Trains beteen Wellington and Kapiti Coast

[Debbie P.]

We're interested in moving to the Kapiti coast area of Wellington, probably no further than Plimmerton. This would be dependent on my hubby getting a job in a local school, but if he does and we do move there, I will probably still need to look for work in central Wellington.

From previous posts here, I got the impression that the commute by train would be reasonable (bearing in mind that I commuted from one end of London to the other for 5 years, so don't mind a bit of a journey). However, a Kiwi friend who used to live in Wellington tells me that the trains aren't particularly reliable.

Can anyone living in that area with experience of commuting by train confirm / deny this? Or can anyone recommend an alternative nearer to the centre? We've got our hearts set on Welly as we loved it when we visited, but we'd also like to be by the sea in a reasonably priced area, with a reasonable amount of space around us! I have to admit I've not visited the Kapiti Coast area, so my image of it may be totally wrong...

Thanks,

Debbie

[sizzlingbadger]

Have a look at www.tranzmetro.co.nz/ and select the Paraparumu line.

Just note the fares are single only, something we didn't realise ! !

Not sure how reliable the Param line is. There does seem to be the odd hold up around Johnsonville. My husband commutes on the Wairarapa line from Featherston into central Wellington everyday, an hour each way. He's only encountered delays about twice in the three months he's been using it. He loves the journey in now and considering he's always hated public transport this is quite a turnaround :-)

[Debbie P.]

Thanks sizzlingbadger (BTW great name ).

It's funny - we'd never really considered the Wairarapa up to now, probably because we live near the sea at the moment and thought we'd like to live by it when we get there. But we did like that area when we went through it on our scouting trip, and I get the impression you get more money for your dollar on housing than you do on the Kapiti coast - would I be right?

Mind if I ask a few questions?

How easy is it to get to the sea from your area? We're not into sunbathing but we LOVE the sea and particularly walking by it.

Are there a reasonable number of secondary schools around?

What's the weather like in comparison to Wellington? One of the reasons we've been looking at Kapiti was because we'd heard the weather was slightly better there than in the city, but what's it like where you are? (sorry if that seems like a silly question...!)

What's the night life like? We're not serious clubbers or anything, but like the occasional meal out / trip to cinema etc.

I'd be grateful for any insights.

Thanks,

Debbie

[louron]

Hi Debbie,
if you have a look on the thread "Masterton/Kapiti coast anyone?"on this forum sizzlingbadger had very kindly answered some of my questions which might in turn answer some of yours - funny we seem to be looking at exactly the same areas as you how old are your kids and when are you thinking of making the big move?

[sizzlingbadger]

Hi Debbie,

Featherston to Cape Palliser is just over an hour away. Which isn't too bad, there's also Riversdale, Castlepoint on the east coast. Yet to get there, we're saving it for a really good day. We're not right on the coast as Kapiti is but if you're willing to travel it can be spectacular. At Cape Palliser we had a picnic right beside the seals ! !

You still get a fair bit of house for your money depending where you are. We've paid a premium (still way short of what it would in Wellington) for our house here but it's on 1/2 acre section and a five minute walk from the train station. Prices here still seem to be rising, Greytown and Martinborough are now quite expensive.

Spoilt for choice in secondary schools, have a look at the other thread "Masterton/Kapiti coast anyone?" which will give some links to internet pages. You've got Kurani in Greytown and then Chanel, Wairarpa College, Solway College, Rathkeale (private) in Masterton.

Wairarapa is in micro climate. Very hot in the summer and quite cold in the winter. Just think middle to South of France climate !

Not really tested the nightlife, with three kids not much time. Although we love Chappellis in Featherston for a takeaway/eat in and we also have The Royal Hotel that's just had a refit and offers fantastic food. Driving through Masterton there seems quite a few places and Greytown has some fantastic bistro cafes. Can definitely recommend the french cafe in Greytown, some of the best cakes and breads I've had since being here and The Hot Bread Shop in Featherston. Masterton does have a cinema which shows most of the latest films.

Anymore questions fire away :-)

[Debbie P.]

Thanks to you both - this gives me more of an idea. It does sound nice...!

Louron, we don't have kids (yet!), but hubby is a school teacher, which is why I asked about local secondary schools. We're hoping to move over next autumn - currently at the very early stages with NZQA and Teachers Registration before we can think about EOIs etc! Also, we've heard that autumn is a good time for teachers to look for jobs.

What about you? What's your situation and when do you plan to move? Maybe we'll be moving at the same time!

Debbie

[louron]

Hi Debbie,
Sorry about the kid thing I just assumed when you asked about secondary schools - just goes to show you should never assume anything!
I wish I knew what our situation was - the big plan seems to change almost daily but basically we won't have enough points to submit EOI without a job offer and it would seem that, as my OH works in IT and has many years experience, there is a good chance that he will find employment but probably we'll need to be in NZ for him to do so, so at the mo our intention is to come over on visitors visa then when he has job offer go for work visa then hopefully PR. Sounds really straightforward doesn't it? The complicated bit is that in order to acheive that we have to sell up over here and take our two children halfway round the world (they are 8 and 11) on a bit of a wing and a prayer, so we are currently saving like mad so that if the job situation doesn't come together quickly we won't be in any financial dire straits and at some point we will have to put the house on the market. We are hoping that by later next year we might be in a position to hop on that plane, so you never know we could all be arriving around the same time. I think we are definitely favouring the Masterton area at the mo, OH doesn't mind having to commute to Wellington for work and you seem to get a lot more house for your money in that area, at also seems quite a nice area for the kids.
Anyway keep in touch and let us know how your plans progress, your hubby might end up teaching my two at some point (don't tell him that though it might put him off going!)

sian

[Debbie P.]

Good luck, Sian, and congratulations on going for it. If it's any consolation, friends of ours moved to Mapua (near Nelson) with 2 girls aged 4 and 2 and a half and no job to go to... they're still there so it can be done!

I will keep my fingers (and everything else!) crossed for you.

Debbie

[sarahw]

Hi Debbie P

We live in Paremata near Porirua harbour and I often take the train to work - less problems than the Johnsonville line but you get the occassional delay as with any transport system. Plimmerton isn't quite on the Kapiti Coast - the Kapiti starts further up but the train line (Paraparaumu line) is the same for both.

Train to/from Plimmerton-Welly is about 30 mins (20ish mins from Paremata). Driving is a bit worse whilst they're messing around with the roundabout road works at Paremata so it might be worth training it from Plimmerton (although when they've finished the roadworks I don't reckon its going to be any better). Because we live in Paremata we can take a back road route and bypass the roundabout - something that put us off living over the bridge in Mana/Camborne/Plimmerton or Kapiti coast - we spent 3 weeks in Mana in a motel when we moved here - because that was where I wanted to settle - after a week (during school holidays) we realised what a nightmare the traffic was around the Paremata roundabout and decided to live on the other side of the bridge! Driving takes about half an hour from Paremata - I'd add 10-20 mins for Plimmerton depending on traffic flow.

My advice is try it out before you commit yourself to definitely renting/buying there.

That said Plimmerton is lovely - we go to the beach there most weekends for walks - house prices are more expensive there but the sea views are lovely.

Good luck!