New Zealand Art Deco

Has anyone attended the Napier Art Deco week in New Zealand? If so, how was it? If it is worth going I will include it in my vacation plans.

Mike

There are a couple antipodeans here in the Lounge, and somewhere there are pics of Napoier. I've seen scads of pics of the Deco Festival in Napier, and I'd LOVE to go there. The town is beyond amazing, and they really go whole hog. If you go, send us LOTS of pics and videos!

When is it? Can you post a link?

Tony

TM, here is the address. http://www.artdeconapier.com/pages/geon-art-deco-weekend

Mike

If you go to the advanced search and search keywords "Napier" (search titles only) you will see a few threads and lots of photos of Loungers that have attended the Art Deco festival.

Lived in various "down under" locations for more than a year. Napier is charming, very deco ... but it is a small town. I'm not sure it's worth going solely for the festival. HOWEVER, New Zealand is really worth visiting for all it's many attributes and that might be a great time to plan a general trip. It's a small country that doesn't feel small because of it's low population (space between cities and towns). It's easy to drive around and if you fly (at least when I was there) there was no security on domestic flights, so it's highly civilized. There's a great deal of the kind of classic 20th century stuff that we like in many places, not just Napier, and a great deal of the country has the relaxed pace and genteel sensitivity you might be looking for. Although the exchange rate seems in the favor of the US dollar be aware that things like minimum wage, fuel and such may be higher and so it balances out more than you'd expect.

If on the North Island it's worth going out of your way to go "black water" rafting in the Waitomo Caves. Lit by glow worms, this is a very Lord of the Rings experience. I'd consider relocating to Napier permanently even if I didn't like Deco Style. Though there are deco-ish hotels downtown my favorite is the Te Pania about 3 to 5 blocks north. It's a beautiful country full of wonderful people.

I'm a Kiwi although I live over the ditch now.

Napier is a great town and yes, probably the most Art Deco place in the world. But the whole of the Hawkes Bay is lovely, and they have the best summers in the country.

NZ generally has a fair amount of Deco architecture and you'll see it in every city and town.

And Mike, thank you for the glowing review of NZ

Interesting link. Thanks for sharing...

I've been away from the Lounge for quite a few months now for various reasons (my first time logging back in and it feels like home already!), and we've just been on a reccie to NZ, with a view to possibly emigrating. A way too short 2 weeks there, during which we fell head-over-heels with the place, making our way from Christchurch to Auckland, including...the most gorgeous Napier! I could definitely settle in either there or Nelson tomorrow.

We were having a look at the properties for sale, and this gorgeous property came up:

http://www.bayleys.co.nz/Listings/Hawkes-Bay/Napier-City/Napier-South/751126

Maybe one of the Loungers would be interested?

Oh, I would love to hear from any New Zealanders about the vintage "scene" in NZ...

I'm also a Kiwi, but have lived in England for 14 years now. I absolutely love Napier, been to many of the Art Deco Weekends. I would say that whilst it's an interesting time to go, you are unlikely to see much, as it's so crowded!

Maybe best to stay long enough to see the town either before or after, as well as during. The Hawkes Bay area is lovely (Hastings also has many Art Deco buildings), and really the whole of NZ is worth seeing.

Bunny, where do you think you might be settling? Napier and Nelson both have beautiful climates. The views from Ranui are stunning, aren't they? I'd love to live in Napier one day. Maybe I can get my Mum to retire up there.

We really loved, and would prefer the "small town" aspects of both Napier and Nelson and their surrounding areas, but the other half's profession (acoustic engineer) we'll probably end up in one of the bigger cities. I think Christchurch would be likely, given all of the reconstruction going on there. I'd rather it not be Auckland, as after 15 years in London, appalling traffic jams are one of the things I'd love to see the back of!

Ever tempted to go back, Miss Sis?

Sometimes, especially since I split up with my English partner last year. I do love NZ, it will always be home, but at the moment I am looking at University courses in the UK, as I think I will have better options for what I want to pursue here. Time will tell!

And yes, Auckland - bad traffic!