About our Region

Location

Location

Nelson Tasman is the geographic centre of New Zealand, covering the North West area of the top of the South Island. At the heart of the region is Nelson City, the largest city and commercial centre across the top of the South, complemented by variety of vibrant towns and rural settlements such as Richmond, Motueka, Takaka, Tapawera and Murchison. 

We have remarkable combination of alpine and coastal landscapes incorporating three highly-accessible national parks (Abel Tasman, Kahurangi and Nelson Lakes), all within 90 minutes of the city, and many other key natural assets and attractions within 15 minutes such as the Centre of New Zealand, historic Cable Bay, Dun Mountain and the Horoirangi Marine Reserve.

Tasman and Golden Bays are two of just three northern-facing bays in NZ. Their rolling hinterland provides the perfect conditions for growing many high-quality horticultural crops whilst also providing for a sustainable and rich seafood environment.

The newly built world class Nelson Airport is handy to many places; just 25 mins to Wellington, 85 mins to Auckland and 50 mins to Christchurch, making it easy to be connected to the rest of New Zealand and the world.  


Population

Population

Nelson Tasman has a population of 104,000. With one in five people internationally born, there are 48 different cultures living in its environs.


Climate

Climate

Nelson Tasman is New Zealand’s sunshine capital, recording the highest annual sunshine hours in 2017 (2633 hours). Summers are beautiful and warm, but our crisp, cloudless autumn and winter days make the perfect setting for enjoying all the outdoor activities the region has to offer all year-round.


Economy

Economy

Nelson Tasman has a growing regional economy, with a diverse economic base of clever businesses, and a burgeoning knowledge economy and innovation community. 

The regions annual GDP is $3.8 billion, seeing over 8% growth in the past 3 years. Our core economic drivers are value-added Food & Beverage, the Blue Economy (marine, fishing & aquaculture), Forestry & Wood processing, the Visitor Economy and, Research, Science & Technology.

More than 40,000 people are employed in the Nelson Tasman region made up of 5,622 businesses with 24,940 employees in Nelson and 6,446 businesses with 18,950 employees in Tasman.


logo