G'day all,
Going on my first trip to Queenstown next month and I heard their customs are even stricter than Australia, especially in Queenstown (?)
Can anyone share their experience of what things that are 100% no go if you bring it to Queenstown? I heard honey is strictly forbidden.
How about if I bring some dry snacks (biscuits, chips), jellies and teas?
TIA!
wow JV, I already prepared for some sarcastic comment from you lol
https://www.mpi.govt.nz/bring-send-to-nz/bringing-and-postin…
interesting, it does not say form that link that i can only bring it if it goes into checked luggage? and it does say that it needs to be NZ made only
It is part of the 100ml liquid rules for security…. not really a customs rule.
Many get caught out and it is confiscated.
Honey is deemed a liquid (gel)…
https://www.abf.gov.au/entering-and-leaving-australia/can-yo…
Yes you can it just needs to be 100ml or less
Can you buy commercially bottled honey that is 100ml or less?
How about if I bring some dry snacks (biscuits, chips), jellies and teas?
Most will be fine if you declare them…
As long as there are not seeds that can still be grown…
Anything processed/cooked commercially should be fine.
Don’t try to take fruit in. A friend got done for having an apple.
I brought and ate an apple on the plane (and left/disposed of the core onboard). Sniffer dog stopped me in the customs queue having sniffed my carry on bag and got bag searched. I think it was a beagle.
I’ve seen similar sniffer dogs in Australia. Personally I have no issue with it given the devastation that importing infested or diseased stuff could bring. You watch border force and you think WTF do some people think they are doing?
However, we had a friend who went home to Malaysia for Christmas and took two hams with her.
how about dry fruit?
Why do you want to bring honey into NZ ? Their Manuka Honey is the best in the world.
Not for eating, it tastes horrible.
Their Manuka Honey is the best in the world.
Yuk….
Pretty much any of their other honey tastes better…
did you not spend the 2000s watching border security?
personally that ingrained into me that bringing food of any kind into/out of australia is not worth the hassle. it's not like food is completely unavailable in NZ
it's not like food is completely unavailable in NZ
Other than meat & dairy, it is nowhere near the quality of Australian fresh produce.
Other than meat
I am pretty sure that Australia has a better meat quality than NZ…
just as well. processed food was literally designed for you to eat, organic is just some crap they found on the ground somewhere.
You have to be kidding me. I tasted the most incredible apples, pears and stone fruits in New Zealand when I lived there for almost 10 years. The stuff my bil is growing just out of Arrowtown is amazing as well. We had an apricot tree with fruit bigger than a peach.
NZ orchardists have a very strict set of rules for handling produce. It leaves NZ in perfect condition only to be mishandled in this country. The stuff I would buy at the orchard gate (their seconds and rejects) was better than what you buy in a store here. It still is. Last time we were in Otago we got some amazing apricots that were huge and had a great taste. I have never bought anything of that quality in this country (and I am an Aussie) and those apricots were bought direct from the orchard meaning they weren't considered good enough for commercial sale. The best cherries I've ever had were from that area as well - again direct from the farm.
The really good thing is that they put the worst of the lot into products like juice, ice cream etc for minimum waste. Tree falls are eaten by stock or picked up by passing people. My 5 year old son had the time if his life picking apples up this way (with their permission). They tasted pretty good too.
Where we lived was called the "Fruit Bowl of NZ" so we were spoiled. Then it got a reputation for wine too. An amazing taste experience but they suffered big losses there last year with former cyclone Gabrielle. Whole orchards just disappearing. Produce supply has been affected since then.
Confectionary and commercially packaged biscuits should be fine if declared. I would be extremely surprised if they let tea get through
Declare what your bring in and you will be okay.
What's not allowed you will lose it only.
Commercially packaged products are usually no problem.
From my experience, it's definitely the other way around.. Australia (Melbourne) is more strict than Queenstown.
I've been may times with food and sporting goods and it's only when coming back when I've been inspected.
Snacks, biscuits, teas, jellies are fine provided you declare them.
When we were in America we found this great jerk spice we used to buy commercially packaged in a plastic jar. We brought some back with us from America with minimal issues; we did declare it. We had a friend over there who regularly sent us more, then the restaurant stopped selling it. She cajoled the restaurant to sell her some loose. She packaged it in ziplock bags and sent it to us. I figured that would be the last I would see of it but it duly arrived. I know customs had opened it because they put in a brochure that, basically, said there was some stuff they wouldn’t accept. I wonder how lineball unlabelled jerk spice was?
The moral is know what you’re are importing and declare stuff.
You do know you can buy all those items in New Zealand.
I came here hoping to see how people have previously travelled to Queenstown.
Talk is about honey and quanratine.
quanratine
Pfft. I think you mean "quaranatine".
Why bother importing biscuits and chips? They sell this stuff in NZ.
Unless you have a specific, essential item to bring (which should be declared), it's best to avoid bringing any food to NZ altogether.
I have travelled through Queenstown airport often. Biosecurity are ok, just declare any food you may have or any naturally made products. eg. things made of or in wooden boxes, body products/creams made of natural products. Just declare it and they will check it out and they dispose of it if they believe it is a biosecurity risk. They will not fine you if you just declare it.
Do not bring any honey it will be removed, even if it is highly processed and in a sports gel. Do not bring any fresh meat, vege, or fruits, or flowers, or live or dead animals.
Highly processed/heat treated food like cookies and dehydrated meals are normally ok. I go through with sports foods sometimes.
Make sure all equipment/boots are free of dirt and are not damp.
Declare any camping equipment. They will take your tent to a room to open out and check that it is clean.
Basically read customs and biosecurity form on the plane and fill out correctly and you will be all good.
Go to Queenstown (Tas) with less hassles… lol
You don't need to bring any of this stuff to Queenstown - it has entirely adequate supermarkets. If you really need to bring your own stuff, check https://www.customs.govt.nz/personal/travel-to-and-from-nz/t…
Our experience of Queenstown airport was that it's worse on the way to Australia - huge queues to get through security and automated baggage check in died. Arrive early!
Tips for Queenstown
* Avoid FergBurger. Long waits for very average burgers
* If you plan to ride buses, get a Bee Card as you leave the airport. Two people can use the same Bee card, which is handy. See https://www.orc.govt.nz/public-transport/bee-card-the-smart-…
Queenstown does have shops not only do save yourself the hassle of what to take you might try something different.
It has been a while, but Queenstown was always more relaxed in our NZ travels. We even had one flight out to Brisbane where we were all in the lounge and security turned up to screen passengers and most of the flight was already sitting in the departure lounge. They just left us alone. I've brought my wheelchair the last few times and the ground crew were pretty amazing as well. Not having seen anything like my chair before, they asked my husband to show them how to put it together so they would know next time.
We did notice last year arriving in Auckland though, they did seem to have upped their war on what is coming in.
They stole my AirPods and GoPro batteries that were in stowed luggage, be sure to put in carry on
To take into NZ or bring back?
Many Australian states allow you to bring back honey… Check the customs website…
NOTE:
You cannot take any honey as carry on… It is considered a liquid. It must go into checked luggage.
For taking honey into NZ, these are the rules.
https://www.mpi.govt.nz/bring-send-to-nz/bringing-and-postin…