10 Biggest Differences Between the USA & New Zealand

I also like that because you don’t have to tip, when you order your food and sit down at cafe or restaurant, the staff leave you alone once you get your food. I love that I can literally eat in peace and not have the wait staff harass me to get a higher tip.

I noticed that people were genuinely friendly and seemed to care about their country. It was so clean in the city, compared to US cities. I respected their work life balance too.

PLEASE READ Hello friends!! Thanks for watching this video. I want to clarify that when I say the countries were founded by the British - I mean the modern nations. Both the USA and New Zealand had and STILL HAVE strong indigenous cultures (Native Americans in the USA and the Maori People in New Zealand) who predate European contact by tens of thousands of years in the USA and at least 500 hundred years in New Zealand. Please understand I meant no offense and as a student of cultural anthropology and history, love to learn about, share and understand as much as I can about these fascinating cultures. Sending love, Alex If you're interested in visiting New Zealand then watch my New Zealand Travel Guide here: https://youtu.be/tbbWXRuVNVk FUNNY AUSTRALIA VS NEW ZEALAND VIDEO: https://youtu.be/JEvE6gnboIE

I found the Kiwis to be very resourceful with their possessions and repair rather than replace goods like radios and bicycles as the import duty is so high that it is very expensive to just throw things away and buy a new one like we do here in the states. There is a great culture of DIY as the population is so small you need to learn how to fix things yourself rather than just call a repairman. Great video!

Healthcare affordability is probably one of the biggest differences.

Hey Aucklander here, visited the US in 2018. Biggest shock to me was how unreserved, outspoken and loud Americans are compared to Kiwis, especially in public. In NZ if you make a scene in public, not only is it rare, everyone goes silent and watches with their mouth open. Americans will speak up, even in public, if something is bothering them, many kiwis will let it boil silently to keep the peace. Another shock was the individualistic culture. In NZ we are a collective culture that works together rather than individual rights taking center stage. America felt like the wild west to me, made me appreciate NZ more than ever. Oh one more! The litigiousness in the US...what on earth...suing people for giving CPR/saving your life. Why does the law make it possible to sue for practically anything? Nobody wins except lawyers 🤣

New Zealand tops my list in countries I lived in. Wellington was my second home for nearly eight years from 2009 to 2016. This coolest little capital is the second cleanest city in the world next to Helsinki. The laid back atmosphere of New Zealand is what I miss so much. Panoramic scenery are superb and people are generally friendly they nod and smile even to strangers.

In regard to some restaurants not taking your credit card: This will depend on where you are, if they won't, it will likely boil down to our education around digital safety (think credit card skimming and identity theft) secondly respect, we respect peoples privacy and personal property of which a credit card embodies, we are raised with this mindset and that waitress, well she was probably less 'confused' and more experiencing a PTSD flashback to being beaten with a jandal for stealing her mum's card as a child lol. When you find yourself in this kind of situation again you can ask the waiter to let the host know that you will be paying for the table and that everyone else is your guest, it's up to you when you then want to go and make payment. If your guests are New Zealanders, then just be straight up, we're all so humble that if you say 'let me get it bro' we will just add wee mental note of how much of a good cunt ya are! -This also means that what goes around comes around, expect the same gesture in return and when it's made, say thanks and carry on, because it's rude to turn down a feed in NZ (and if someone is willing to feed you, you're considered family and family don't hold a dollar value to us). Don't forget; minimum wage is $20ph, so stop underpaying your bloody waiters mate!

Very interesting to see these comparisons between ourselves and the USA. I think as Kiwis we are very self-critical and dont believe we do enough to protect our environment, including our native flora and fauna. One great initiative that communities are taking up to protect our native birds, is to be proactive in making our neighbourhoods pest free.

Calling possums cute: how to show you have spent a lot of your life not living in New Zealand without saying it. ;)

As a kiwi, yes handing over your card is very strange. We would all be scared of ID theft if someone asked to take our card at a restaurant.

Great vid! As an American who lived in NZ for a year, I noticed the ecological friendliness, high foreigner presence, and casual attitudes. People say "bro" a lot, even in formal situations. Tipping in restaurants is very rare, but customers will do it if they're exceptionally satisfied, or they'll tell the server to give a complement to the chef, which is taken pretty seriously. Prices also vary depending on whether you're dining at lunch or dinner, the latter of which incurs a price hike of ~1.5x or more even if ordering the exact same dish. But you get a bottle of water! A glass bottle that is, and its chilled and has an old fashioned cap, and the customer is meant to refill their glass with it as the meal goes on. I found this to be really cool when I first sat down to eat at a Kiwi Restaurant!

I love this series idea! There are so many little (and big) differences between the two countries.

Hey bro just a correction , NZ (Aotearoa) was discovered by the Polynesian group known as the Māori. This is also an official language still spoken in NZ.

Restaurants won’t want to take and hold your card and most banks would not recommend it. Gives opportunity for your credit card to be compromised and subsequently fraudulently used. We are very trusting in NZ. Growing up in the 80’s here and into the 90’s it was common to leave your house etc all unlocked when you were away.

My husband and I just started throwing around the idea of visiting NZ! We’ve also started daydreaming about moving there due to the political and social climate in the US.

As someone who really dislikes the U.S and is considering moving out of the country, this was so incredibly informative. Thank you so much I'm so grateful!

The last time I was in the States (2019) we were only in California and we couldn't believe the amount of single use plastic used in restaurants (even when people were dining in.) My kids and I were kind of blown away by it.

As a kiwi living in PNG unable to travel back to NZ easily - its great to see that you consider us retro-futuristic, conservation minded, tidy-kiwis who are the masters of stealth paying Restaurant bills! Thanks for your interesting personal perspective on your new life in NZ! :)

Oh the famous bill fight 🤣 We love it too, no one will admit it but we loving trying to sneak to pay! I lived in the US for a year and I got so worried about people handing their credit cards over. It's just not a done thing here. I also got huge culture shock when I came across a man having a medical emergency, he refused an ambulance for fear of the bill. That was something that has stuck with me.