fran & edd

we are planning to move to NZ later this year, around Sept hopefully (dep on time to get residence visa for me, Frances - Scottish) and think we want to live in either Bethlehem or Papamoa but are finding making a decision quite hard as we've only spent a couple of days in the Tauranga area during a 5 week reckie trip to NZ in December (fantastic by the way .

We have a Staffordshire Bull Terrier we are bringing (bloody hell what a hassle..) and like walking him, enjoy going out to eat, drink and going to the movies. We both play golf (one good one not so good (divots flying... )) so would love to be fairly near a golf course or three..we both plan to start businesses from home, so need decent access to main highway routes. We play squash and would be looking for a decent fitness centre to (try) keep in shape. Eddie would be interested in getting back into touch rugby, diving (we know this isnt area specific..Eddie is a kiwi whos been living in UK for over 6 years).

We were thinking of Papamoa but wonder how busy the link to Tauranga gets in holiday times..and've noticed that in Bethlehem they have fantastic houses for the same money..can anyone with local knowledge give us advice?

Frances & Eddie

ps its bloody freezing here in Edinburgh and we've just had a mate leave for Australia so imagine how impatient we are getting...!

ex geordie

we live in tauranga and out of the two places you mentioned i think bethlehem would suit you as papamoa is nice during summer if you enjoy the beach but tauranga has the restaurants and cinemas

fran & edd

thanks for that ex geordie - how long have you been in NZ? Any advice you can offer re the moving would be gratefully received.

is Bethlehem a nice area to live or should we consider other areas around Tauranga..we are looking at buying a 4/5 bedroom house with as big a section as poss (700M2 min), maybe even a lifestyle block so we have somewhere to play on quads.

Frances & Eddie

ex geordie

hi we came to nz last feb my husband has a nz passport due to his dad been born here .we ended up settling in tauranga as it was one of the nicest places we came accross.bethleham is a nice place and alot of new houses are been built there plus you are next to the winery!! we had to leave our staffy bullterrier with relatives in the uk as he was 13 and we thought the flight would be to much for him we do miss him and he is 14 now and still going strong . we sold our furniture in the uk and bought a mixture of new and second hand when we bought our house.the local bay trader magazine comes out weekly and you can get plenty of bargains as thats where everyone advertises there cars furniture etc for sale . good luck in your move :

scottish

HI there

The route from Tauranga to Papamoa isnt too bad in holiday times. You will get to know different routes. However the Mount over the bridge to Tauranga is a flippin nightmare - avoid at all costs.

We lived in Papamoa and loved it. You can still pick up a house for about $350K - not bad area and decent section. Something with a house may set you back about $500k. You have beach access and some not bad areas to walk the dog. Watch the reserves though. Never let your dog off. The leave now and again poisoned carrots to kill the rabbits.

Another area that we like is Te Puke. Its about 15 mins from Papamoa and you could look at some lifestyle plots.

In Papamoa there is a good gym and loads of big shopping developments under construction. Its also well based for Highway 2 down to Hawkes Bay, Rotorua, Whakatane and Hamilton. Plus the main road to Auckland isnt too far away.

Try www.eves.co.nz - very good Real Estate agent in the area.

Anything else just ask.

fran & edd

thanks Scottish. We're very familiar with realenz, eves, open2view and some of the other real estate sites -- been looking/planning this move for months have shortlist of 6/7 houses in Papamoa & Bethlehem its just deciding where..leaning towards Bethlehem

thanks for the tip about the reserves ..would never have expected that. Hope you werent speaking from experience on that one..

if you live in Papamoa how do you avoid the link over the bridge to the mount? we thought it was the main (only) route when we were there, and were thinking if we lived in Bethlehem we'd avoid this most of the time.

good to get advice from people who've lived in the area you want to move to..thinking there might be an opening for a new gym in Bethlehem? doesnt appear to be any not on the web anyway

Frances & Eddie

scottish

Fran

From Papamoa to the Mount take Papamoa Beach Rd following the coast line takes about 25 mins from one end to the other. If travelling down from Bethlehem take the back road past Welcome Bay to Papamoa. If travelling to Tauranga to Bethlehem again avoiding the bridge take the back road through Welcome Bay. You will get to know these areas.

Dont know if there would be much call for a gym in Bethlehem, you never know... there is a crackin bloody butchers there however, can highly recommend it.

Bethlehem is lovely. I prefer the coast so Papamoa suited us fine.