Why You Should Visit New Zealand
“Chances are you’ve met a kiwi or two and you’ve probably seen Lord of the Rings—the country’s friendly population and breathtaking natural beauty is reason enough to visit. But if you still need convincing,…
Tag Archives: Napier
Napier an Art Deco Delight of Design and Dining
The devastating 1931 earthquake is responsible for Napier being reborn as a town of fine designs and dining. The Australian’s Caroline Gladstone pays a visit to explore the best of the city, and its…
Nine Wonders of New Zealand
“With natural splendours that include stunning marine wildlife and geothermal springs, to culinary adventures taking in cutting-edge restaurants and tours of award-winning vineyards, New Zealand is a country that knows how to amaze the…
How Tragedy Turned Napier into Art Deco Wonder
“For Murray Houston, 3 February 1931 started out like any ordinary day. The now 91-year-old New Zealander was sitting inside the small wooden schoolhouse he attended in the coastal town of Napier, when the…
Guided Tours Showcase Napier’s Fascinating Architecture
“Nobody was building town centres during the Depression, so Napier is rare,” says Robert McGregor, Independent journalist John Lee’s guide and the author of several books on the city. “South Beach and Napier are…
Living Museum is all Camera-Hogging Art Deco
“It’s a near-cloudless afternoon, and I’ve spent the past hour weaving dreamily around dozens of sun-dappled, immaculately preserved 1930s buildings. Art deco was all the rage when these storefronts were erected; the streets are…
Change of Character
“Each city seems to have its own character and voice; each community has a completely different attitude to life,” Huffington Post freelancer Karen Edwards writes in a blog describing her recent trip….
Living Shrine to Deco
Within two years of Napier’s devastating 1931 earthquake the city, which had chosen to rebuild in the Art deco style, was being dubbed the “most modern town on the globe”. “Much of the innovative…
Distinctively World Famous
“Today, of 164 buildings constructed between 1920 and 1940, 140 remain, forming a time capsule of design elements — zigzags, sunbursts, Egyptian motifs and geometric patterns — that characterize the style and garner…
Celebrating Deco Heritage
On the third weekend of every February, Napier celebrates its unique Art Deco heritage with age-old fashions, wine, dance and song. The official programme of events has grown so much over the years that…
Circenses nil Panem
If you believe that rugby is played in heaven then New Zealand is currently Paradise:…
Another Kind of Edge
President of the Mongrel Mob’s Napier chapter Rex Timu is one of a number of gang leaders rejecting violence and urging members to embrace mainstream values. Speaking over a hot chocolate in the cafeteria…
Lester’s mini Mini
Retired Napier mechanic Lester Atherfold, 67, has transformed his 1964 Mini 85 into an even mini-er Mini trimming the 1ft long British classic car to a mere 7ft 1ins. Atherfold sliced 2ft from the…
One of The Dudes
Singer/songwriter Ian Morris, the frontman of Th’ Dudes has died in Napier, aged 53. Morris formed the band with school friends Peter Urlich and Dave Dobbyn in 1975 but left the group in 1980…
Gritty becomes hip
Sleepy port suburb Ahuriri features in a New York Times slideshow, with six images of its wharf, the organic grocer Picada, beachfront restaurant Milk & Honey, the classic Ahuriri Café, and a hair salon…
Space Man Saluted
New Zealand space scientist Sir Ian Axford, who worked on American and European space probes, such as the Voyager and Giotto designing robot craft and calculating orbits, has died at his home in Napier,…
Win for NZ in Napier
New Zealand outran Australia by two wickets to win the opening Chappell-Hadlee one-day international at Napier’s Maclean Park. Scott Styris and Shane Bond were the unlikely heroes for New Zealand; chasing 275 for eight,…
Symbol of Renewal
“If you believe clouds have silver linings, Napier’s is surely rimmed with neon and chrome, the shiny new materials of the art-deco age,” describes the The Observer’s Nigel Tisdall. “For this was an earthquake…
Deco Pride
Napier’s annual Art Deco weekend celebrates the most complete Art Deco city on earth, writes Times Online travel writer Dan Cruickshank, where even street furniture and signage consistent with the style have become policy…
Stepping Back from the Precipice
It’s been grim-times at home in Taradale, and that’s more than the recession or a bit of shitty weather. Last weekend, the first in May, a local bloke, Michael Meehan, was shot dead at…
Thud And Blunder
There’s a scrap between the Mongrel Mob and the Road Knights in the deep South and the Mayor of Invercargill is calling for ‘Sheriff Joe’ style retributive justice. There’s a scrap between…
Geometric on the Bay
The 1931 Napier earthquake devastated the Hawkes Bay region, but two years later Napier was rebuilt and an Art Deco masterpiece. The Sydney Morning Herald’s Rebecca Lancashire pays a visit and “wanders the city…
Fleming’s New Game Plan
Stephen Fleming made a gracious departure from the Black Caps on the fourth day of the final Test against England in Napier. Although New Zealand had a disappointing loss, Fleming left Test cricket much as he…
Lock-up Lodge
A Napier prison-turned-backpackers features in a Guardian travel story on jail-themed hotels. Decommissioned in 1993, the Napier Prison was reopened in 2002 to offer tours and budget accommodation. Guardian: “You can have it the easy way -…
Potential World Heritage Sites in NZ
UNESCO is considering three NZ locations as potential World Heritage Sites at the request of PM Helen Clark, who is also NZ’s Minister of Culture and Heritage. The Waitangi Treaty Grounds, Kerikeri Basin and…
Northern Delights
Vancouver’s North Shore News featured a travel special on NZ’s North Island. In the Bay of Islands, the writer used the Eagles Nest villa complex as a luxurious base for sailing with dolphins, taking bush walks and…
From LA to the Bay
From Waimarama Beach to Napier, the Hawke’s Bay region gets a fantastic write up in the LA Times. The writer had organised a family holiday to her mother’s place of birth, in honour of said mother’s…
Treasure Out of Ruins
The Art Deco 1910-1939 exhibition at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts describes Napier as “one of the purest Art Deco cities in the world.” An IHT article gives a detailed tour of Napier’s architectural…
Not Just for Young ‘uns
MSN writer takes a leaf out of her post-collegiate travelling days and revisits the joy of youth hostels: “I was skeptical, but it turned out to be one of the best decisions we made.” She recommends…
Iron-will an Inspiration
The inspiring story of Napier mother-of-four, Tracey Richardson, has made headlines around the world. Two of Richardson’s children have cystic fibrosis and, in 2002, she decided to create awareness for the disease by competing in the…
Off the Beaten Track
NZ is one of 30 “hot spots for switched on travellers” recommended by Lonely Planet for 2004. To avoid the inevitable horde of Rings fans, LP suggests taking the Pacific Coast Highway down the Coromandel Peninsula, stopping…
Napier Goes Ga-ga for Gingko
Ron Massey, of Napier Council, thinks the city’s onto an export winner after its successful growing of high-grade gingko trees. The Chinese herb is currently the trendiest pill to pop, supposedly offering dramatically increased energy and cognitive…
Deco-dence in Napier
“I feel as though I’ve popped a 78 on the phonograph and stepped into my grandmother’s photo album. This is the bee’s knees.” Boston Herald comes to Napier for the annual Art Deco Weekend….
