it's the ultimate New Zealand showdown North Island versus South Island and which one
should you visit when travelling around New Zealand and what experiences can you
only have in the North Island and what experiences can you only have in the
South Island and all of that coming right up in this video
hey guys we're Robin and Laura the team behind backpackerguide.nz
helping you plan an epic backpacking trip in New Zealand and today we are
answering the most asked question ever on backpackerguide.nz should you
travel north island or the south island whatever length of time you have in New
Zealand should be two weeks or an entire year you need to know which island
you're gonna prefer so you know how to split you're itinerary and how to make
the most of your time in New Zealand and because we love to help you do that
we've planned this video right here we're gonna be taking one island each
and we will battle it out for you guys also at the end of this video we're
gonna give you five activities that you can only do on the north other than five
activities that you can only do on the south island and we release videos
about New Zealand every single day here on YouTube so if you are new here
consider subscribing so without further ado here it is the ultimate showdown
which is better north island versus South Island for this ultimate battle we're
gonna be representing one island each I'm gonna be representing the north island
and Laura is gonna be representing the South Island and we've divided this
battle in multiple rounds and round one is the mountain sceneries well in the
South Island we have the whole Southern Alps going right through the middle of
the island and part of those mountains is the highest peak in New Zealand which
is Aoraki Mount Cook and not to mention all the glaciers you can
actually go on to like Franz Josef or fox glacier and the Tasman glacier as
well and then in fiordland national park it is famous for its towering fiords
like in milford sound and yes it's fair to say that there are a lot of mountains
in the South Island well in the north island we do have quite a few mountains as
well but they're a little bit more tame
we are most famous for volcanoes including the volcano that was featured
as Mount Doom in the Lord of the rings so we do have a first share of epic mountainous
landscapes but I do think that the south Island is taking the win on this
one next up on our list is islands and
beaches well in the North Island we are rockin islands in the bay of islands and we have
a hundred and forty-four islands that's a lot of island and beaches otherwise we
have Waiheke Island where some of the best wine in the country are made and we
also have Kapiti Island where you can get to see the little spotted Kiwi which
is one of the rarest kiwi birds in the world beaches wise we have a lot of
super unique ones like ninety Mile Beach which is classified as the official
highway on the North Island also have in Coromandel, hot water beach
where you can dig your own jacuzzi and on the east cape we have some beaches
where you can sit down and watch the first sunrise in the world Plus on top
of that the North Island has a much warmer weather than the south island and making it
for almost all year round Beach experience well in the South Island we
do have some unique beaches as well for instance at the Moeraki beach which have
the perfectly spherical moeraki bolders which make an awesome photo opportunity
and not to mention the abel tasman national park which is a national park
pretty much famous for its pristine golden sun beaches but to be fair north
island is more famous for its beaches and has far more beaches and Islands
going for it so I think the winner has to be the North Island Round three of our
North Island versus South Island is city life well the South Island does have
some cities is Christchurch which is the largest city in the South Island really
famous for street art and gardens there's also the southernmost city in
the world which is Invercargill in the South Island and also the sunniest city
in New Zealand is Nelson and of course the party capital of New Zealand is
right here in the South Island and that is Queenstown well on the north island we
are the most populated island so we have heaps of awesome cities we have Auckland
New Zealand's largest city with ton of nightlife right in the city centre
plus shopping and awesome food we also have the capital of the country in
Wellington which is a great alternative town where almost every night of the
week you can get out and watch a gig we also have heaps of other famous cities
like Rotorua the Maori city of New Zealand New Plymouth the great
alternative town with heaps of surf only a couple of hours away and we have
Gisborne which is the wine mecca of New Zealand so I think that's a pretty easy
win for the North Island next up is adventure activities well on the north island
we have heaps to offer we have Raglan which is a surf mecca
of New Zealand we have Mount Ruapehu which is the largest ski field in the country
we have the Whanganui journey where you can kayak for 4 days through pristine
landscape and we have sky diving whitewater rafting and heaps of other
stuff well on the South Island we do have the highest sky dive in the
southern hemisphere in franz josef at 19,000 feet there's also the highest
bungee jump you can do in New Zealand in Queenstown which might I just mention is
the adrenaline capital of New Zealand also there is multi day hiking
experiences in an UNESCO World Heritage Area in the Fiordland National Park there's
also the only all year-round grade 5 River for whitewater rafting at the
Rangitata River and most of the ski fields are in the South Island all right
she wins South island takes the win this round next up on our list is volcanic
and geothermal activity now on the South Islands there are a few natural Hot
Springs like the Maruia hot springs but most of the hot springs are on the North Island
in fact the North Island was created by volcano when they burst out of the
seas and created the North Island of New Zealand we have some of the most iconic
volcanoes in the world we have Mount Taranaki which is a perfectly cone-shaped
volcano we also have Mount Ngauruhoe which was featured as
Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings and we have New Zealand's only active marine volcano
which is white island on top of that most of the geothermal activities
between Rotorua and Taupo and heaps of parks where you can go and experience it
for yourself honestly I think that's a slam-dunk for the north island right
right round six Maori culture the first human settlers to New Zealand were the
Maori which originated from Polynesia and they brought with them a fascinating
culture which you can experience all over New Zealand including the South
Island like in Queenstown you can see cultural performances and on the west
coast of the South Island is actually the best place to find pounamu although
otherwise known as greenstone which the Maori used to carve into different
pendants and you can learn how to carve it yourself on the South Island well on the
North Island we have heaps of Maori cultural experiences and it's because
most and Maori settlers settled on the North Island and especially around the
Rotorua area where you can experience some awesome evening shows you get a
show you get to try the hangi which is a traditional Maori food and it's the best
way to embrace the Maori culture and that makes the North Island a clear winner
on the Maori culture round for our final round
it is wildlife New Zealand has heaps of wildlife to offer
although we never had a single native mammal in the country on aside for a
couple of species of bats we have heaps of bird life and heaps of
marine mammals on the North Island you can swim with dolphins around Tauranga
and also the bay of islands you can also spot awesome whales of off the shore of
Auckland plus we have the heaps of islands which are pest free meaning that
they are perfect bird sanctuaries since there is no rats no possums and no cats
to go eat them but on the South Island there is a greater variety of wildlife
you can see sea lions there's more seal colonies more penguins and it's the only
place in the world that you can see the Kea which is the world's only Alpine
parrot also there are places where they're just so
awesome to see wildlife like kaikoura which you can see whales all year round
you can swim with dolphins see albatross there's the Otago peninsula which has
the royal albatross centre you can also see sea lions and the rarest species of
penguins there there's also Akaroa which has the largest colony of little blue
penguins in New Zealand and there's the Catlins with loads of sea lions and just
so much to see what else Alright you win. South Island takes the win for round
seven and with 4 points over three the North island is taking the win in this
battle however each category has different importance for different
people so you need to make sure that you actually choose which island is the best
for you we have this entire video as an article on backpackerguide.nz so
you may want to review this one we put a link in the description below for you so
you can make the best itinerary for you did I mention that this trip was all
about your experience and not what we like now to further convince you which
island you should visit we actually have five thing that you can only do in one
island or the other coming right up here's 5 things you
can only do on the North Island of New Zealand first up you can go up New
Zealand's tallest building which is the Sky Tower in Auckland that's also the
southern hemisphere tallest building you can also stay overnight in the Maori
village to experience the true Maori culture and try the hangi which is Maori
meal you can also visit the Hobbiton movie
set where the love the Rings was filmed you can ski down Mount Ruapehu which is
an active volcano and New Zealand's largest ski field and you can go to the Te
Papa museum and check out the colossal squid in Wellington well the five things
you can only do in the South Island include stargazing in a International
dark-sky reserve in Aoraki mount cook and lake tekapo you can also see the
southern lights which I like the Northern Lights but south and you can see
them in the southern parts of the South Island which we will
link up in the description below on how you can do that for yourself also you
can swim with the smallest species of dolphins in Akaroa you can also do
the highest bungee jump in New Zealand 134 metres in Queenstown and finally you
can cruise in the majestic fiords of the Fiordland national park like milford
sound alright so that's it for our battle between North Island and South Island we have
heaps of information on everything we talked about on backpackerguide.nz that is your Bible for backpacking in New Zealand so make sure to check
that out and use it as your reference for your entire trip we also publish
new video like this one every single day including New Zealand's biggest gap year
where Laura and I challenge ourselves to do 365 activities around New Zealand in
only 365 days it's absolutely epic and if you want to get notifications about
all of that make sure to hit the subscribe button below it really helps
us out a lot on top of that we really want to thank you for watching these
videos but if you do have some extra questions on a topic of next video that
you want us to cover or any comment on whatever we just said do you prefer the
North Island or the South Island all of that all of this discussion needs to happen
below in the comments and we are on the comment every single day to help you
plan your trip and make the most of your time in New Zealand
until then travel safe
you