Genteel Christchurch

Capital of the Canterbury region and the largest city on New Zealands South Island, CHRISTCHURCH (population 300,000) exudes a palpable air of gentility and a connectedness with the mother country. After all, it was perceived as an outpost of Anglicanism by its first settlers, was named after an Oxford college, and has some of the feel of a traditional English university town, with its neo-Gothic architecture and gently winding river.

To some degree it pursues an archetype - the boys at Christ's College still wear striped blazers, and punts course along the Avon - but the Englishness is largely skin deep. Modern Christchurch is a lively melting pot of cultures, with a continental café scene and a distinct, ever-changing Kiwi identity of its own. Indeed, those who regard Christchurch as a quiet place in which to sleep off jet lag or take a break from the long journey across the South Island will be pleasantly surprised by the city's contemporary face. In recent years its traditional conservatism has gained a more youthful, bohemian edge, with an explosion of lively bars and restaurants , the emergence of underground nightlife , and a burgeoning of the visual arts, theatre, music and street entertainment. Such urban pursuits are nicely balanced by the Pacific Ocean suburbs of New Brighton and Sumner, both of which boast excellent beaches .

Straddling the main road and rail routes running down the east coast, Christchurch is used by many tourists as a base from which to explore the South Island, with the steep, angular terrain of Banks Peninsula and the vineyards of the Canterbury Plains proving the most popular out-of-town destinations. Many of the outdoor activities for which New Zealand is famous are accessible from here, with a plethora of city-based companies offering trips involving rafting, paragliding, ballooning and mountain biking in the surrounding countryside . The city is also within a two-hour drive of several good skifields to the west , making it possible to combine a day on the pistes with an evening in Christchurch's numerous nocturnal watering holes. Indeed the place's only real drawback is its cost: compared with the rest of the South Island, Christchurch is an expensive place to spend any length of time.

Christchurch has the largest number and widest range of restaurants in the South Island. It has long discarded most of the dowdier establishments of old and has wholeheartedly adopted the national penchant for Pacific Rim cuisine with an admixture of influences from just about everywhere else. To whet your appetite, buy a copy of the comprehensive Classic Canterbury Dining Out Guide from the visitor centre ($4.95). Top-quality gourmet cuisine is increasingly well represented, and now nicely balances the selection of ethnic restaurants on offer. There's also a growing number of fun, themed establishments featuring live music, and for a more down-to-earth atmosphere, many of the city's pubs serve hearty food to soak up their brews.

Gone are the days when evenings in Christchurch revolved around decaying, male-dominated Edwardian pubs. The modern city harbours enough traditional hostelries, late-night cafés and throbbing music bars to suit most tastes, and many of these offer more than just booze: live music, resident DJs and good food are increasingly taken for granted. After about 10pm the restaurants of "The Strip" metamorphose into rowdy bars and clubs: just follow the crowds.

Serious music and drama are centred on venues like the Town Hall and the Arts Centre, while less cerebral entertainment is offered by a concentration of downtown clubs and a clutch of city-centre cinemas. Entertainment listings are published in Christchurch's daily newspaper The Press (the "What's On" section on Fridays is best for live music and clubbing), and in the free monthly magazines Volume and Presto .

Apart from in Rotorua, the best chance you'll get to sample a Maori concert (and savour a hangi) is here in Christchurch at the Nga Hau E Wha National Marae , 250 Pages Rd ("Marae of the Four Winds"; tel 0800/456 898, fax 03/388 7692, www.nationalmarae.co.nz ), which was set up in 1990 to symbolize the meeting of people from all points of the compass. The meeting house, one of the largest in New Zealand, is named Aoraki after Mount Cook , and the carved posts ( poupou ) depict ancient and contemporary ancestors, acting as memory aids encouraging the continuation of oral tradition. A unique feature is the appearance of two European ancestors (one of which is Captain Cook), intended to symbolize the coming together of the two peoples (for more on Maoritanga ). Provided they get enough advance bookings, there's a choice of two events: the "Night of Maori Magic" (daily 6.45pm; $60) follows pretty much along the lines of the Rotorua-style concert and hangi but includes a detailed look around the marae with a full explanation of the protocol and tribal history; the "Maori Tour and Concert" (daily 7.55pm; $27.50), is the same except that there's no hangi. Free transport is laid on for those with reservations.

Straddling the main road and rail routes down the east coast, Christchurch provides easy air, road and rail access to most parts of the South Island.

The quickest way of getting around the South Island is by air , with Air New Zealand and Ansett New Zealand operating direct daily flights to Dunedin, Hokitika, Invercargill, Mount Cook, Nelson, Queenstown and Timaru, with other destinations reached via Wellington