Info on Whangarei please
 

Any information on Whangarei appreciated, good / not so good areas, areas within 30 mins of hospital, primary schools etc would be great :thumbsup:

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Hi,

I think I have mentioned on here before that I'm a big fan of Whangarei. Very nice place. The areas just out of town on all sides are nice, although whangarei heads if further out if you want to go down to Auckland.

I know of a couple of good primary schools in Mangatapere and Poriti which are about half an hour out, but not anywhere else. Whangarei High school has an excellent reputation. I think there are not really many no-go areas in whangarei so you should be ok really.

It is certainly more parochial than Auckland, but still big enough to have some decentish shopping. Some good restaurants and a great veggie market on Saturday morning.

Nice beaches in the surrounding area, and not too far to Auckland if you want to visit.

Hope that helps

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Hi - we are looking into Whangarei also, having visited there last year.

Whangarei itself is a reasonable sized town with adequate shops, supermarkets, cinema, swimming pool, kids soft play etc. however I personally wouldn't want to actually live in the town itself and would rather live more rural but close enough to access - (there are many areas in Whangarei from previous posts that are often recommended though and I am sure other posters may be able to help ??).

We particularly liked areas such as Waipu (approx 30 mins south) or along the Tutukaka Coast such as Ngunguru. Keri Keri is very nice but about an hour north and may be too much of a commute if you are working at the hospital.

Great choice though if you are looking there, we fell in love with the Northland area. :thumbsup:

Best of luck
x

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Hi all,

We too are hoping to get to Whangarei, once we find a buyer for the house in Uk:curse:

I got in touch with a local builder in Whangarei late last year and asked them about areas in Whangarei. They recommended looking at Maunu, Kamo West and Glenbervie. For rural areas they recommended Kauri and Whangarei Heads.

Paura Bay, Ruakaka and Waipu are between 30 - 40 mins from Whangarei.

Maybe someone else could give you ideas of schooling and family activities as we did not have to factor these areas into our decision due to our children already finishing school years.

Hope this helps you :thumbsup:

Lynda

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Not a fan of Whangarei but Ocean Beach @ Whangarei heads is stunning

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Hi ukkiwi,

I am interested to find out why you are not a fan of Whangarei. That is if you don't mind sharing it with us.

Just wondering if there is something we are not aware of but should be or is it just something that is personal taste?

Cheers

Lynda

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Dont worry its purely based on going there a couple of times and being more a big city person - i've not idea about the schooling, suburbs etc.:)

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Hi ukkiwi,

Thanks for sharing that with us. :cool:

If you are more used to city life would you put Whangarei in the category of being more of the semi rural setting that we would be used to in the UK as opposed to the hustle and bustle of a city?

Just interested to discover how other people's opinions of Whangarei would differ to my own, with respect to what you are used to as opposed to what you are not and whether you seek the same setting, when in or relocating to NZ, as you had in UK.

Cheers

Lynda

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Definately no hustle and bustle there, maybe a bit traffic around the centre - 5 mins out of the town centre and your in the country side or near the beach.

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Thanks for that! Feeling like I have made the right choice in where to settle now:thumbsup:

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Hi there, I live up in the bay of Islands, but use Whangarei as my once a month ish shopping spree, trip down to the big smoke etc etc ( BOI isn't exactly city like at all!) I have a real soft spot for it.
I like that it has more of a small town feel than a bustling city. There's enough of everything, decent enough shops, cinema, good places to eat out...
Being used to living in the countryside I would perhaps rather live outwith the city it's self - it's no secret I adore Waipu, or head out west towards Dargaville and in about 10 minutes there are some lovely places and as previously mentioned Whangarei Heads is stunning.
Northland rocks! :lol:

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Hi guys, thanks for the info, it's good to get other peoples perspectives on things, think wel just have to wait until we get there and have a good explore around the region :thumbsup:

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

We moved to Whangarei a year ago and love it - the 'city' has got almost everything you would need but 10 minutes drive and you are in the country. The Hospital is on state highway 14 heading west out of town towards Dargaville, although traffic is nothing like the UK if you want to avoid the worst of it Maunu or Maungatepere would be good areas to look at. Great schools - our 2 are at St Francis Xavier (Catholic) but there are equally good non faith primaries. Maunu & Maungatepere would also be good for Pompellier College when your kids are older and is generally regarded as one of the, if not the best, secondary school. Other areas for houses if you want to be near the city ameneties would be Kensington, Whareora Rd, 5 Mile Bush. Kamo West is OK but a bit to much like UK housing estates for our liking.

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

apologies 3 Mile Bush Road not 5!!!!!

Re: Info on Whangarei please
 

Kamo West? Ok I have been to Whangarei more times than I care to consider (my grandmother is from there, so it's a family trip) but I can't recall Kamo West. Is that 'Outskirts of Otangarei'??? Or is it genuinely a new suburb?

FWIW, I can't believe how much Whangarei has changed over the years. Definitely for the better. Unfortunately my grandmother lives in one area which was completely awful (people thought we were rich because our car had...wait for it....wheels. Not only that, someone asked my parents why they had bothered getting drivers licences. Umm.....). But the vast bulk of the place is really much much different.