The Best Online Casinos in New Zealand
Online gambling has been taking hold around the globe. In countries with liberal gambling laws, online casinos offer convenience and simplicity. For countries that have stricter gambling laws, online casinos offer access to a safe and regulated gambling market. New Zealand’s gambling laws sit somewhere in the middle.
While gambling is heavily regulated in New Zealand, a legitimate gambling industry does exist and there are lots of legal ways of gambling. So how do online casinos fit into New Zealand’s legal system?
Well, it’s complicated. The Gambling Act 2003 does specifically outlaw “remote interactive gambling”, but not when the remote service in question is hosted outside of New Zealand. So, it’s illegal for a New Zealander to gamble at an online casino that is based in New Zealand, but it is legal for them to connect to and gamble with online casinos that are based overseas.
Given that the majority of online casinos, and all of the ones that we would most recommend, are not based in New Zealand, there are very few restrictions on online gambling for New Zealanders.
Getting Started
If you have played with online casinos before, then you can skip over this section. If you’re still here, let’s quickly run through the basics that you need to know. First of all, you will need to investigate your payment options. Players based in New Zealand should find that most online casinos will enable them to deposit money using a debit or credit card. However, make sure that you check the casino to find out if there are any fees involved in using certain methods.
You should also consider making a new email address to use when you are playing with online casinos. While all the casinos that we will recommend by name can be trusted to keep your details safe and secure, there are lots of online casinos that are far more lax with their data security. You don’t want to end up with your main email inbox constantly filling up with spam.
Check Out the Games
The first thing that you should look at when you land on an online casino is the games library. If a casino doesn’t have a library of games that you will actually want to play, there’s no sense in taking the time to register or depositing any money.
Most online casinos have libraries of hundreds of titles, but these hundreds of individual titles will represent only a handful of different game types. Some players have one specific game type that they will stick to, while others want a more varied experience. Just make sure that the casino has the game types that interest you the most.
Read the Terms and Conditions
There’s no getting around it, terms and conditions are boring. However, we would recommend that you at least skim through the terms and conditions, if only to find out exactly what the process for withdrawing your winnings is. Deposits are generally credited to online casino accounts instantly, although this is dependent on the method used. Withdrawals will be subjected to a legally-mandated waiting period, which usually lasts around 48 hours.
There’s unlikely to be much else exciting in the T&Cs, but you don’t want to discover that there are some esoteric rules being enforced at the casino that you don’t know because you didn’t check the terms and conditions.
Customer Support
The level of customer support that a casino offers is a very good indicator of how good they will be on the whole. The best online casinos will provide customer support round-the-clock, 24/7. If all goes well, you won’t ever need to contact customer support. However, when it is potentially your money that is on the line, you want to know that customer support will respond to you promptly and help you to solve your issue as soon as possible.
Welcome Bonus
Online casinos offer new players various welcome bonuses to draw them in. In general, these bonuses will be applied after you make your first deposit of funds into your account and will consist of free spins that you can use on some or all of the casino’s games, or free credit which is added on to any funds that you deposit. These welcome bonuses can be worth hundreds of dollars, so make sure that you find out exactly how the bonuses are awarded so you can ensure you maximize the value of the freebies you receive.
The Best Online Casinos
The tips above will help you to determine whether an online casino is right for you or not. But you need to find a casino to begin your search with. Fortunately, there are four casinos that we can wholeheartedly recommend over the others.
Grand Mondial
The Grand Mondial offers some of the most generous welcome bonuses out there. You will need to make a deposit of $10 in order to receive them, but for your first $10 you will receive 150 free opportunities to win at one of Grand Mondial’s progressive jackpot games. Your first 5 deposits of $10 or more will all earn various bonuses.
Zodiac Casino
Zodiac’s astrological theme sets it apart from other online casinos. This is a very popular choice for new players because you can start playing at Zodiac for just $1. Most casinos will require that you deposit at least $5-10 in order to receive any bonuses.
Captain Cooks Casino
Captain Cooks is great fun, in every sense. The seafaring aesthetic works very well and gives the casinos a real sense of character. Your first deposit will receive 100 free spins, which you can then use on Captain Cook’s progressive jackpot games.
Yukon Gold Casino
Finally, Yukon Gold is another excellent choice for new players. It offers players 125 free chances at the Mega Moolah progressive slot, with a jackpot of over $1 million! This is yours for a small $10 deposit.
Once you have found an online casino that suits you, you probably won’t want to move. However, it’s worth trying out all of the casinos listed above - that way you can take advantage of all the free bonuses on offer.