What will surprise about New Plymouth: a scenic, gastronomic and artistic haven

Having the option to fly to any destination in New Zealand for a birthday treat, the indecisive Libran woman I am had no doubts about her final decision – New Plymouth.

New Plymouth is the major city of the Taranaki Region, on the West Coast of the North Island. It is named after Plymouth, in Devon, England and where the first English settlers migrated to in New Zealand.  My own ancestors sailed the long voyage on the William Bryan, leaving Plymouth on the 19th November 1840 and finally arriving in New Plymouth on March 30 1841.

Having visited New Plymouth as a child, to see where my great, great grandparents settled, and 10 years ago with my own children – I was delighted to see how this city had progressed.

Arriving too early for check in at the lovely Airbnb – Autere Street Cottage, gave us an excuse to visit a café from our list of recommendations. Our first choice didn’t disappoint – The Federal Store has great food and coffee, in a very cool environment.

Much to my pleasure the rest of our weekend followed suit, as we discovered and indulged in New Plymouth’s vast variety of cafes, bars and restaurants. Our weekend took us to dinner at the quirky Social Kitchen, brunches at Monica’s and Chaos, a casual dinner at a Southern Indian Restaurant called Kathakali, great coffee at Ozone Coffee Roasters and pre dinner drinks at Frederic’s Bar – I recommend them all.

One thing that hasn’t changed is New Plymouth’s spectacular coastal and mountain scenery. Mt Taranaki/Egmont on a clear day delights you by appearing majestically above the sky and can be viewed from various vantage points in and outside the city.

Being disappointed on my birthday visit that the mountain was covered in cloud, I was delighted to be presented on departure with the perfect quintessential view of the mountain.

New Plymouth is a surfer’s paradise, and the 10km scenic Coastal Walkway has to be the most enjoyable way of exploring these long stretches of beautiful rocky shores.

The new Len Lye Centre was another drawcard for me, on our second morning after enjoying brunch at Monica’s, we took in the amazing visuals of the reflective exterior of the Govett-Brewster/Len Lye Centre and then inside enjoyed Len Lye’s kinetic art and film. One of my highlights was seeing Len Lye’s Eiki projector, which would have been purchased from my late grandfather who was the importer of these reputable machines.

New Plymouth is home to many talented artists of different mediums, but it was the colourful street art that stood out for me – not surprising as New Plymouth was home to the infamous BMD duo. Their bright and quirky works can be found down alleyways and more noticeable parts of the city.

Another highlight was the Te Rewa Rewa Bridge. This stunning white bridge built in 2010 is reminiscent to a breaking wave or a whale’s skeleton, is 83m long, giving walking or cycling access across the Waiwhakaiho River. On a clear day you get one of the best views of Mt Taranaki/Egmont through the structure of the bridge – unfortunately this wasn’t to be on the day we visited, but I was still impressed.

No visit to New Plymouth is complete without a visit to Pukekura Park with its array of native and exotic plants, reflective lakes, red bridge and home of WOMAD. Other places of interest we enjoyed were the Puke Ariki Museum, Oakura Beach, Waitara Beach covered in enormous piles of driftwood and where we watched whitebaiter’s filling their nets. Further down the coast we sat on a beach resembling a Michael Smither painting. New Plymouth you have certainly done my ancestors proud.