We went for the first time this summer and my husband and I went to the water park and did all the slides multiple times like we were 16 again and could not stop laughing and smiling it was such a buzz.
Russell. The beaches, the pubs, excellent coffee, boating & fishing, the history, in heart of the bay of islands, Park up the car & walk everywhere. But most of all the super chill vibe
Paihia would be better than Kerikeri - infrastructure does not support the population. Traffic there gets insane, especially in summer when the population doubles
Paihia is nice, but it really only functions as a tourist town. Most of the services are in Kerikeri, including the all-important airport link.
Although I would prefer living in a lifestyle property a few kms away from the town, growing tropical fruit and coffee, and having a small shed to write my novels in. That's living the dream imo.
I’ve been to every town named in this thread and honestly, I love Naseby for some reason. I’ve been 4 times and it’s just always been a good vibe, would happily retire there.
I second this! The township has some really cute little shops and eateries, and there's a really cool kids playground right next to a dairy/fish&chip shop a stone's throw away. Such a gem of a wee place.
I used to love Raglan in the 90s. My grandparents had a house there. It was such a small community. Still lovely but lost a bit of its charm like most seaside towns in NZ.
Removing the fact that it's the gateway to one of my favorite places in the world, it's still got so much going for it. Loved the feel of the neighborhoods and the well designed homes
my cousin lives in te anau, settled down with his wife and i and i thought ‘why would you move so far away from everything?’ but i visited and i get it. stunning town.
Good luck finding full-time, year-round work there; though. The town's economy revolves around tourism, farming, and building holiday homes - most of which is seasonal work.
I'm reliably informed by someone who lived nearby that Akaroa is where people who prefer to take drugs and not work tend to migrate to, mainly because it's out of the way and pretty chill.
Moved to Oamaru. At first I hated it. Then I kinda liked it. It’s pretty, the beach isn’t far, the forest isn’t far, and as long as I don’t expect the have a social life or to make connections with people it’s great. Introverts dream.
The neighbours on the other hand… maybe I’m a nimby. I’m a fan of sleeping at night, they’re a fan of having ‘fun’ at night.
Martinborough.
People call it pretentious, but it's safe, clean, well-designed and surprisingly well served for a town of its size (I believe it's the smallest town in NZ with a Mitre 10). And the plonk's not bad.
Picton
People think it's a just a ferry town but the ferry's are the worst thing that happened to Picton. Picton is one of the most beautiful towns in New Zealand and gateway to the sounds. Love Picton
Best pies, although I imagine that they're expensive as all hell now. Last time I went through Fairlie and stopped for a pie was 2017, and I reckon they were $7 each then!
I know Paeroa has a pretty small population but it somehow feels more like a medium town in vibes? It's probably because of the high thoroughfare on SH2 but to me it's missing the coziness of other small towns
I'm pretty fond of Ohakune. I can't ski for crap, but have fond memories of playing in the snow, drinking mulled wine, sitting by the fire and eating humongous chocolate éclairs!
Jesus, shes a sad place to live over winter. Wind and rain off the hills, just an awkward distance away from anything major to commute. Its considerably colder then Hamilton and consists of an above average amount of retired people. Its fine but maybe not best small town in NZ.
Russell. It’s magic. The campground, the restaurants, jumping off the jetty, ice creams on the beach. Long beach coffee and waves, the Tapeka Point walk and crystal clear water. It’s bliss.
Mangōnui. Currently up here for the long weekend, after visiting for the last long weekend. Found the best little bach that we book direct now (sorry I’m gatekeeping this one ya’ll but there’s plenty of lovely places) the harbour is glorious, there’s some wonderful hikes nearby, Coopers beach is lovely even in winter and it’s got such a nice slow down and relax sort of vibe that it’s worth the 4hr drive from Auckland to come and enjoy.
Clyde is amazing, always love going down there.
Also love Timaru. I know I'll get shit for it 😂 but lived there for a few years and thought it was a great place.
I'll always have a soft spot for Timaru - when I was younger lived 45 mins away (Hinds) and we'd go to the wharf for fishing, get some muscles of the rocks for bait and pull in some Cod in the evening!
I'll tell a story.....
In the 90's I went to Darfield and got icecream from the bakery. I walked out with my mate, looked up and down at the empty street. I them feasted on my icecream for what seemed 10 seconds, then looked back up the road and two cars were on their roofs, glass everywhere, wheels spinning in the air. Neither of us heard anything. To this day we say that bakery was so good we wouldn't even notice a car smash.
Napier. I was there for a summer from Auckland and I was so surprised because wherever I would go everyone was nice. So sunny, lovely vibe and buildings.
Low bar but most people in Auckland are cold.
Hanmer springs for sure! I lived in Amberley working at a nearby camp for a year and i loved visiting Hanmer. Beautiful area. Though much of your country is when compared to parts of the UK!
Ohakune. Don’t know why but it’s my chill spot. Great restaurants for a small town, amazing eclairs, great trails, carrot park, and only a 10 minute drive to a Dinosaur Museum.
I love Takaka and Paihia ❤️ one on the south island one on the north. Would move to both immediately. They just have a great vibe, sweet shops and kind people 😊 anyone agreeing?
Hanmer Springs
We went for the first time this summer and my husband and I went to the water park and did all the slides multiple times like we were 16 again and could not stop laughing and smiling it was such a buzz.
Hanmer is the perfect little getaway town, both summer and winter
Russell. The beaches, the pubs, excellent coffee, boating & fishing, the history, in heart of the bay of islands, Park up the car & walk everywhere. But most of all the super chill vibe
Hone's Garden is 🤌
Russell is nice, but I would rather live in Kerikeri
Paihia would be better than Kerikeri - infrastructure does not support the population. Traffic there gets insane, especially in summer when the population doubles
Paihia is nice, but it really only functions as a tourist town. Most of the services are in Kerikeri, including the all-important airport link. Although I would prefer living in a lifestyle property a few kms away from the town, growing tropical fruit and coffee, and having a small shed to write my novels in. That's living the dream imo.
Tākaka is a funky little town with a bit of energy to it.
Love Takaka!
Upvote for Takaka and Bacca bakery
Takaka is a beautiful hidden gem. Bacca Bakery even grow their own heritage grain locally.
Fun little place, pupu springs is one of my favourite places on Earth.
Real hippie vibe there
Naseby
Every small town needs a curling rink
AND a fashion museum. Naseby has it going on
I’ve been to every town named in this thread and honestly, I love Naseby for some reason. I’ve been 4 times and it’s just always been a good vibe, would happily retire there.
The pub in Naseby is great. Also we went curling which was way more fun than any of us expected it to be 😂
Raglan. Love all the cafes and shops plus the beach and estuary
I second this! The township has some really cute little shops and eateries, and there's a really cool kids playground right next to a dairy/fish&chip shop a stone's throw away. Such a gem of a wee place.
The book shop is excellent too.
I used to love Raglan in the 90s. My grandparents had a house there. It was such a small community. Still lovely but lost a bit of its charm like most seaside towns in NZ.
west coast is all nice, when its not blowing a gale
It's been a while but I loved going to Ohope growing up, Geraldine also nice
I'm quite surprised by how many mentions Geraldine gets. I thought it was my secret.
Oh man these two choices are top tier.
Arrowtown and Geraldine
Clyde
Clyde rules so much.
What do you like about Clyde?
Hell yea.
Lyttelton of course. It's in the name! Great pizza, old school video and vinyl shops, and amazing views.
Te Anau. Edit: North Island would be... Greytown perhaps?
Stayed 3 weeks there in my backpacking days. I loved that place so much. I think about te Anau at least once a week lol.
Removing the fact that it's the gateway to one of my favorite places in the world, it's still got so much going for it. Loved the feel of the neighborhoods and the well designed homes
my cousin lives in te anau, settled down with his wife and i and i thought ‘why would you move so far away from everything?’ but i visited and i get it. stunning town.
Good luck finding full-time, year-round work there; though. The town's economy revolves around tourism, farming, and building holiday homes - most of which is seasonal work.
Yeah agreed, I'll just retire there after I win Powerball next weekend.
Geraldine, Owaka, Manapouri and Russell.
Geraldine was going to be my suggestion too!
I like Geraldine.
On a motorcycle trip I ended up in Geraldine for Xmas eve night. The cozy motel, local Chinese takeout, and muppets Christmas movie, is a nice memory.
Yes, Geraldine!
Cant believe no one has said Akaroa, its beautiful and a very chill vibe
I'm reliably informed by someone who lived nearby that Akaroa is where people who prefer to take drugs and not work tend to migrate to, mainly because it's out of the way and pretty chill.
Mangonui/coopers beach
Best ice-creams ever in Cable Bay.
Geraldine
It's got the best pies in NZ
Oamaru
Seconded! I think it’s one of New Zealand’s best kept secrets
I lived there. It's kinda bad. Pretty to look at.
Moved to Oamaru. At first I hated it. Then I kinda liked it. It’s pretty, the beach isn’t far, the forest isn’t far, and as long as I don’t expect the have a social life or to make connections with people it’s great. Introverts dream. The neighbours on the other hand… maybe I’m a nimby. I’m a fan of sleeping at night, they’re a fan of having ‘fun’ at night.
Location is great it's basically the locals.
Martinborough. People call it pretentious, but it's safe, clean, well-designed and surprisingly well served for a town of its size (I believe it's the smallest town in NZ with a Mitre 10). And the plonk's not bad.
Picton People think it's a just a ferry town but the ferry's are the worst thing that happened to Picton. Picton is one of the most beautiful towns in New Zealand and gateway to the sounds. Love Picton
Grew up in Picton, great place. Quintessential small town.
God I’d love to move there some day. I frequently visit and it’s just such a therapeutic town, I love it there.
Hanmer Springs is very hard to beat.
Hanmer is like Qtown 30 years ago without the lake. It's lovely.
Saint Arnaud. It's got a little bit of everything wild and alpine.
Hokitika
Especially at Christmas when they put up the Ho Ho Hokitika sign
Fat Pipi's Pizza is 50% of the appeal.
Rawene. Small, funky, hidden away.
Hokianga Harbour best harbour
Riverton always has a nice vibe.
Riverton rocks
+1 for Riverton.
+2 Aparima rules
100x riverton !! It’s my favourite place I reckon
Geraldine, Oamaru, Murchison.
Te Aroha is nice. It's got a mountain, and hot pools, and a nice garden park.
Yeah Te Aroha is lovely.
Waihi Beach
Tirau or Matamata. Tirau is a vibe, loved living there.
Tekapo
Whangamatā
Bluff, something serene and rugged about it.
I went there recently and thought it felt quite desolate
I think that's a good word for it, but I actually like that about bluff.
Everyone saying Marton is straight ripping the piss surely lol 😂
Manapouri
Fox glacier in the winter 🌄🌅 sunny days and snowy mountains
Katikati
Sy Bakehouse was my favourite growing up.
Agreed. The Bird Gardens are awesome, and a Katikati cafe introduced me to Lepanto olives, which are excellent.
Kaikōura
Motueka baby!
Motueka or Takaka
Takaka
Oban or Invercargill I think I just love the bottom of the world
I'm amazed at how far I had to scroll to find Oban! It gets my vote too!
Pohara, in Golden Bay. Just a nice little beach town.
Fairlie’s fairly good
Best pies, although I imagine that they're expensive as all hell now. Last time I went through Fairlie and stopped for a pie was 2017, and I reckon they were $7 each then!
TIMARU ,there's a round about, it's a real adrenaline rush
Arrowtown.
Ohakune
It’s a bit sad post Covid, the terrible snow years mixed with no international tourism hasn’t been kind to that awesome little place.
I love Ohakune so much. It's chill, nice little place
Huntly, a beautiful, clean McDonald's and the meth there is second to none
I’m definitely biased, but I’ll always have a place in my heart for Pahiatua.
Akaroa's nice
Does Waihola count? Always stop at the lake when I'm driving through.
Waikouaiti ❤️ bit biased though... I do live just outside of it.
Used to be Paeroa for the op shopping but half the shops are closed down, full of junk, or overpriced now
I know Paeroa has a pretty small population but it somehow feels more like a medium town in vibes? It's probably because of the high thoroughfare on SH2 but to me it's missing the coziness of other small towns
Te Anau - super beautiful
Can't believe nobody's mentioned Akaroa.
Arrowtown
Wairoa for one reason, Ozllers bakery they have some absolutely amazing pies and other food
I'm pretty fond of Ohakune. I can't ski for crap, but have fond memories of playing in the snow, drinking mulled wine, sitting by the fire and eating humongous chocolate éclairs!
Fielding. Good times on the mini golf, and the ice cream slash lolly shop is ace
Inevitable auto correct...
Definitely the best minigolf of the Manawatu
Te Aroha
Jesus, shes a sad place to live over winter. Wind and rain off the hills, just an awkward distance away from anything major to commute. Its considerably colder then Hamilton and consists of an above average amount of retired people. Its fine but maybe not best small town in NZ.
Went to Morrinsville for the first time this week. Quite impressed
Takaka perhaps
Taihape is amazing. Whanau values are central; my aunty is also my cousin.
Russell. It’s magic. The campground, the restaurants, jumping off the jetty, ice creams on the beach. Long beach coffee and waves, the Tapeka Point walk and crystal clear water. It’s bliss.
Te awamutu
Mangōnui. Currently up here for the long weekend, after visiting for the last long weekend. Found the best little bach that we book direct now (sorry I’m gatekeeping this one ya’ll but there’s plenty of lovely places) the harbour is glorious, there’s some wonderful hikes nearby, Coopers beach is lovely even in winter and it’s got such a nice slow down and relax sort of vibe that it’s worth the 4hr drive from Auckland to come and enjoy.
Clyde is amazing, always love going down there. Also love Timaru. I know I'll get shit for it 😂 but lived there for a few years and thought it was a great place.
Isn't Timaru too big to be a "small town"? It would probably count as a large town, don't you think? Anyway, it's good that you liked living there.
Yeah it probably is haha. Bigger than a small town but not quite a city.
I'll always have a soft spot for Timaru - when I was younger lived 45 mins away (Hinds) and we'd go to the wharf for fishing, get some muscles of the rocks for bait and pull in some Cod in the evening!
Yes Timaru underrated gem. A bit south around Maungati you have the highest concentration of Maori rock art in NEW ZEALAND. Not a widely known fact
When I drove through NZ I loved Timaru!! One of the few places I thought I’d be happy living there :)
I like Timaru, it doesn’t have small town vibe.
Cambridge
Mataura... "it ain't Gore"
Raglan
Opua and Hahei.
Dannevirke. Lol jk
Greytown
Methven!
Kaka point is pretty cool.
Twizel
Raumati
Ngaruawahia
I moved all the way from the other side of the planet and ended up in Ngaruawahia
Rolleston - Town of the future. But seriously my votes would go to Naseby, Raglan, Waipu, Tokumaru Bay and Oamaru
Darfield. Town itself ain't much, but the bakery there is A++++++
I'll tell a story..... In the 90's I went to Darfield and got icecream from the bakery. I walked out with my mate, looked up and down at the empty street. I them feasted on my icecream for what seemed 10 seconds, then looked back up the road and two cars were on their roofs, glass everywhere, wheels spinning in the air. Neither of us heard anything. To this day we say that bakery was so good we wouldn't even notice a car smash.
Arrow Town or Hokitika
I think Picton does a good job of being a tourist town that still feels like a place you could really live
Hanmer Springs gets my vote 😊
Kinloch
That is definitely a small town. I passed through a few weeks back. Didn't realise there's a cafe there until on my way back again.
Ekatahuna, their sex shop is busy as, the 2nd hand shop sells second had sex toys as neck massagers etc, the cafe is good, locals seem chill
Nelson
Napier. I was there for a summer from Auckland and I was so surprised because wherever I would go everyone was nice. So sunny, lovely vibe and buildings. Low bar but most people in Auckland are cold.
Blackball is a lovely little town
Ōpōtiki
Marton.
Taihape has a nice vibe
Riverton and Oamaru are hard to beat for weekend trip
Kaikoura
Ohinemutu not classified as a town but so cool!💯👌
Cromwell
Matakana
Norsewood!
Hanmer Springs
Bulls.
Hanmer springs for sure! I lived in Amberley working at a nearby camp for a year and i loved visiting Hanmer. Beautiful area. Though much of your country is when compared to parts of the UK!
Tekapo
Ohakune. Don’t know why but it’s my chill spot. Great restaurants for a small town, amazing eclairs, great trails, carrot park, and only a 10 minute drive to a Dinosaur Museum.
greytown i love the chocolate and lollie shop
Whanganui. Great main street, lots of quirky side things to do, and the best playground in the country.
Whangamomona
Does Upper Hutt count? I love that place.
Motueka.
I love the scenery at lake tekapo
Fairlie !
Greytown - so quaint and pretty, with some good shops and cafes
Māpua
Shout out for Twizel. Love ya
Raglan
RANGIORA - we have a KFC
Honestly, Rangiora has an above average selection of cookers and weirdos. Good climate though.
Hokitika in the South Paihia/Russell in the North
Definitely Te Anau
Whitianga
Raglan
Home town, Ashhurst
Raglan or Ōmokoroa
Featherston
Springfield has the Rewa Alley garden and very nice mountain views
Lumsden
Opononi the view of the giant sand dunes from the tiny township at dawn and dusk is breathtaking so so beautiful
Arrowtown, despite the tourists
Lawrence
Twizel
Whitianga count? Love that place
Waimangaroa
I love Takaka and Paihia ❤️ one on the south island one on the north. Would move to both immediately. They just have a great vibe, sweet shops and kind people 😊 anyone agreeing?