The NZ Environment

What makes New Zealand a great place to visit or for studies?

It's a land of extraordinary natural beauty
The plant, animal, reptile and marine life is 2nd to none
It has a small population of only 4 million people
The standard of English language education is extremely high
It offers Maori as well as Pakeha and a growing number of other cultures
It's relaxed and friendly
It's clean and extremely green
It's one of the safest countries in the world
For a western country, it's relatively cheap to live - compare with the UK, Candada, Australia or the USA!
It's the home of some of the world's best adventure activities

National Geographic once described new Zealand as a "World in miniature" which is why it's the perfect country for touring. New Zealand, also known by the Maori name of Aotearoa, is roughly the size of Japan, the British Isles or California - large enough to contain a huge variety of scenic attractions, and small enough so you can get to see most of them in a short time. It has won numerous awards.

New Zealand is, however, threatened by tourism and other industries. At E-Tours, we wish to minimize any negative impact of our form of tourism on our natural and social environment so that we may continue to enjoy our country for generations to come.

We believe we do this by:

supporting eco-tourism ventures
adopting environmentally-friendly practices in our own business
supporting local business and community
educating students about these issues
becoming part of the GreenGlobe 21 programme

We currently promote use of eco-tourism ventures such as Waimangu Valley and Rainbow Springs in Rotorua, Mountain View Organics, Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust and many others. We are based in Raglan where 70% or more of rubbish is diverted from landfill. We personally practice waste minimization and recycling in our office and on all programmes. Our paper and food scraps go to the worms or to composting. We support local community and businesses who provide our activities, accommodation and supplies. When feeding students, we focus on clean, healthy, home-cooked and often home-grown ingredients and minimal packaging. We involve students in these practices wherever possible. Our own syllabus is called "The World We Live In" which incorporates many environmental themes. We take students to visit local environmental groups. We are in the process of becoming affiliated with the Green Globe programme.


Learning to worm farm	Visit to local Recycling Centre

Come and learn about the incredible New Zealand environment and what you can do to help protect it.