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Thread: Napier, Nelson or New Plymouth?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Auckland<->Penang
    Posts
    221

    Default Napier, Nelson or New Plymouth?

    Jetstar is having a price war with Air New Zealand to these three places (NZD25). Never been with any of the three and thinking of going for a couple of nights with 2 kids.

    Which one would you recommend and why?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    Te Aroha from N.Yorkshire UK
    Posts
    308

    Default

    Hi bulu,

    I love New Plymouth and we go regularly away as we have friends there. Depending how old your kids are there are heaps to do. We usually go to Pukekura Park which is 5 minutes walk from the town centre, it has a park for children in there with a small flying fox, beautiful to walk around as it has some amazing old trees, there is a boat shed cafe in the middle that you can have lunch or coffee and cake looking over a big pond that you can hire a rowing boat for $10 for half hour up to 6 (I think) people which is lovely. Also at the top of the park there is Brooklands Zoo, only a very small zoo but great for the little ones and thats free, has a small park inside there too.

    You also have the swimming centre which when we went only a couple of months ago, 2 adults and a nearly 2 year only cost us $12… There is a good shopping mall, there is a museum thats worth a look inside the information centre which is free too. You can actually walk along the coastal walkway from the information centre to the swimming centre - only about 15-20 minutes walk.

    Depending if you have a car or not you have Te Rewa Rewa bridge (or get a bus) which on a clear day is beautiful as its a bridge shaped like a whale bone and when you look through it you can see Mount Egmont/Taranaki thats also on the coastal walkaway but from town it would take you a long while to get there!!

    Also you have the mountain to go up, if you go round Stratford way its beautiful, you can drive so far up and maybe if lucky see snow and build a snowman… these are all the things we do when over that way!!

    As for Nelson, we where there for a week a couple of months ago. Like I said we have a toddler so long walks and going kayaking was not optional but we did do some small walks in the Abel Tasman, there is a park not a play park but I am sure there will be somewhere!! The walk we did there was to the 'Centre of New Zealand', worth the walk up but if you have a pram its very challenging as its up steep hills but worth the view once there, took us about 20-30 minutes, I am pregnant so dad had to push toddler up till he woke then he walked some of it!!

    There is a petting zoo outside of the town centre but again depending on how old your children are its great. We also went swimming in Richmond, shopping is ok in Nelson but I never got excited. I think for us there was more to do in New Plymouth but maybe it just helps that I feel I know my way around New Plymouth more than Nelson!!

    Only been to Napier once and it was only for a weekend at the beach and we never had children then so i'm no help there sorry!!

    If you have any questions just ask me and I will try and help… I'm curious where you will go and what you will think of the place!!
    Last edited by Living Life; 2nd September 2015 at 09:12 AM.

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