Kevin's Guide to Nelson, New Zealand - Visiting Nelson (Nelson City)

- Nelson City

- Nelson South

- Accommodation

- Transportation

- Gay friendly
businesses
- Media and
Entertainment

Spectrum (Nelson) Inc.

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Nelson City

Nelson is well known for its climate and generally laid back way of life.
From the time the first settelers arrived in 1842, to Queen Victoria declaring Nelson a Cathedral City in 1854 (when the total population was a little over 2,000), Nelson's growth has been steady, reaching the 20,000 population required for City status in the 1950s. In the 1996 census, Nelson City was home for 40,914 people, half of the region's total population.

Nelson City from the south.
Nelson
Central Nelson from the hills behind Tahunanui
Nelson Airport and the Waimea Inlet
Looking south over the suburb of Stoke
Click on the above photos for the bigger view - they will open in their own windows.

In no particular order, here are some of the points of interest, activities etc. that are available to to everyone in Nelson, both resident and visitor.

Cathedral

Made from marble from the nearby Takaka Hill and concrete, the present day Cathedral was completed in 1964, replacing two earlier ones which were destroyed by fire - some of the furnishings were salvaged though and have been used in the present day building.
Standing on the top of Church Hill, it is alongside the remains of the foundations of the fort which protected the early settlement (Fort Arthur), and at the north end, at the foot of the bell tower, you get a good view over the Church Steps and the commercial heart of Nelson at the bottom.
The Cathedral is open to the public daily.

Tahunanui Beach

This safe beach is in the middle of the city at the suburb of Tahunanui. Very popular at summer time with both visitors and locals, it is the ideal spot to get your annual dose of sunburn - Nelson has some of the strongest sunshine in New Zealand, with the country's highest sunshine hours, and the city is the leading contender in the fight for the title of the city with the highest rate of skin cancer in the world.

At the western end of the beach is one of the main channels for the tide to fill the estuarys to the south (swimming is dangerous here because of the strong currents), making it popular with fishing enthusiasts.

Other actcivities to keep you occupied here are Nelson's skating rink (skates [roller] are available for hire), the modellers' pond for sailing the model boats, the minature railway (operates most weekends during summer and at other times), hydroslide, bumper boats, mini golf, mini jeeps etc. and a BMX track.
Also here, by the large playing fields, is the Tahuna Beach Holiday Park, the largest camping ground in the Southern Hemisphere with over 2000 camp sites and motel units.

Tahunanui Beach.
Tahunanui and beach, from the air.
Click on the above photos for the bigger view - they will open in their own windows.

For more on Tahunanui Beach, it's history, erosion problems etc., go to http://homepages.ihug.co.nz/~sissons/.

Founders

Founders Park is next door to Nelson's Marae (Maori meeting house and grounds) and is a heritage area of old buildings (transported to the site either whole or in pieces) and shows you (with working displays) just how a lot of things were done in Nelson's early times. Entrance is under the windmill, which you cannot miss when at the northern end of town. It is open most days.

Boulder Bank

The Boulder Bank, at 12Km long, is the largest natural breakwater in the world, and is clearly visible from orbiting space-craft. It is a wildlife sanctury for the birds who nest there.

In 1906, engineers cut through the southern end of the Boulder Bank to create both Haulashore Island (a good picnic spot for day trippers, and sometimes campers are alowed there - no facilities) and the present day main entrance to the port which the Boulder Bank protects. There is an historic lighthouse on the boulder Bank which was in regular use until the early 1970s when it was replaced with a stronger beacon in the middle of the port as the city lights in the background were obscuring it.

Port

Nelson's port is one of the busiest in the South Island with millions of cartons of apples, logs, and fibre-board, being some of the products that leave here each year. There is always something going on here, with a small industrial area being adjacent - boat repairs/building/maintainance and fish processing being predominant. Nelson is the largest fish processing/exporting port in New Zealand.
As you drive past the port, or along its streets past the boating marinas etc., remember that every little bit of land from the main road to the wharf side is reclaimed from the sea bed.

Port Nelson, from the air.
Click on the above photo for the bigger view - it will open in its own window.

Saturday market

Every Saturday morning, the Montgomery Carpark in the middle of the city is closed off for a market. You name it, the chances are very good that you would be able to find it here, from art, crafts, second-hand goods of all types, plants, organically grown vegetables, to takeaway food ready to eat hot.

Cable Bay

Just to the north of Nelson is Cable Bay, where the first undersea cable from New Zealand to Australia left from. On the road out to Cable Bay (which is at the end of the brown line on the map above) is an adventure tourism park with horse riding, motor bike riding and other activities available.

From Cable Bay, there is a walkway over the hills to the beginning of the Boulder Bank (steep at the Cable Bay end - best done with friends, where half of you go one way, and the other half go the other direction, swapping car keys when you meet).

Café society

Nelson is reported as having the largest number of eating and drinking places (bars, Cafés, restaurants etc.) per head of population in New Zealand. Most places are closed by 11pm, but some of those selling alcohol stay open until about 2am or 3am, but if you look hard enough, there is nearly always somewhere where you can get something to eat at any time of the day or night.

Walks

There are many walks available in and around Nelson to suit all ages, degrees of fitness and time to take. A few that come to mind right away include:

Maitai Valley, following the River from the city upstream to the Camping Ground
A wide range centreing on the Maitai Dam, the source of Nelson's water supply
The Brook Reservoir to the old reservoir in the Brook Camping Ground
The Centre of New Zealand on the Botanics Hill
Fringed Hill
Dun Mountain, site of early chrome mines - New Zealand's first railway ran from here to the port; the walkway follows the old rail line
Grampians (by the TV transmitter)
Perimeter of Nelson Airport
Various routes in the city passing historic buildings etc.
Various routes over the Port Hills

Full details of these are avialable form the Nelson City Council offices.

Parks, Gardens, etc.

Nelson is blessed with a number of old historic homes which are open to the public, along with their magnificent gardens. Along with these,there are plenty of other public parks and gardens for the visiter to enjoy, and a couple of vantage points with very easy access.
In no particular order, some of the highlights of these include:

Isel Park
Located in Stoke, Isel Park has an historic stone house as its centrepiece, set in a large garden and park surroundings. Inside the house (open on selected Sundays), is a large collection of ceramics owned by the City Council.
The Nelson Provincial Museum research facility is also located here. (The main museum itself is located in the middle of Nelson's central shopping centre.).
Broadgreen
Another historic house (of cobb construction) located in Stoke, Broadgreen is set in large spacious lawns along with the city's largest rose garden.
Queens Gardens
The Queens Gardens are located in the centre of Nelson city, on the edge of the central business district. Lawns, historic and rare trees, large ponds among the trees all create a special quiet environent in the city.
Suter Gallery
Along side the Queens Gardens, the Historic Suter Art Gallery is the largest art gallery in Nelson, complete with its own restaurant and theatre.
Anzac Park
Anzac Park is a large lawn area with gardens laid out around the city's main memorial to those citizens who lost their lives while fighting in the wars overseas that New Zealand sent servicemen to.
The Botanics
The botanics are best known for being where the Centre of New Zealand is located. There is a special trig station at the top of the hill to mark the Centre of New Zealand, accessable via a 20 minute easy walk from the sports playing fields on one side of the hill, or the Maitai Valley with its parks and swimming holes in the Maitai River, on the other side of the hill.
Fairfield
Just a five minute walk from the Cathedral is Faifield Park, a large grassed park with a wooded area on one side. Among the trees are the graves of some of Nelson's earliest settlers. Over the road is Fairfield House, an historic house which has been completely restored over the past 20 years or so - there is a good display inside outlining the restoration from near ruin to its present glory.
Melrose
Almost next door to Fairfield House is Melrose House, another historic home set in a wooded landscape.
Princes Drive Lookouts
Princes Drive runs along the ridge from the Port Hills to Tahunanui. At the top, at the port end, is a lookout looking over Haulashore Island, Tahunanui and some of Nelson's most expensive real estate, while at the far end, (after passing through the majority of the rest of the expensive real estate) climb the metal staircase to the top of the watertank for magnificent views in all directions. The photos on this site looking towards Rabbit Island, Abel Tasman, and other distance views were mostly taken from here.
Swimming Pools
Along side the schools on Nayland Road, in Stoke, is the Nayland Pool complex with a full sized swimming pool and smaller pools for the todlers. The Riverside Pool is in the centre of the city on the banks of the Maitai River, and is heated/covered. Both pools are owned and operated by the City Council - Nayland only during the summer but Riverside is open all year round.

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