Anniversary Weekends in New Zealand – I’m off to the beach.
We have lots of bank holidays in New Zealand.
11 to be exact.
10 national days and then the anniversary days. And today is Wellington Anniversary day, so hubby gets a long weekend, and (if it stops raining for more than 5 minutes in the middle of what is supposed to be our summer) we are heading to the beach.
The only downside to bank holidays is the Surcharge you get in a lot of hotels, restaurants and cafes. Fortunately – our favourite haunt – Café Bambino in Carterton doesn’t charge it.
2010 Bank Holidays
New Years Day is Friday 1 January
Plus day following Monday 4 January
Waitangi Day is Saturday 6 February
Good Friday is Friday 2 April
Easter Monday is Monday 5 April
Anzac Day is Sunday 25 April
Queens Birthday is Monday 7 June
Labour Day Monday is 25 October
Christmas Day Saturday 25 December
Boxing Day Sunday 26 December
New Zealand Regional Anniversary Holidays
Southland anniversary day is Monday 18 January 2010;
Wellington anniversary day is Monday 25 January 2010;
Auckland anniversary day ; Monday 1 February 2010;
Nelson anniversary day Monday 1 February 2010,
Taranaki anniversary day Monday 8 March 2010
Otago anniversary day Monday 22 March 2010;
South Canterbury anniversary day; Monday 27 Sept 2010;
Hawkes Bay anniversary day; Friday 22 October 2010;
Marlborough anniversary day; Monday 1 November 2010
Canterbury anniversary day ; Friday 12 November 2010;
Westland anniversary day is Monday; Monday 29 November 2010;
Chatham Islands anniversary day Monday; Monday 30 November 2010;
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Happy Birthday QE2 – lets all have a day off!
It’s a holiday today. Yet another one. We get so many here in New Zealand – I think it is an often overlooked benefit of moving here. I always found it slightly strange that we don’t celebrate The Queens Birthday back in the UK with a holiday – but move half way round the world and you get a day off for it.
Not that it isn’t celebrated back home – but the Trooping Of The Colour – while a nice bit of pomp – isn’t exactly giving us plebs a holiday like we get here.
In fact it seems that several Commonwealth countries get a day off for this – so I feel even more that as Brits we get a bit let down on this front. Oddly though – everywhere celebrates it on a different day. Oh to be Queen – several birthdays every year.
Nonetheless – it’s a day off work for people here, and also marks the official start of the Ski Season. Not that I go skiing. Although as it was actually snowing here in the Wairarapa yesterday – almost unheard of- it’s a timely if unwelcome reminder that winter is here.
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Winery takings up 43 percent
Despite the odd Easter trading restrictions Avalon blogged about a few days ago, it appears to have been a bumper weekend for the Wineries around NZ. Paymark today released figures, that show a 43% increase in $$ spent at wineries over the four day weekend this year, compared with last year. How many actual $$ that 43% represents isn’t recorded.
We took some friends round a few wineries on Easter Monday, four out of the 34+ we have within a 15 minute drive of where we live. (and some people wonder why we live ‘out in the sticks’ of the Wairarapa!)
Four cases of wine and one designated driver later, we’d had a thorougherly enjoyable day. I just hope we weren’t the 43% increase!
New Zealand’s Bizarre Easter Trading Laws
We have some rules here about trading over Easter – which always seems to create quite a kerfuffle. Basically there are 4 days on which there are trading restrictions: Christmas Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Anzac day (but only in the morning).
The problem comes with the pretty silly way in which the restrictions are written. So a shop can’t open to sell you something, but can open to rent you something. A dairy can open as long as it only sells urgent necessities, but a supermarket can’t because you can basically wait till trading resumes. Although the necessity rule doesn’t apply to Duty Free stores – apparently you are not expected to have to wait to get your “cheap” booze and fags. Nor does it apply to “souvenir stores”.
Then there’s the bit that causes the most agro: stores in Queenstown and Taupo are exempt because they are in tourist areas – but Wanaka and Rotorua have to abide by the law with no exemptions in place.
It’s all very silly, and I guess just what happens when a Bureaucrat makes a rule without switching on their common sense – which as we all know really isn’t that common.
Also remember that we get hit with the appalling “Holiday Surcharge” when eating out over the long weekend. Though interestingly I’ve read that Easter Sunday isn’t actually classed as a Public Holiday – so restaurants who charge extra on Sunday are completely and utterly ripping people off even more than normal! They will not have to pay the staff extra, nor give them a day off in lieu – so they can’t even try and excuse their profiteering on that basis!
It’s a bank holiday – that’ll be 15% extra please!
Filed under: Cost of living, General Budgeting, Jobs & Work, Life in New Zealand
Today is Wellington Anniversary day – which means another Bank Holiday. I just love the amount of Bank Holidays we get here – almost makes up for that fact that you can’t get 5 weeks holiday from your jobs.
But why does it have to cost 15% extra if you want to eat out or grab a coffee today????
Because of something called the Holidays Act 2003.
Now – this act is a good thing. For a start it means Employees are entitled to 4 weeks holiday. Before this – they got a pathetic 2 weeks by right. Not good for a country that people emigrate to for a better quality of life.
But the act also brought into law what has to happen for staff that are required to work on a Bank Holiday. Before this – it seems it was all a bit piecemeal – with employees getting a bit of a raw deal in many cases.
The holiday acts means that employees now:
- Have to be paid Time and a Half to work on a Public Holiday
- Have to be given another day off as well, if the public holiday falls on a day when the would normally be working.
This is, as they say – “all good”. Employee rights in New Zealand in this area were in my opinion, appalling, and it needed to be changed. I mean – 2 weeks holiday??? Sheesh!
Except that some of the restaurant and café industry have decided to charge extra to their customers (usually 15%) on a public holiday to cover the increased cost of the new rules for the Public Holidays. Many other cafes and restaurants remain closed.
Which puts us, as the public, in the rather odd position of either
a/ not being able to go out for a coffee or meal on a bank holiday (usually over summer), or
b/ having to pay extra to do so.
Now – what confuses me about this – is that there is no other retail sector that asks me to pay extra today if I use their services. I don’t have to pay extra at the supermarkets, or the petrol station, or in any other store. Makes no difference if it’s a big chain, or a local independent. They all still have to follow the new rules. So why are the café trade allowed to do this???
Be aware of this. We choose not to eat out on Bank Holidays, as we do not support this charge. And besides – we have a coffee budget and an eating out budget. The 15% extra can easily blow a hole right through that. With so many people now watching the pennies – it makes it even harder to live within your means on a Holiday.
If we really want to go out – we look for cafes that do not charge extra. If a café want to slap on a surcharge – they have to tell you up front. They cannot tell you when you go to pay the bill. Most cafes will have a sign up advising you how much extra you will pay. Many restaurants have a notice on the bottom of their menus.
We have noticed in some towns not all cafes which open on a holiday charge extra. They are the ones that are heaving!
Whether or not you go out today – have a very happy Wellington Anniversary Day.
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