.

In October, Kiwi Link Manila was held for the first time ever, to attract more visitors, businesses, and even students to New Zealand.

At the trade event, select media including GMA News Online met with Dixon who gave us a low-down and some tips about visiting New Zealand. We say, it’s best to book market this country for the nine long weekends in the coming year.

New Zealand's Stewart Island in the Southland. All photos courtesy of Tourism New Zealand

1. It’s not just Hobbiton. While the Lord of the Rings set is still a popular tourist attraction, there is more to this country of four million people. Get this: A third of the country is made up of natural parks. With cliffs, caves, islands, forests, and mountains, there’s a lot to offer adventure seekers and laidback nature-lover travelers.

2. There’s a lot of great organic food and fine. While farm-to-table is a huge trend these days, it’s actually the norm in New Zealand. “It’s part of our everyday life,” says Dixon, adding the seafood in New Zealand is gorgeous, as their wines.

3. Direct flights from Manila to Auckland will soon be available. As in December 2017-soon, according to Dixon. Philippine Airlines will be offering direct flights three times a week, which should reduce flight time to just 10 hours.

The country has a lot to offer foodies as well, as farm-to-table is what's 'everyday' for New Zealanders and local wine is tremendous.

4. Visa application is free. Save for a minimum (like the messenger fee), you don’t really have to shell out money to apply for a visa. It’s also fast – about 3-5 days—and super doable online, which Dixon highly encourages.

5. New Zealand has one of the highest visa approval rates. During the press roundtable interview with Dixon, this is the first thing he doled out: “We have the highest visa approval rates.”

A quick check online reveals Philippine passport holders only need to meet three criteria: that you’re a genuine tourist (show your bookings and itinerary), you have enough cashola (bank books, payslips, or ITR), and you plan to leave the country after your trip (airline tickets!). This visa will give you visa of up to 9 months validity.

Castlepoint Wairarapa

6. You can actually go on a working holiday there. People looking to go on a gap year, here’s your chance. Philippine passport holders aged 18-30 are eligible for a working holiday visa. You can spend an entire year (12 months) in the country, but you have to be working or studying for up to six months in total. Says Ambassador of New Zealand to the Philippines, the option has been available to Filipinos since 2014 “and there are 125 slots a year.”

7. Thirteen days is the optimum amount of time to spend in New Zealand. And 13 days, New Zealanders, is perfect for visiting 2 to 3 destinations comfortably.

8. You can totally DIY your New Zealand trip. New Zealand’s infrastructure is so good, you don’t need to worry about getting about from one place to another, about your safety, if you’re the solo traveler type, or getting lost in translation.

The Luckie Strike Cave

They’re English speakers to begin with, their public transportation is efficient, the internet is fast – there are free internet WiFi hotspots – and tourism is their biggest industry. “If you’re unsure, you can always ask a local,” Dixon says.

9. Our summer season is a great time to visit. Because New Zealand is in the southern hemisphere, seasons as we know it is inverted. Our summer season, then, makes it their autumn, which, given the golden foliage and nippy weather, makes it’s a great time to visit. Besides, it’s off-season for them, so crowds won’t be as large and prices, as steep. — LA, GMA News