Quote:
Originally Posted by vondermot
At present I don't drive, never really needed to,
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Me neither!
If you're going to live in or very close to one of the cities you could probably get away with not driving as there are ferries, buses and trains to get around in as well as taxis. And, of course, you can always walk and take in the scenery. The cities are reasonably compact so getting about shouldn't be too difficult.
If you really wanted to learn to drive but only want to drive in NZ, perhaps it would be a good idea to wait until you're in NZ. I say this for 2 reasons, if you learn in the UK you will be learning UK rules, then when you get to NZ you'll have to learn a new set of rules or, at least, some new rules. Therefore, it might be just as well to learn in the country you're wanting to drive in. Also, if you get a UK driver's licence, you'll have to apply for a NZ one before you've been in the country for 12 months. This means sitting a written test like a scratch card and, I'm not sure but, I think if you haven't been a driver for very long, you may have to sit another practical test. Every driver who's been in NZ for up to 12 months has to apply for a NZ licence and sit the scratch test.
Have you seen this
online driving test which is the sort of thing you'd have to do? Your hubby might like to take a peek as well because it'll affect him too. There are some funny little rules that are peculiar to NZ alone, so it's worth swatting up on them.
Edited to add:
I've just tested the above link and there's some problem with the website. Might just be at my end, but if it doesn't work for you now, perhaps try a bit later or tomorrow.
Here's another website that tells you about
driving licences . And here's one that tells you about
The Road Code .