Katmat

Hi there, I am moving (with my family) to Bucklands Beach in Auckland in 3 weeks time. My partner has been there, working, since October & is loving the place. Has anyone any views, good or bad, on the place? I have read a few postings on this site, people seem to have mixed views about Auckland. I like to think I am going with an open mind, and am not expecting the place to be perfect.

Thanks

happy in nz

hi
we live in howick which is 5mins from bucklands beach and have lived here for 10 years, bucklands beach is a fantastic place to live,you can catch the ferry to auckland from half moon bay if thats were you plan to work.
great food,pubs schools and shops nearby,
enjoy

happy in nz

hi
forgot to say feel free to email us if you would like to meet up.
we have 12 year old twinsthat love it here

Katmat

Hi there, thanks for replying. Your kids were tiny then when you moved, I'm sure they probably cant remember their old life! Where did you move from? After all this time, does Auckland feel like home?

Mary L

Hi Katmat,

We moved to Auckland 2 years ago and are living in Bucklands Beach. It is a beautiful place although the beaches (Bucklands Beach & Eastern Beach) will full of young people turning on the Hi-Fi loudly during weekends. We have been living here for 2 years now but everyday when we pass the beach, we still admire the beautiful scenery! I was told that the nearby McCleans College is very very good and famous. That's why the properties here are more expensive than those in Howick and Pakuranga.

You will find a lot of Asians and Asian restaurants (mainly Chinese) in Howick. And we find that both Howick and Bucklands Beach are safe places to live.

You will find a lot of Asian students in Auckland city after the university semester starts in Feb again. If you are anti-Asians, then you will not feel happy living in Auckland or Howick. By the way, I am also an Asian

urbanproject

Hiya,

My partner lived in Half Moon Bay (which is very near to Bucklands Beach) for a few years before going to the UK and coming back to NZ. We live in the city now but will be moving out East in the long term

It's a lovely area and in my opinion very safe. There are good schools like McLeans College, Pigeon Mountain Primary and Bucklands Beach Intermediate (partner's nephew will be starting there in Feb). Eastern Beach is great fun and there are decent shopping areas nearby like Pakuranga Plaza and Botany Town Centre.

Hope this helps,

Jen

happy in nz

Hi there, the twins were 3 1/2 when we moved and yes, they don't really remember England. We moved from Ashford Middlesex (near Heathrow) - my wife is a kiwi and lived in the UK for 17 years before we moved. We have settled into NZ far easier than either of us thought and we think the children have a better life here. Certainly this area (Howick, Pakuranga etc) has excellent schooling (which keeps house prices in the area up) and a comparitively large English ex-patriot population. Howick main street has a distinctly 'old english' feel due to the frist fencibles (first english defenders during the Maori wars) settling here. We are pleased that we settled in this vicinity and are very happy to be here. Keep in touch, have a good trip, let us know when you get here and it would be really nice to chat over a coffee.

SarahB

I only found out that Howick had its own shopping area the other month. I was looking for maternity clothes and went to a shop there.... I've lived here (Beachlands) 18 months and never knew that shopping street was there. There were some nice little shops there.

Katmat

Hi Mary, thanks for your reply. I am actually looking forward to living in a multi-cultural place again, which I was more used to when we were in England. There are few Asians here in N.Ireland. I love the idea of my kids mixing with all types of people, I fear they could have grown up to be narrow-minded had we stayed in N.I! Do you have kids yourself?

Katmat

Hi Jen, thanks for that, its good to hear its a safe place. We live in a very quiet rural area at the moment, so its going to be a culture shock for my kids, they have very rarely been in to a city in their whole lifes! Do you like living in CBD?

Katmat

Thanks Happy. Howick sound like a lovely area, my partners dad lives there. Thankfully he has been able to advise us on areas too, but its great to here from people on here. And yes, would be great to meet up sometime, I will send you my email address

Katmat

Hi Sarah, I was just looking at Beachlands in my "Where to live in Auckland" book, it sounds lovely

urbanproject

Yes, i like the city life here, much more than central London, where I used to live. I walk to work and rentals are much more affordable in Auckland

SarahB

Well, we like it anyway... nice little village... just a bit too far out of town for some people. Theres no end of new houses for sale on Pine Harbour Estate if anyone is thinking of buying a house.... they built so many they are accepting much lower offers on them.

I'm off to the local beach again with my son today!

Mary L

Hi Katmat, no I have no kids and so I cannot take advantage of the good schools around Why I mentioned Asians in Howick because one of our kiwi friends who lives in Half Moon Bay told us there are some "crazy Asian drivers" in this area. I felt quite funny about how she described us. She said we would suddenly stop in the middle of the road and she didn't know how to react :scared: . This happens often near Meadowland (where a lot of Asians hang around). So, if you move here and if you come across Asian drivers on the road, please do bear with us . I learnt driving from a Kiwi teacher and so I think I am not one of them (hopefully)