In reply to ffati:
I think if I was still only skiing on piste, I wouldn't be too excited about NZ, but the touring is pretty good. I live in Christchurch so the club fields are my play grounds. Anyone can go, membership is only for discounted accomodation and a season pass, and usually involves doing a few summer work weekends lifting rocks. I mostly use them as a good way to access the backcountry, but they can have pretty good skiing too, though very small by European standards. Most have rope tows (YouTube them) which have a steep learning curve.
My favourites are Temple Basin and Mt Olympus, particularly staying up at the latter with its outdoor hot tub. But Cragieburn and Broken River also good. Cheese man is a good introductory club field with no rope tows, and good back country access.
A good local tour is from Cheeseman field, along the ridge line to Mt Olympus, stay there for a night or 2, then head back, often termed recently as the Kiwi "Haute route".
Conditions are highly variable, this year was great mostly, last year not so much. The snow direction of fall often greatly influences which fields get it: Temple Basin occasionally gets over a meter from a NW storm that gives only a scattering to other fields, but gets very little from other systems.
This is very Canterbury-centric, apparently other ski areas do exist here!????