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26 West Quay Ahuriri,, Napier, New Zealand
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of people enjoy staying here
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Tinirota scenery
view from the top
The music bowl
Napier Beach
On the Northern end of the Marine Parade is a famous statue called the Pania of the Reef. The beautiful bronze statue was erected in 1954 and has become one of the most phographed in New Zealand. Pania was a Beautiful Maiden of the Sea according to Maori Mythology.Read about the legend of Pania of the Reef on the web site below.
Though Napier is not the first city to see the morning sun (see: East Cape's Gisborne) it is one of the earliest and the art work in the picture captures the location of the site of the first in this millennium.
Located in Napier's on the Marine Parade the subtle yet intriguing art work overlooks the Pacific and Cape Kidnappers. The stone in the middle declares the purpose and many can be seen sitting shore side of it to watch the sun rise.
The ideal place in Napier for a picnic, the Millennium art work is romantic as well as a great place to take the family. Kids seem to love the idea of being on of the first people to see the sun in the morning, and if you draw a straight line from the middle of the rock through the exact middle of the arch you can watch the mirror as the sun reflects off your face.
The National Aquarium is situated on Marine Parade, about a kilometre from the city centre. The building is quite a unique piece of modern architecture, resembling a giant areoplane wing, but probably meant to be a big grey whale or dolphin! There is a statue (pictured) of fisherman at the northern end, well worth a moment of your time.
The aquarium, by world standards, is tiny. The biggest attractions are a crocodile and enchanting sea turtles that will captivate you as they glide around their rather small tank. The kids will probably enjoy this attraction more than the adults, but at NZ$13 for 'the olds' it's not too bad a price to pay for a one hour diversion from the outside attractions in Napier.
There is a kiwi house here as well, where you can watch our nation's nocturnal icon digging for food or generally just looking cute (yes, Kiwi do look cute with their cat like whiskers and soft looking fur-like feathers!).
Hawkes Bay Opera house is a beautiful old building built in Spanish Mission
The Opera House has a reputation for being one of the best lyric theatres of its type in Australasia made better by recent renovations.
The attached Municipal Buildings also house Hawke's Bay's largest ballroom (complete with fully restored sprung dance floor). The 985 seat Opera House hosts all kinds of performances from ballet to contemporary dance, operas to musical theatre, vaudeville to stand-up comedy, Shakespearean drama to pantomime and more.
We do like Napier very much and for us it is one of the most prettiest towns in New Zealand. It is almost unbelievable the city was completely destroyed by an earth quake in 1931.
Most interesting are the numerous art deco buildings. I think there about at least ninety of them just in the city centre. The shopping centre is also very nice to browse or to have a cup of coffee on one of the side walk café’s. Or take a walk along the Marine Parade with its gardens and lined with beautiful Norfolk Pines.
A little bit further away you will find nice beaches and one of the ‘must see’ sights of the town ‘Cape Kidnappers’.
Besides all these highlights Napier offers a very sunny climate for free.
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Q: Best way to get to Napier from Auckland? "Hi, I will be in staying in Auckland during the RWC and have tickets to a game in Napier. It seems no trains go to Napier, and as..."
A: "take the bus or one of the shuttles - I'm guessing you aren't from NZ... it's about 5 hours driving and their is a significant mismatch between driver skills and road..."
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