5reasons to love RUSSELL
This pretty town has charm, history and chocolate
The Lynch brigade likes a family holiday, so this past Easter we headed up to Russell in the balmy Bay of Islands.
1 The town
The main drag runs along the pretty foreshore, making it one of New Zealand’s loveliest holiday towns. There’s not a heck of a lot of shopping to be done, but there are pretty much all the usual suspects, plus a couple of grocery stores. Mum was happy because she found the church for Easter Sunday mass and I was happy because I found Newport, the chocolate shop. Have brunch beside the lapping waves, then head up to Flagstaff Hill, where four times in a row local Maori (most famously Hone Heke) cut down the flagstaff in protest at Britain’s sovereignty. Now most people come here for the view.
2 Accommodation
I chose Nelson’s Lookout on Bookabach because it could fit all seven of us and was reasonably priced, but I was a bit nervous as I couldn’t quite suss the layout from the photos. However, when we arrived, we were thrilled to find a very private, large house with four bedrooms, two bathrooms and – best of all – multiple living spaces so there was plenty of room for everyone to do their thing. Better still, it had views to die for across to Russell, a pleasant 10-minute drive away. And even better than that, it had its own beach a five-minute walk away down a shady path. Holiday heaven! In fact, the water was so inviting, I took the plunge.
3 The history
Russell was the first permanent European settlement in Aotearoa. From our house, we could see across the harbour to the green lawn of Waitangi, where the Treaty was eventually signed. (To visit, get the car ferry back to Opua and head for Paihia or there are regular passenger ferries from Russell itself.) In the early 1800s, Russell was known as “the hellhole of the Pacific”, with the visiting traders and whalers of the time kicking up a right old stink. Someone told me there were once 40 grog shops in the town! But by the 1830s, a good influence – and something of a buzz-kill, I’m sure – had arrived ...
4 The bishop
At the southern end of Russell’s leafy seaside promenade, nestled behind lovely gardens, is Pompallier House, the oldest rammedearth building and oldest industrial building in NZ. Mum and I, and my longsuffering nephew, did a tour of the estate, named after French Bishop Pompallier, who came here as a missionary, no doubt putting a dampener on the small town’s drunkenness and debauchery. Actually, he didn’t live in the house – it was used as a tannery for binding prayer books translated into Maori. The tannery has been lovingly restored and the gift shop has a very nice verandah café. My kind of sightseeing!
5 The food
The Duke of Marlborough hotel has prize position on the waterfront and is a perfect combination of restored oldworld charm and modern efficiency. We had Sunday lunch here and although the plastic awnings had to come down because of the pesky wind and rain, it didn’t dampen our enthusiasm for our fish and chips, and rosé. In better weather, we’d have walked afterwards to lovely Oneroa Bay on the other side of the peninsula. Safe for kids and with a coffee cart under the first tree on the left, what better place to snooze in the sunshine between dips in the beautiful blue sea? Back in town, Hone’s Garden is a quirky spot for excellent pizza. All in all, a hellhole-free zone.