Gisborne

Gisborne is located on the East Coast of New Zealand's North Island and is the world's most easterly city. It is also the first city in the world to see the sun every day.

The Maori name for this district is 'Tairawhiti' which means "The coast upon which the sun shines across the water".

Captain Cook first set foot here in 1769 and European settlement was established in 1831. The town which developed was named after Hon. William Gisborne, the Colonial Secretary, in 1870.

Gisborne's natural attractions include renowned surfing breaks, perfect swimming beaches and miles of untouched coastline. There are many garden attractions, excellent bush, farm and wilderness walks, plus some of New Zealand best fly-fishing rivers and award winning wineries.

Gisborne, the Eastland region, is also home to other townships such as Opotiki and Wairoa. One of the best ways to discover the essence of this region is via a drive along the 265 mile long Pacific Coast Highway.

The highway stretches from Opotiki in the north to Wairoa in the south offers stunning coastal scenery, superb seafood, wonderful wines and friendly people.

Education

Gisborne and the Eastland district offer a good range of educational facilities for students of all ages, with over 50 primary schools, two intermediate schools and eight secondary schools located throughout the region.

The district's primary and secondary schools provide a high quality of education combined with a strong focus on participation in sporting and cultural activities.

Tairawhiti Polytechnic is the only tertiary institution in the region and offers a comprehensive range of degree, certificate and diploma courses.

Employment

Unemployment in Gisborne is slightly higher than the New Zealand's average, but is still low by world standards.

Agriculture, forestry and associated manufacturing businesses are the backbone of Eastland's economy. The region is traditionally known as a breeding ground for some of the country's best sheep and cattle and the district's commercial forest plantations represent a major economic asset.

Gisborne has also developed a reputation for harnessing technology in manufacturing, especially in state-of-the-art food processing.

Gisborne's tourism related industries are also showing good growth, with its seclusion from the more populated areas of New Zealand proving to be an attraction in itself.

As the search for clean green spaces throughout the world becomes increasingly difficult to satisfy, more and more tourists are heading to Eastland's uncrowded environment with its magnificent array of lakes, forests, streams and beaches.

Viticulture is another of Gisborne's key industries, with the region contributing approximately 30% of the nation's total yearly production of grapes. The region's ideal growing conditions also make Horticulture a very successful industry.

Vacancies within the Gisborne region are advertised in The Gisborne Herald.

Housing

Eastland offers a wide variety of housing options, including coastal properties with magnificent sea views and good sized detached houses on large sections of land.

Recently there have also been a number of new townhouse/apartment developments in and around Gisborne.

As with much of New Zealand, real estate in the region has been going through a strong growth phase in recent years. Despite the recent growth Gisborne is still undervalued compared with many other New Zealand cities, with the average house price in the region being around NZD$170,000 (as at March 2005).

Keep in mind however, that as with all cities prices can vary considerably depending on the size of the house, its facilities, and the area in which the property is located.

Renting

Like house prices, rental prices in Gisborne can vary greatly. According to the New Zealand Ministry of Housing the average rent for a three bedroom house in Gisborne is approximately NZD$190 per week. (Rental prices shown are as at Sep 2005).

The Gisborne Herald newspaper is a good start for finding a place to rent. Real Estate Agents and private landlords list properties in the 'To Let' section of the 'Classified' index, with Wednesday and Saturday editions being the best for Real Estate.

Not all the properties will be advertised in the newspaper so it can pay to call in to the offices of the Real Estate Agents and ask for a copy of their listings.

Transport

The most popular method of transport throughout the Gisborne region is private car. It is also by far the best way to get around and experience all that the region has to offer.

Taxis are readily available and offer a good alternative for those without their own means of transport. Taxis can either be ordered over the phone or picked up from one of the numerous taxi ranks located around the city.

Walking and cycling are also very popular with those who live in Gisborne. This is helped by the fact that the main shopping and entertainment areas are only ever a short walk or bike ride away.

Gisborne is also well serviced by daily air and bus connections to other main centres in the North Island.

Population

The Gisborne region has a population of approximately 45,000 people, of which around 30,000 live in the city itself. The remainder of the population are rural based.

Wairoa is the next largest town in the region and is located 60 miles south of Gisborne. The Wairoa district has a population of 10,000 people, with about half of these living in Wairoa township.

One of the unique aspects about Gisborne is the high percentage of Maori that make up the population. In some parts of the region over 50%of the population are Maori - a figure significantly higher than the national average.

Climate

The Gisborne district is known for its warm summers and mild winters. It is also one of New Zealand's sunniest regions, enjoying over 2,200 sunshine hours per year.

Temperatures can range from lows of around 9 degrees celsius during winter to summertime highs in the mid 30's.

Rainfall in the region varies from about 1,000mm per year near the coast to over 2,500mm per year in the higher inland country areas.

On the whole Eastland offers an equable climate, perfect for those who enjoy the outdoors.

Geography

Eastland lies on the central eastern coast of New Zealand's North Island, stretching from Opotiki in the Bay of Plenty to Gisborne in Poverty Bay.

It is a land of rugged mountains, high hill country, magnificent coastline and uncrowded beaches.

This part of New Zealand is home to fertile pastoral lands and a flourishing horticulture and viticulture industry.

Its location on the eastern edge of New Zealand combined with its mountainous terrain means that the region has remained relatively isolated from the rest of New Zealand.

For locals and visitors alike it is this seclusion that makes Eastland such a special part of New Zealand.

Cost of living

Although wages in smaller parts of New Zealand are generally lower than in the larger cities, this is more often than not offset by much lower costs of living.

Gisborne and the Eastland region are no exception to this. One of the major attractions here is that large amounts of money are not needed in order to live a great lifestyle and when it comes to quality of life this part of New Zealand is second to none.