Christchurch New Zealand Accommodation

Avon Loop Apartment Accommodation

This Christchurch New Zealand accommodation is something a little outside the normal.  Charlie, your host, provides a one bedroom apartment for your Christchurch stay.

The accommodation is an affordable option.  The apartment is an individual unit, in a quiet cul-de-sac situated close to the Avon River.

It is positioned for a short stroll into the city centre or to the Christchurch Conference Centre.  If you play bridge, the largest club in Christchurch, the Christchurch Bridge Club, is just over the back fence.

At just NZ$75 (approx US$44) a double per night, or NZ$95 (approx US$55) for bed and breakfast, the apartment is an affordable accommodation option.

The apartment is one bedroom with a queen size bed in a separate bedroom.  It has an ensuite including a super spa tub.  Linen is provided as are tea, coffee and milk.

There is a laundry and your own lock up garage.  The Avon Loop Motel really is a home away from home.

There is a separate lounge/dining area and a separate toilet.  The apartment also has a full kitchen with a few extra ingredients in the cupboard for those who like to cook for themselves.

The Avon Lodge Central Motel-Apartment is run by Charlie and is one of the gems in Christchurch accommodation.  It is hard to find accommodation this well positioned for this sort of price.  You will find the availability posted on his website.

Charlie has a delightful personality and will most certainly make you welcome…

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How To Keep Young Children Busy In The Hotel Room

When you are traveling with young children it is always a challenge to keep the children busy at night or on rainy days in the hotel room. If you are lucky enough to be staying at a full service hotel with a swimming pool, games and movie rentals your job of keeping the kids busy will be easy. However if you are staying at a hotel where all these resources are not available you will have to tap into your own imagination. For more information please visit Montagu Accommodation

The first thing you need to do is to plan ahead. Before you ever leave home you must make a list of all the games, puzzles, movies and appropriate toys you are going to bring on your trip.

Start with the games and puzzles. Pack a storage bin with board games and puzzles for the kids to do. These are perfect for the children at night or on a rainy day. To make it even more fun let the children set up a special place on the bed or in the middle of the floor to play their games. Even under a table with a blanket draped over the top will make the game playing even more fun.

Second thing to do is to take a look at your movie selection. Plan to watch some of the tried and true favorites as well as some movies the kids have not watched in a while. You can even surprise the kids with a few new movies that you have purchased especially for the trip. It is always a welcome site to see something new yet familiar so consider purchasing a video of your children’s favorite cartoon or television show. For more information please visit Montagu Accommodation

Next come the toys. Look for interactive games such as GI Joe, Polly Pockets, Barbie, Leapster hand held games and Mr. Potato Head. These toys are great for rainy days because the kids can use their imaginations while keeping themselves busy. Girls dolls with clothes are great. The girls can build homes for the dolls in the hotel room and play house while you are traveling. Dress up clothes are always a hit with both girls and boys. Consider letting the younger children walk around the hotel dressed as there favorite character.

A great trick to making the toys even more fun is to give each child a small bag or suitcase and allow them to fill it with whatever toys they want to bring. This gives the children some control over what they have and makes that bag of toys even more fun. For more information please visit Montagu Accommodation

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What to Do in Christchurch

There is plenty to do in Christchurch. Where to start is probably more the thing!

You can experience excitement, relaxation, sunshine and snow, world class sporting and cultural events, wining, dining and accommodation, unique attractions and activities - and all within two hours of Christchurch International Airport.

It is easy to get around Christchurch using the comprehensive transport system or you can hire a rental car and plan your own itinerary.

For years I have spoken with tourists and a large number of them said they wished that they had allowed more time for the South Island of New Zealand. Many tour planners allocate equal time between the North and South Island of New Zealand. I strongly advise you to spend considerably more time in the south.

The South Island offers a contrast in scenery and all within a small area. From Christchurch you can leave the dryness and flatness of the Canterbury Plains, through the rugged Southern Alps, and on to the west coast of the South Island with its wetter, more tropical scenery. The return trip can be done in one day, although I would not recommend it. It is a full day and you don’t get much of a chance to enjoy the scenery.

Back to Christchurch and some of the things to do…

Christchurch Botanic Gardens

The Christchurch Botanic Gardens are located on one side of Hagley Park in the central city. They are a wonderful place to relax and unwind. They cover a 30 hectare (75 acres) expanse of introduced trees and shrubs, flowers, herbs and native bush.

The Gardens are a most spectacular result of the desire of the earliest settlers to plant the barren plains of Canterbury - a desire, as public and private gardens continue to flourish in the rich alluvial soil, which has earned Christchurch the label ‘Garden City’.

In spring and early summer, the Botanic Gardens are ablaze with blooms in the Rose Garden and with flowering alpine plants in the Rock Garden. There are four glasshouses providing a humid home for native plants, cacti, and carnivorous and tropical plants.

There is an excellent children’s playground complete with a large paddling pool, or children’s swimming pool, available in the summer months.

Christchurch Tram

There is a special deal available - the Christchurch Tram and Gondola Combo. A discounted rate is offered to visit both attractions.

There is an entertaining and informative Inner City Tram Tour. You can then explore the attractions that appeal to you on the main, tram route. The tram route bypasses the Art gallery, Arts Centre, Museum, Botanic Gardens.

On a warm summer day it is wonderful to go on the tram in the evening with the breeze blowing through the open sided trams or through the windows. Very relaxing and fun!

Christchurch Gondola

The Christchurch Gondola provides a gondola ride from the Christchurch suburb of Ferrymead up to the summit of the Port Hills. At the top there is the Summit Cafe for snacks and light lunches or the Pinnacle Restaurant for evening dining. There is also a souvenir store and the Time Tunnel ride showing some history of the region.

The summit is 500 metres above sea level and has a spectacular 360 degree view of Christchurch City, Lyttelton Harbour and across teh Canterbury Plains to the Southern Alps. There are nature walkways from building at the summit.

Punting on the Avon

There are two places where you can go punting on the Avon River. Punting in the Park operates from the historic Antigua Boatsheds with trips going up the Avon into the Christchurch Botanic Gardens. You can take a wine along and soft drink for the kids. They provide the glasses as you are punted along in pure self indulgence. Make sure you take a camera and get the front seat - I recommend this one!

Christchurch Arts Centre

The Christchurch Arts Centre is a venue for retail and entertainment. It is set on a site that was once the University of Canterbury. There are distinctive gothic revival buildings forming the basis of the site.

The Arts Centre can be found opposite the Botanical Gardens, on the tram route about five minutes walk from Cathedral Square.

The site hosts a bustling weekend art, craft and produce market. This is a good place to go for that little gift.

Sumner Christchurch

Another favourite spot of mine is Sumner Beach and Village. The beach is a popular surf beach set around the interesting Cave Rock. On the other side of the rock from Sumner beach is Scarborough beach.

For the chocolate fanatics among you, there is a lovely little shop tucked away at the bottom of the hills one street up from the beach. It is well worth a visit!

There is a walkway from Cave Rock along Scarborough beach to the bottom of the hills. This is a lovely walk and very popular with all age groups.

Sumner village itself has a variety of interesting shops and plenty of cafes and bars.

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Eliza’s Manor on Bealey

Eliza's Manor on Bealey

Eliza’s Manor on Bealey is one of Christchurch’s luxury bed and breakfast accommodation establishments. The boutique hotel offers accommodation with authentic old-world charm.

The manor was built in 1861 and is a Historic Places Trust building. Eliza’s gives you a taste of what life was like for the European pilgrims when they first arrived in Christchurch.

The current owners have beautifully upgraded the décor and have managed to combine the historic ambience of the building with modern facilities. Each bedroom has its own ensuite bathroom.

One of the features of Eliza’s manor is the intricately carved staircase, a feature seen when you walk in the main door. The Manor is set among large protected English trees.

Eliza’s Manor on Bealey has a 4 star plus rating from Qualmark who provide New Zealand Tourism’s official mark of quality. With recent improvements, it would not surprise me to see the rating for Eliza’s reach 5 star soon.

Wireless broadband Internet access is available at Eliza’s Manor on Bealey.

Ann and Harold, the owner’s and hosts of Eliza’s, know how to look after their guests and provide top quality service. The guest comments reflect this, and on the occasions that I have met them, I have been extremely impressed with their hospitality.

This establishment is suited to couples or business travellers, and is not suitable for children or smokers.

I wholeheartedly recommend Eliza’s Manor as a place to stay for luxury accommodation in Christchurch with an old-world charm.

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Things to Consider in Family Accommodation

Look for a hotel that suits your purpose. The typical hotel that you stay in may or may not suit when travelling with your family. Consider all types of accommodation before you start.

Some establishments encourage you to stay with children, others are really not interested in helping you and staying at these can make for a lower standard of holiday. There are seven things that are well worth thinking about before you do anything else when looking for family accommodation.

1. Are the Facilities Suitable for Child/ren - Check out exactly what facilities are available at the accommodation premises. Do they suit the age bracket of your children?

An example here is one place that we stayed when travelling with young children. It kept us on edge the whole time - the bedrooms were all upstairs and a child could fit through the gap in the railings around the staircase. Like all children they were attracted to the stairs!

What is the swimming pool like? Is it suitable for your child/ren and their swimming abilities?

2. Child Care When Travelling - When hotels say they provide child care, make sure you check it out first. Some only cover child care for a couple of hours a day. Other places only run if they have minimum numbers. Check out anyone caring for your child/ren - make sure they are reputable!

3. Cellphone - Take your cellphone and get access for the country that you are in just in case you are away from your child/ren at any stage. If your children are in care somewhere, it is reassuring for you and your children that you can be contacted.

4. Entertainment for Your Child - If the establishment has cable TV - do they have children’s channels? Some don’t. Do they have a DVD player and children’s DVD’s available for hire on the premises or somewhere close? You may even like to take some with you.

With school age children, finding a place where your children, the social creatures that they are can find other children to play with. You may be surprised at how quickly close friends can be made - you get the opportunity to meet other parents too. I have some long term friends that were met like this.

5. Cooking Facilities - Some times it can be more convenient to have cooking facilities at the place you are staying. Make sure you consider all your options.

6. Catering for Babies - Travelling with babies requires a full check list of its own. Stop for a minute and think about how you will deal with each aspect of looking after bubs on your journey.

7. Backups for Care in Place - If you have child care organised while you are away and you are going to attend something that is fixed while your child/ren are in care - have a back up plan in place. What will happen if your event goes on longer than was originally intended?

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Christchurch Accommodation for Sport in New Zealand

Golf Course in Christchurch

Whatever sport you participate in or support, you are likely to find a local club. The region has strong representation in rugby, cricket, soccer, basketball, netball, rowing, surf life saving, swimming, gymnastics, sailing, skiing, skating, horse riding, hockey, softball, rock climbing, cycling, it really is hard to keep up with all the sports you will find here!

New Zealand Sport

As far as New Zealand sport goes, Canterbury is a strong competitor in nearly all forms of sport. It really is a haven for sporty people.

Christchurch city is well set out, flat and easy to get around. It is on the edge of the Canterbury Plains. Bicycles are plentiful and many people walk to their work.

The city has plenty of beach space, has the Port Hills with great mountain biking and rock climbing. The skifields are only a couple of hours drive and there is a selection to choose from with ice skating in an arena in town, or in the middle of winter on the frozen lakes at the base of the Southern Alps.

Christchurch has a resource centre for the New Zealand Academy of Sport. It really is a great place for sporty people to live.

In this article we feature a little about rugby, golf, fishing and a few of the main activities you will find around the Southern Alps. Remember though, this is only a very small part of the many activities of sport in New Zealand.

Canterbury Rugby

If you are coming to Christchurch to follow the Canterbury Rugby, Crusaders Rugby or All Blacks Rugby, the main stadium is ‘AMI stadium’. This can be found in the south east of the city. It is a block back from Moorhouse Avenue and along Wilsons Road, in the suburb of Waltham.

The main entrance can be found at the end of Lancaster Street which is a street off Moorhouse Avenue. The park was for many years called Lancaster Park.

A new stand is currently under construction (Deans Stand) and will be ready for hosting half of the quarter finals of the Rugby World Cup in 2011.

Another ground where rugby has a strong presence is ‘Rugby Park’ in the suburb of St Albans. This is the training ground for the Canterbury Crusaders rugby team. They are the current holders of the Super 14 tournament and the Tri Nations Trophy.

Accommodation for rugby followers could be a selection of places anywhere around the city depending on your budget and desires.

When teams come to stay, a popular place for them to stay is at Speight’s Ale House on Bealey Ave, just along from Barbadoes Street. The business is a favourite of sporting people and has an extensive accommodation complex behind the restaurants and bars. The premises are owned by a group of former top sportsmen.

Christchurch Golf Courses

If golf is more your thing you will be happy to play a round in Christchurch. The most well known and oldest courses are the Shirley Golf Course run by the Christchurch Golf Club and the Russley Golf Course.

The Christchurch Golf Club was established in 1873 at Hagley Park. They moved to the present site in Shirley in 1900. The club has hosted over a dozen New Zealand Open Championships plus many other national amateur events. The 1990 World Amateur Teams Championships were held there. It is rated in the top golf courses in New Zealand.

The Russley Golf Club has an excellent golf course with one of the finest facilities in the country. The Russley is always in top condition. It has undulating to flat fairways which are easy to walk.

The Russley golf course is only 2km from Christchurch International airport, so if you are looking for something to do on a stopover - give golf in Christchurch some consideration.

There is a feast of Christchurch golf courses around with reasonable fees and they welcome visitors.

You can find some courses complete with accommodation and resort facilities.

Canterbury Fishing

Fishing in Christchurch is more available in the surrounding region.

Fly fishing New Zealand is popular with locals and tourists alike. There are fishermen who come to New Zealand to go fly fishing each year. New Zealand’s clean rivers and lakes are perfect for freshwater fly, salmon and trout fishing.

The Canterbury area provides for some very large brown trout at times to ‘those in the know’. Anglers dream of the variety of water, the scenery, and the size of the fish.

Canterbury Rivers also provide spectacular fishing for sea run browns. These fish can be very large as they feed up on the rich bounty of the ocean and estuarine areas where they can be targeted.

Many rivers in Canterbury have good populations of Rainbow trout, particularly in the mountain streams and rivers. They can attain a good size and it is just so much fun to land these. Hooking them is only the start of the adventure.

The larger Canterbury east coast rivers are renowned for there salmon fishing. These can be taken on a fly. Salmon numbers appear to be recovering after some years of below average returns, let’s hope so. The Fishing Season for Canterbury fishing is Oct 1 through to April 30.

It is advised to get a specialist freshwater fly fishing guide. They will be able to get you to the right streams for South Island fishing, where the fish do bite!

Southern Alps

From Christchurch it takes about two and a half hours to be up on the mountains skiing or snowboarding. A short journey across the Canterbury Plains and up one of the ski field roads will have you up above the clouds and swooshing down the slopes.

If you want to Ski New Zealand Mount Hutt is one of the more reliable skifields for snow conditions. It is well worth having on your list of fields to ski on any New Zealand skiing trip.

Mount Hutt is the largest ski field close to Christchurch. There are quite a few others that are about the same distance away including some interesting club fields, if you don’t mind forfeiting some of the commercial field luxuries.

New Zealand Southern Alps also offers great rock and mountain climbing. The region attracts or homes many noted climbers.

At the base of the Southern Alps you will find a variety of lakes. There are some that naturally freeze in winter and create a wonderful place for the amazing experience of skating over ice, as you watch the fish swimming beneath you.

Daily excursions are available to these activities from Christchurch (during their season). Other activities operating in this region include white water rafting and jet boating.

You can stay in a range of accommodation in Christchurch from backpacker’s right through to luxury hotels. If you prefer there are a selection of places to stay across the countryside and in the villages around the base of the Southern Alps New Zealand.

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Christchurch Has All Seasons

Unlike parts of New Zealand further north, Christchurch has all seasons of the year.  The deciduous English trees stretch their bare branches to the sky in the clear frosty days of winter.  Usually a snowfall will cover the city in white once or more during the winter.

Later the trees will become green-tipped and then turn into blossom during spring.  The city is beautiful with colourful flowers – a great time to visit the ‘Garden City’ of New Zealand.

During the long summer months the hot nor’westerly flows down from the Southern Alps and the green trees gradually fade. The warm summer invites people to spend time at the rivers, beaches or the pools. Most of the main rivers in the countryside around Christchurch are braided rivers with clear water.

The trees paint the city in brilliant reds and oranges for the autumn season and the leaves start to fall as we head back to winter.

Each season sees residents and visitors making the most of the climate.  Lakes, mountains, beaches and rivers are all within a few hours drive from the city. Christchurch itself is perfect for cycling around, being set on the Canterbury plains it is basically flat – you can hire a bicycle and go where the mood takes you.

Christchurch has all seasons and this may help you decide when you would like to stay.

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English Pilgrims Influence on Christchurch Accommodation

The dream of the English pilgrims who came to Christchurch was to establish a model colonial settlement.  A little piece of ‘home’ in New Zealand where the gentle English rolling hills they were used to were replaced by rugged mountains and forested swamps.

Travellers arriving today at the modern facilities of Christchurch International Airport have difficulty imagining what those pioneers faced.  Christchurch New Zealand accommodation today is thankfully much improved from the conditions faced back then.

There are still Christchurch accommodation places you can stay in that show a strong presence of these times.  Throughout the city you can find cafes and restaurants featuring the magnificent Gothic architecture brought by the English pilgrims.

There are numerous old buildings converted into comfortable accommodation yet still retaining features from older times. We will feature a number of these in posts to come so bookmark this site. We will be covering a selection of Christchurch bed and breakfasts and a number of cottages that are available for rental.  There are some absolutely amazing properties with some top class hosts!

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More Christchurch Accommodation on Business

Christchurch New Zealand accommodation site is a little different.  For years we travelled on business.  We stayed in a variety of places mainly brought about by our interest in purchasing an accommodation property.  This opened up our eyes to the options available when you go away and stay on business.Business travel is often associated with staying in hotels with a layout that comes from the cookie cutter mould. This is handy if you need to go to the loo in the middle of the night, yet can get a tad tedious on your hundredth night away on business.

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