Christchurch

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Christchurch is the South Island's largest city and is also one of the liveliest and most attractive in the country. It has long enjoyed the epithet of the 'Garden City', with numerous leafy parks and gardens providing a relaxing backdrop to the well laid-out city centre. An added bonus is the delightful Avon River meandering between the city's Gothic stone buildings. Streetside cafés and trendy wine bars have mushroomed in recent years, adding to the vitality of streetlife, and complementing a vibrant arts scene with numerous festivals, drama and music performances. Christchurch is also said to be the most English city in New Zealand.
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Christchurch is a city made for walking, as many of the top sights are within easy reach of the central Cathedral Square. However, the historic Christchurch Tramway and the free Central City Electric Shuttle are also enjoyable ways to sight-see the main central attractions.
Outdoor enthusiasts reckon that, after Queenstown, there is no better place in the South Island than Christchurch to live in. Pacific Ocean beaches are close by, the Southern Alps are less than an hour's drive away for rock climbing, mountain biking, river rafting and the like, and in the winter there are 12 ski fields from which to choose. Taking advantage of the extensive Canterbury Plains to the west of the city, Christchurch has also become a major centre for hot-air ballooning.

Cathedral Square

This spacious, pedestrianised square is a great place to while away a sunny day. This is where you will find the main Visitor Centre. Atheists and the faithful mount their stepladders to battle it out verbally in front of amused crowds on the cathedral's steps - this is the city's free speech corner, where anything and everything goes. A regular crafts market and a clutch of stalls selling ethnic food add to the colour of the city's main focal point.