The waters around New Zealand's coast offer some superb opportunities for scuba diving and snorkelling . What they lack in tropical warmth and fabulously colourful fish they make up for with the range of diving environments. Pretty much anywhere along the more sheltered eastern side of both islands you'll find somewhere with rewarding snorkelling, but much the best and most accessible spot is the Goat Island Marine Reserve , in Northland, where there's a superb range of habitats close to the shore. Northland also has world-class scuba diving at the Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve , reached by boat from Tutukaka; wreck diving on the Rainbow Warrior , from Matauri Bay; other good spots lie close to Auckland in the Hauraki Gulf Maritime Park and off Great Barrier Island. In the South Island there are the crystal-clear Pupu Springs , and fabulous growths of black and red corals relatively close to the surface of the southwestern fiords near Milford.

For the inexperienced, the easiest way to get a taste of what's under the surface is to take a " resort dive "with an instructor. If you want to dive independently, you need to be PADI qualified, which demands classroom instruction and a series of dives over a minimum period of a week. For more information, pick up the free, comprehensive, bi-monthly Dive New Zealand brochure from dive shops and the bigger visitor centres, or consult their Web site at www.divenewzealand.com .