Local Employment

Christchurch is a vibrant town with a great café and restaurant scene with many pubs and clubs ranging in all prices. Most areas of Canterbury offer great opportunities for hospitality work, some seasonal and some not. Kaikoura, for example, as well as Akaroa, are wonderful in the summer with plenty to do and many visitors, so jobs are plentiful. Hanmer Springs is a great little town in either summer or winter as it has fantastic thermal hot pools. Methven, Arthurs Pass and Lake Tekapo are the places to be in winter due to skiing. Timaru is a lively town with year-round opportunities and a great place to base yourself if you are into agriculture. Canterbury has two major areas of viticulture. These are Waipara and the area around Christchurch, typically labelled merely Canterbury. Recently there have been vintages from plantings from Kurow further to the south. White wine has typically predominated in Canterbury from riesling, sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, gewürztraminer, and to a lesser extent pinot blanc and pinot gris. Pinot noir has had some success in the province, particularly in the Waipara district.

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