TravellerHints! Au-Nz will ofer pristine nature, stunning coastline with countless number of picture-perfect white sand beaches or rich history and modern culture – those are all traits that Australia and New Zealand have in common, attracting visitors and explorers from all over the world every year. Yet, each country is quite different though both belong to some of the most
Au-Nz liveable and developed ones on Earth with sustainable high quality of life.
Both Au and Nz are countries belonging to Australasia. Located on the southern hemisphere, they are approximately 1 500 km far from each other separated by the Tasman Sea. Both countries are relatively isolated which have influenced their history in many ways.
Australia was occupied by Indigenous Aboriginal inhabitant before it was discovered by Dutch in the early 17th century and later on slowly settled by Europeans in the late 18th century as a penal colony in originally New South Wales.
New Zealand was discovered by Maori people coming initially from Polynesia already before the year 1 300. The European discovery of the country took place in the 17th century as well, though New Zealand became a British colony later in 19th century. Both countries thus have traces of European blood in their population.
One of the biggest differences between those countries is their size. Australia is a vast country (cca 7.7 million square km) with circa 23 million people and the it is spreading across various climates and have large areas covered by desert and suffering from drought.
On the other hand, New Zealand is much smaller (268 000 square km), long and narrow island state with around 4.4 million people. Due to the temperate maritime climate, the whole country receives much more rainfall and the soil is also fed by water from melting glaciers.
Both Au-Nz: are home to some rare and unique animal species.
In case of Australia those are for example kangaroo, koala, echidna, dingo, wombat, wallaby or platypus. Number of Australian
animals is known to be dangerous for people – there is around 172 snake and sea snake species. More than a half of them are venomous and some can even kill a human.
This country also has 135 spiders while some of them are highly venomous which can cause human dead as well (Redback Spider, Sydney Funnel-web Spider).
New Zealand’s most famous animals include kiwi, kakapo, tuatara, gecko, weka or skink. Compared to above mentioned Australia, New Zealand is an island home to several lizards but not a single (native population) snake.
However, this country also has large population of spiders. While most of them are completely harmless for humans, two species’ bites are venomous to people (Katipo Spider and Redback Spider).
Despite the diverse structure of their countryside, both countries Au-Nz are home to some of the most breathtaking landscapes and true gems of natural beauty. New Zealand is know mostly thanks to its unspoiled fertile land and breathtaking sceneries often portrayed in famous movies which sometimes make it hard to believe that something so pristine still exists.
New Zealand’s pure green nature is perfect for some adventurous sports such as bungee jumping, skiing, kayaking and hiking and one of the most famous sports this country is known for is undisputably rugby, which is also considered the national sport.
Australian landscapes are equally beautiful, though „Down Under“ is more famous for its laid-back lifestyle full of surfing, stunning beaches and many cosmopolitan cities with vibrant atmosphere and plenty of opportunities. Australia is also perfect for hiking, various watersports or sky diving and one of the most popular national sports are cricket, Australian rules football and also rugby.
Both countries belong to the most developed ones with strong economies. Price levels in both are also rather high. New Zealand’s wages and living costs in general are, however, in comparison lower than the Australian ones.
Both economies are trading with Asia, United States and most importantly with each other.
Though both are highly dependent on each other, New Zealand’s most significant trading partner remains to be Australia, while Australia is trading more with China and the rest of Asian countries.
Australian Defense Force, though it’s relatively small, is a sophisticated military organisation with almost 58 thousands of full-time active-duty personnel and more than 23 thousands active reserves. Stating not only numbers, Australian military strength is ranked among top 15 in the world, also owning a nuclear weapons.
Due to the remoteness of Au-Nz, both countries have throughout the time developed their own standard classification (codes) and qualification within different fields such as education, law, agriculture or health care and those usually vary from the rest of the world.
