An Australian friend of our family, Victor Catchpoole with his wife Margaret and their two daughters, Heather and Barbara, travelled around New Zealand in a rental car. On return to home near Sydney Australia, Victor sent an email message to his Mother - who lives in Brisbane. You may find this diary of interest to help you with your own planning. Click here for Victor's Trip Report
General Information
A good place to start for general details about New Zealand is at:
http://www.purenz.com/aboutnz.cfm
That is a meeting-place with links to other places. It can lead you to details about all sorts of things!
Amateur Radio Operating
Bring your Amateur Radio 2m hand-held transceiver! You can operate it here using your present callsign and for FREE!
Information about New Zealand licensing requirements can be found at two places on the World Wide Web.
Information about NZART, the New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters Incorporated, New Zealand's amateur radio society and member of the IARU, can be found at:
The Ministry of Economic Development is the New Zealand Radio Administration. The page with licensing information for visitors to New Zealand is at
http://www.med.govt.nz/rsm/publications/hamguide.html
You will note that as an overseas radio amateur visiting New Zealand, you have a privilege by which you can use the callsign
ZL / (HomeCall)
on VHF bands here for a short term without having to go through any formal New Zealand licensing procedures - and at no charge too! Details are given on "Guide" on the web page - under a paragraph headed "Waiver".
Join NZART!
Information about VHF and UHF repeaters with their operating frequencies, locations and coverage, can be obtained from charts and maps in the NZART Annual Callbook. The country is well covered by several hundred repeaters!
You can join NZART as an Overseas Member if you wish and I encourage you to do so. You are very welcome to join.
NZART is a small society (with less than 3000 members) and the support we get from overseas radio amateurs is sincerely appreciated. We publish an amateur radio magazine, "Break-In", which receives international acclaim.
As an NZART member you will receive copies of "Break-In" and a copy of the latest issue of the NZART Callbook.
More details and a membership form are at:
Most credit cards are accepted.
Meetings of Radio Amateurs
NZART has some 80 Branches spread throughout the country. Most Branches meet monthly and overseas visitors are welcome to attend the meetings.
Contact information for each Branch is given in the Callbook. Some Branches have their own web sites which you can reach through the NZART web site given above.
I hope that the above information is helpful to you!
In Summary:
About NEW ZEALAND About UPPER HUTT
About Radio Amateurs VISITING NEW ZEALAND
A STUDY GUIDE for the NEW ZEALAND Amateur Radio Examination QUESTION-BANK.
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