chloedickensonLast Updated on 6th July 2023
This post about things to know before moving to New Zealand contains affiliate links.
If you’ve Googled the term “what to know before moving to New Zealand” and you’ve stumbled across this blog post, first of all – welcome!
Secondly, I really hope my post about living in New Zealand and all the things to know before moving to New Zealand helps you with your decision of whether to migrate to NZ or not.
(Spoiler alert – I would if I were you, it’s probably the best country in the world… in my opinion, at least!).
While I don’t regret anything about my time in New Zealand, hindsight is a great thing and in the last few years, I’ve realised that there are quite a few things that I wish I’d known before moving to New Zealand and starting a new life at the other side of the world.
It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life; I learned so much about myself and the world while I was there. However, there are a few things to know about New Zealand before moving, which is what I’m sharing with you all today!
This post is for anyone who’s thinking of moving to New Zealand and all the things I wish I’d known before moving to New Zealand; I really hope it helps! I’ve included my experience of all the “bad” things about living in New Zealand, plus what it was like moving to New Zealand from the UK.
Moving to New Zealand – things I wish I’d known
Read more: What Is New Zealand Famous For?
1. The weather is pretty similar to the UK… But sort of better
OK, so it’s probably quite a lot better than the UK’s weather but NZ does still have its fair share of rain and wind. The sun does tend to come out more often than it does here in England, and you’ll definitely need to wear suncream, especially at the height of the summer. But when it rains in New Zealand, it rains.
Read more: The Best Things To Do On Holiday When It Rains
2. When moving to New Zealand, Christmas just won’t be the same
Christmas in New Zealand falls in the summer which means that it’s pretty damn warm on Christmas Day. While we were living there, we had Christmas on the beach, playing in the sea with our new surfboards and then we returned home and enjoyed a Christmas lunch of BBQ food…
While it was certainly an experience I’ll never forget, it just wasn’t the same as tucking into a turkey dinner with all the trimmings surrounded by family and the freezing cold weather.
Read more: 25 Best Things About Christmas – Favourite Things About Christmas
3. Document your adventures
While I was in New Zealand, I did manage to take a fair few photos but I didn’t take nearly as many as I should have done. The pictures that I did take are poor quality and they really don’t represent just how beautiful the country is.
If I could encourage you to do just one thing while living in New Zealand it would definitely be to take as many pictures as you can and document your adventures in any way you possibly can.
4. Enjoy the outdoors more
I’m really not much of an outdoors person but while living in New Zealand, I did try and embrace the outdoors as much as I possibly could.
Everywhere we went in NZ was truly breathtaking; from the abundance of waterfalls, beaches, parks and mountains, there really is so much to see and do outdoors and I’d thoroughly recommend enjoying everything as much as possible while you’re there.
5. Embrace the culture
The culture of New Zealand is entirely different to that of the UK; the supermarkets, clothes shops and restaurants aren’t quite as modern and sophisticated as they are over here but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t enjoy them.
My school was incredibly strange for me when I first started but once I learnt to embrace the culture, I found it to be an incredible adventure.
6. The people are incredibly friendly in New Zealand
The people that I met in New Zealand are some of the most friendly I’ve ever met in my life. I still keep in touch with a few people that I met there and I’m so glad that they make the effort to still communicate with me. Nothing was too much to ask from a Kiwi and they’re more than happy to help you in any way they possibly can.
7. Don’t freak out about the ‘shoe thing’
One thing that was definitely a huge culture shock when we first moved to New Zealand was the fact that not many people wear shoes to go out and about. My younger brother and sister didn’t wear shoes at all to school, and I didn’t wear them to do P.E. – not even to do cross-country running!
Some people even omitted their shoes when doing their weekly grocery shop which seemed incredibly strange to me but also kind of cool!
8. There are way more English ex-pats than you’d imagine
Moving to New Zealand is no easy feat but we coincidentally ended up living next to an English family with whom we became very good friends; which definitely helped us to settle in much better!
There were way more English people living in New Zealand than I expected which was incredibly nice because it felt like we were sharing this journey with people who knew exactly what we were going through.
9. Spiders are most definitely a thing – moving from the UK to New Zealand
While they may not be as big and imposing as the ones you’ll find in Australia, the spiders in NZ were still pretty intimidating, especially for someone who’s as terrified of them as I am!
My mum was bitten by a white-tail spider twice while we were living there and I definitely saw some pretty huge ones – it makes me shudder to just think about it!
10. The meat is some of the best I’ve ever had
Many people in New Zealand own plenty of land where they keep their own animals and while it’s not very nice to think about, the meat that I ate in New Zealand was some of the best that I’ve ever had and I think that’s largely due to the way that the owners looked after and cared for their animals. They had plenty of space to roam around and were very well looked after.
11. Before moving to New Zealand I wish I’d learned about rugby – the Kiwis love it!
We were actually living in New Zealand at the time of the Rugby World Cup when it was held there and it was so amazing to see everyone get into the spirit of the sport. The Kiwis absolutely love rugby and if you’re going to move over there, you can bet that the topic of rugby will come up fairly often!
12. New Zealand is nothing like Australia – and the natives will get offended if you think it is!
Despite being in the same part of the world, New Zealand is actually nothing like Oz, and the locals will never let you forget that fact! The accent may sound fairly similar but the Kiwis actually have slightly different inflections at the end of some words; not only that but the culture itself differs from that of the Australian culture.
13. The food can be a little strange but just embrace it – what to know before moving to New Zealand
While some supermarkets stock some food similar to the food that you’d find in the UK, there are also plenty of differences and variations.
For example, when we were living there, I really missed the likes of Jaffa cakes, Pringles and Monster Munch. Thankfully, my family and friends were more than kind enough to send over care packages full of our favourite foods which I’d highly recommend if there’s a particular thing you’re missing while living there!
14. There really are more sheep than people!
I had actually heard about this fact before I moved to New Zealand but after living there for almost nine months, I really can vouch for the fact that there are more sheep than people in NZ! As there’s so much countryside and open spaces in New Zealand, it only makes sense for there to be so many sheep and cows.
15. That it would change my life forever
While this point might seem a little ambiguous, the time I spent living in New Zealand was pretty much the whole inspiration and driving force behind me having a deep longing to travel the world and in April 2019, my boyfriend and I headed back there for 3 months to experience house sitting and a campervan road trip for the first time; two experiences which also had a huge impact on my life.
Whenever someone asks me about my favourite country in the world, my answer is always New Zealand and I have a feeling that it probably always will be because the effect it had on my life is ever-lasting.
If you’re planning on emigrating to New Zealand from the UK, you should know that it isn’t the easiest country to move to as there are a lot of visa applications and processes that need to be taken care of. If you’re planning to emigrate to New Zealand, be sure to check out the NZ Government website for more information.
Related posts
- What It’s Actually Like To Move To The Other Side Of The World
- How Much Money We Spent On A 3 Month Trip Around New Zealand
- 33 Weird, Wonderful & Wacky Facts About New Zealand
- The Ultimate North Island New Zealand Bucket List
- Our 5-Week South Island New Zealand Road Trip Itinerary
- 33 Fun Facts About New Zealand
Pin for later – things to know before moving to new zealand
Is there anything else you’d like to know about the top things to know before moving to New Zealand? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter at @imjustagirl_16.
This is a great post for anyone thinking of moving abroad! I always thought that New Zealand was hot all year round! Never realised. I also would t fine Christmas the same if it’s the summer time! Great post x
Thank you! Yeah, Christmas in the sun was definitely a strange experience! X
Hahaha i remember when i moved to New Zealand… they love rugby! and yes christmas is different .Don’t call them australians ahah and walking barefoot ahahah
They really do haha!
This is such an interesting post Chloe! I never knew about the shoe thing! That is kinda cool and unusual. I imagine having Christmas Day in the summer on the beach is really strange but that’s so nice everyone is friendly. The spiders sound pretty scary though! Thanks for sharing, it looks like a such a beautiful place ???? xx
Bexa
Thank you so much Bexa! Xx
I once spent a Christmas in Australia which has Summer at Christmas time too! So strange x
Morgan
What an strange comment about shoes. I am a New Zealander (my mother was English), I don’t why this comment has been made as apart from walking on the beach, most everyone wears shoes all of the time! Children may play from time to time barefoot, but just like all children everywhere!
Spiders are not a problem in NZ, I may have seen 2 white tails in my 70plus years (they can nip but they are not deadly), I’m gobsmacked that spiders even rate a mention! We do have the delicate Daddy Long Legs that have a very tiny body and long spindly legs; totally harmless, sometimes found in homes looking for insect pests to eat!
Food IS different (I’ve been to the UK). Generally we are more health conscious when cooking, less fat used and less eating of processed foods! Ours is more of a fresh meat, fresh vege and fruit culture! Today’s younger generation are really into keeping fit with exercise in its many forms!
From one who knows!!
Thank you for your comment. This post is written from my experience of living in New Zealand so while it might not be true for every single person, these are the things that I experienced during my time there. I know spiders aren’t typically a problem but my mum was bitten twice by a white tail, so again that’s just what I found to be true in my case. In terms of the shoes, we didn’t have to wear shoes to school where I went and in the supermarket in my local town, very few people wore shoes when shopping there. Things may just be different for each person.
I reluctantly left New Zealand to live in Australia. NZ was and still is in my humble opinion too expensive, however. My wife and I visit as often as we can and the friendliness issue I completely agree with. We live in Brisbane were the humidity for much of the year is uncomfortable but for those with asthma it’s a God send. Australian have pretty tough sometimes dodgy business ethics which I had to quickly adjust to. My Mother is Australian so no problems with citizenship. On a more macro note have the impression NZ is trying to emulate Scandinavia; just an impression. NZ gets into your soul, well at least mine.