Kapiti Coast, Wanganui region, Northland or Bay of Plenty?

[April]

Lots of options I know, but any recommendations - basically all over North Island really, but the above seem to be our favourites at the moment. Other options include cheaper places like Palmerston North/Carterton/Masterton area.

We're looking to be close to a city but not right on top of it. Also, a bit of life so not too remote would be good.

Any pros/cons/recommendations/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Very open to ideas!

Thanks.

[Twig]

I haven't been to Palmy (or Carterton) but I hear the shopping's good. I have been to Masterton and I don't want to sound too derogatory, but I didn't like it. To me, it just didn't seem to have a lot to offer. Getting to Wellington was a trek and of course getting to the coast was a trek too, and as those two things are important to me....well it just wasn't for us. We are currently in Paraparaumu and find it has everything here to offer a good lifestyle without a crippling mortgage and still close enough to a city to be able to go to things like big games etc.

My two pence worth, hope it helps abit.

[norma]

How about Warkworth? It's a small town about 50 km north of Auckland so you'd be within easy reach of some retail therapy and entertainment options while living close to some fab beaches and regional parks.

Orewa and the Whangaparaoa peninsula are also nice options.

[Georgebulldog]

I would move to Paraparaumu Beach yesterday if my house would sell It has the beach, it's flat, not so much wind, cafes & your an hour away from the city, just not so sure about night time entertainment, think you would have to go into Welly for that which could be a pain, we have young children so no hoe of too many nights out

[langers]

I would add my support to the Kapiti Coast, not just about the beach as the schools are excellent, there's relatively good shopping and it's close enough to commute to Wellington without having to pay Wellington prices.

I'll even throw in the opportunity to buy a great house right there

http://www.enz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=29417

[em.wilson]

I too would recommend Raumati or Paraparaumu

Pro's - Beach, Café's, great school's/kindys ,Park's, Quite a few pub's/ Bars around param and raumati too, but not in the quantity of Wellington . Only 1 hour commute to welly, and its a perfect mix of more space, but not in any way remote.. perfect in between I would say .. I love the fact that houses and land are cheaper and bigger here too. And if you are feeling like you need a tranquil day go further up the line for a day out or if you wanting a busy day pop down to Wellington!

Con's - Been living on the coast for a year now and haven't found any Its suits our family lifestyle perfect!!

Have 'heard' not so great things about Wanganui.. but haven't been and also about masterton, but again haven't been so can't guarantee that

Hope that helps

[dilanium]

Palmy is wet compared to areas east of here. Not entirely sure how it compares to places to the south though. I like it here, and they just redid one of the malls (The Plaza) so the shopping is better but still not fantastic.

We're a little under two hours drive from Wellington, and there's a train that runs daily (at least on weekdays). We're a little over two hours from Napier. We're about 30-45 minutes from the closest beaches.

If you like outdoorsy stuff there's plenty to do, but it's not the most scenic place in NZ. (Don't get me wrong I think it's beautiful). It's also a pretty sporty area and you can find just about any sport you want to do here.

It's pretty dog friendly. The closest beaches allow dogs year round, there's a lot of off leash dog parks, and most other parks allow dogs on leash. Dogs (and public drinking) are not allowed in the central area of the city.

There is a problem with teenagers/young uni students being obnoxious and bully in the square late at night, but I've never had a problem (other people I know have, but it was like 3am). If you stay out of the square it's not a problem though you will hear boy racers go by occasionally. Most of the bars are oriented to young people, but there are several bars for the older (grown-up) crowd.

There's a decent museum, a thoroughbred track, a trotter track, a greyhound track, a nice pool complex, a rugby team, a basketball team, and one movie theatre. It's an agricultural university town. The main programmes at Massey University are (in my opinion) Veterinary science, Agricultural science, and sport and exercise.

It's pretty inexpensive comparatively. But there's also not jobs in a lot of fields because it's so small.

I like it here, but it's not for everyone.