Fun and festivities in New Zealand - celebrations, festivals and cultural events

In New Zealand, there are holidays that are celebrated around the world as well as own and unique holidays. For example, local people celebrate New Year for two days – on January 1st and 2nd. Of course, no one works on these days. That being said, local laws prohibit working on Easter. This holiday doesn’t have a fixed date and falls to March or April. The Friday before Easter and the Monday after Easter are also holidays in New Zealand. The Queen’s Birthday is another holiday that New Zealanders adore. As a rule, this holiday is celebrated on the first Monday of July.

Among popular holidays, it is also important to mention the tradition of celebrating Catholic Christmas – December 25. The next day after Christmas is also a holiday one and is called the day of gifts. New Zealanders celebrate The Labor Day on the third Monday of October. Waitangi Day is an important celebration for every modern New Zealander. The country widely celebrates this holiday every year on February 6. On this day, European settlers and indigenous Maori tribes signed a peace treaty. This event happened in 1840 and became the starting point of peaceful coexistence of aboriginal people and colonizers.

The Anzak Day is a holiday that is celebrated not only in New Zealand but also in Australia. Every year on April 25, residents of these countries remember their fellow citizens who died in the world wars and other conflicts and battles. As a rule, special church masses take place on this day. People participate in solemn processions and meet veterans. This is also the only day in a year that people play Two-up, a popular coin throwing game. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

In New Zealand, there are not only unique national holidays but also interesting regional celebrations. For example, every region has a special memorable day! Wellington and Auckland celebrate this holiday at the end of January. Canterbury hosts parties in the middle of December. Marlboro and Hawk’s Bay celebrate their holiday together – on November 1st. This is not everything. Every region has its own traditional festivals that they host regularly. In Wellington, Summer City Program is a popular event. It usually takes place in January or February.

Auckland, a famous tourist center, tourists can visit the Pasifika Festival. This popular event brings together visitors from all over the world. It is incredibly colorful and fairytale-like. In March, Auckland hosts Fiesta Week. As it is not hard to guess, this is a week-long festival. March in Auckland is rich in various events in general. At the end of the month, sportsmen from neighboring countries and numerous guests come to participate in the Trans-Tasman Games.

Perhaps, Christchurch hosts the biggest number of interesting events and festivals. For instance, the city hosts the International Festival of Street Music almost the whole of January. February is the best time for sportsmen – male softball players gather in Christchurch at the end of the month. That being said, women also like February because the city hosts the Festival of Flowers and the Festival of Romance on February 13 – 17. During the same month, don’t forget to look at the sky more often. Firstly, the local sky is incredibly beautiful and, secondly, it is possible to see participants of Wings over Wairarapa Airshow. July is the time for an art festival. November is the best month for all fans of horseracing and everyone who likes fair trades.

Finally, Nelson is one more region in New Zealand that is not deprived of its own celebrations. February is the harvest time in this part of the world, so local people celebrate Harvest Day. The first Sunday of the month is the traditional time to celebrate this holiday. Art professionals and amateurs will find it very interesting to visit the city in September and participate in the carnival. The event takes place in the Trafalgar Centre. On December, locals celebrate Christmas and then New Year. Starting from mid-December, the Summer Festival starts in Nelson. It is a large-scale event that covers several venues across the city. On the last week of December, jazz music played by musicians from all over the world lingers in numerous clubs and right on the streets of Nelson.