Woodlea

Chch - it's a wonderful place - but hey that's my opinion. Walk around the botanical gardens or along the Avon and it's gorgeous and like Happy says nothing is very far away, the Alps, the Port Hills, Cathedral square. I think it's great and you can stick yer NI where the sun don't shine (Oh that is the NI, the Mainland is much sunnier and I can't remember when it last rained during the day)

jads

Hi

Is 'Goon' an area in Christchurch, what areas would you avoid in the area?
I take it the weather is generally pretty good, do you have any frosty mornings?

Cheers Jads

happynz

Now, that's funny! Sorry, no suburb called 'Goon'.

Sumner Beach. Sumner is actually a lovely place, but the traffic in and out of there on a summer weekend is a bit too heavy for my tastes.
Crime-wise, I wouldn't say there isn't any horrible place that nice middle-class white ladies should fear to tread.
June is usually when we see our first frosts with temperatures plunging to minus 5 C. I can't recall a day where the temperature stayed under 0, though.

Christchurch is OK.

Woodlea

GOON is the nickname for Rangiora - Rangoon gedditt?

Goon to Woolston where I work is 33km and takes 35 mins. From north of Chch to SE Chch, not bad eh?

I lived in NE Scotland for the 14 years prior to living here and can say that a Canterbury winter is better than a NE Scottish summer. Sure it gets cold at night and can be bleak for a few days but you know its gonna get better and you'll be walking on Brighton pier in a T-shirt in mid winter. Yes plenty of frosty mornings but you know the sun is only round the corner, and did I mention that it doesn't rain much?

Despite what Happy says I'd avoid parts of Hornby, Aranui, Linwood, Phillipstown, Avonside, and others, stick to the NW and you can't go too wrong. Good luck.

Dustybin

I wouldn't live next door to me, my guitar playing is terrible...

karonious

I can hear him from Whitby: he's right; it's awful!!

Lexylou

are you serious? A Scottish summer is the same as a Canterbury winter? I have NEVER seen snow in the summer in Scotland and even if the weather isnt blazing hot, I don't think you can say that the temps are comparable. Maybe a Canterbury Spring is the same as a Scottish summer but saying it is the same as winter is just being a bit childish. This is what kills me about this site, no one on here even suggested the weather in Scotland was like that of Canterbury and you come on saying that the summer is like the winter. So completely untrue and you know it.

Fact, the UK has crap weather compared to NZ but making up stories about the NZ winter being the same as the Scottish summer is crazy talk. This is actually unfair to people reading in good faith - planning their lives - moving to the other side of the world expecting a Scottish summer type winter. I have never been as cold in my life as i was in Christchurch during the winter. OUr house was a traditional wooden thing and we were freezing. Lets try and be honest about what the weather is like.

hjmilligan

We came over last winter in june,beautiful sunny days with a chill in the air. Cold nights but with a heatpump or woodburner not freezing at all!!! would not say at all it was colder than the UK. Honestly say NZ winters are alot warmer than the UK especially the winter the UK have just had!!

Lexylou

I didnt say it was colder than the UK. What i said was our house was the coldest I have ever been. We had one heat pump for a large house. That was our fault for buying a NZ wooden house with no heating but there is no point in pretending that it doesnt get cold in NZ. It does!!!!! Fact.

What i was disputing was that the NZ winter is the same as the UK summer. That is not true no matter what way you look at it. I did say that perhaps a NZ spring was more like the UK summer. You only have to do a search on the internet to look at temps etc to see that the NZ - specifically Canterbury - winter is not the same as a Scottish summer.

Woodlea

Read carefully - I said a Canterbury winter was better than a North East Scottish summer, and I stand by that. I didn't say it was warmer, although it can be during the day, I just said it was better, I never said it didn't get cold - how else do we get frosts? Of course that is an opinion and cannot be verified or denied by comparing internet figures for temperature!

happynz

Really? First I've heard that. I must not be paying attention.

Not bad.

C'mon, I think these places aren't really that bad. Yeah, some parts are less than wonderful, but I don't get a feeling of menace.

Woodlea

Wouldn't want to live in those places though.

Goon is only known as Goon in Goon, let's face it most Chch folk have barely heard of Rangiora and even less have been there, they say unless they have friends or rellies there what would be the point of going there - and I take their point !!

TeamEmbo

We had some crackingly good warm days in winter here last year. Warm enough to sunbathe and even did my ironing outdoors on the dick!!

Yep, frosty early morning, but soon cleared, with big blue sky and warm sun. It was our first winter here and we didn't know what to expect but was pleasantly surprised. As I've said a zillion times before, we didn't need hats, scarves, gloves or even coats. The only time I remember being cold was whilst up on Moorhouse Ave looking at cars, always seems to be a chill wind up there.

Doesn't rain much here in Goon. We asked around when we came on our recce last March and locals said if you want hot, flat, dry go to Rangiora. We did indeed want that so that's where we are now and loving it! Drops off cool when the sun goes down in Spring but have been having great summer. No long dark gloomy months like UK Winter during our winter here. And, did we mention, doesn't rain much?

So sorry, Lexylou, am not misleading anyone. It really is like that here. Can't speak for rest of Christchurch, just telling like it is up our way. But then I guess that's why North Canterbury is seeing a large population growth of UK and USA expats.

jads

Hey Guys

Thanks for all of your replies.
Basically ChCh has better weather than the UK, thats just a bonus.
ChCh sounds more like a town than a city.
ChCh is easy to get around.
ChCh is not for everybody.
ChCh is close to sandy beaches with skiing accessable.

Sounds worth a shot!

Cheers Jads

Lexylou

Expand on your generalization, where in the North East? I am from St Andrews, that is North East. Certainly never remember frost in the summer there.

If you are talking further up north - Aberdeen or further then I cannot comment but I would be VERY surprised if there had been frost in that North East in the middle of summer.

I lived in Christchurch over two winters, we had snow, rain, so much rain that most of our garden washed away, and we were in north island for Christmas last year, New Year and the days after were very wet and certainly not tropical, so I wonder if the NZ you live in is different to that of the New Zealand I have been to and my husband is from.

I am not disputing that the weather is better in NZ than that of the UK. It doesnt take a genius to work that out, what I am disputing is that a NZ winter, is the same as a NE Scotland summer. How long have you lived in NZ can I ask? how many winters have you actually had in NZ?