A dawn service from 5.30am until 8am in Cathedral Square will give Christchurch residents a chance to remember fallen soldiers on Anzac Day.
War veterans will begin commemorations by gathering at the Worcester Bridge and then parade the short distance to Cathedral Square for the traditional service.
For the first time since the 2011 earthquakes, the event is being held in Cathedral Square under the newly reinstated Citizens War Memorial.
The New Zealand Army Band will perform at the service, which will end with the playing of the Last Post, a minute’s silence, and then the singing of the New Zealand national anthem.
An Anzac Day service honouring air servicemen and servicewomen at the Air Force Museum of New Zealand will begin at 12pm in the Therese Angelo Wing.
An Anzac dawn service will be held at Cathedral Square, Christchurch. Photo / NZPA
Dunedin
At 6.15am the “March On” Anzac Day Veteran March will begin in Dunedin at the Cenotaph, Queens Gardens.
The service begins at 6.30am on the corner of Crawford and Rattray Sts, Cenotaph, Queens Gardens.
The University of Otago Anzac Service at University Plaza (next to the Staff Club) will begin at 1pm.
The Dunedin RSA (Returned and Services Association) Choir will present a mixture of songs at the Anzac Revue at Knox Church from 7pm as a finale to the services.
Public Holiday Rules
Almost all shops must be closed by law until 1pm, except for essential stores such as dairies, service stations, pharmacies and hairdressers.
This includes a ban on serving or selling alcohol until 1pm.
Anzac Day is celebrated on the day it falls, so only those working on the weekend are covered by the public holiday provisions.
Most employees should receive public holiday entitlements if they work on Anzac Day and the entitlement to an alternative holiday applies consistently to all public holidays including Anzac Day.
