The Westland seaside town of Hokitika will warmly welcome you to the Society's 21st annual conference. You will be hosted at the historic buildings of Hokitika's Regent Theatre and the museum's Carnegie Gallery, as well as getting 'close to the action' overlooking the wild Tasman Sea at the Beachfront Hotel's Ocean View Restaurant. All venues are within easy walking distance of the town centre.
The themes and flavour of the conference will encompass the broad scope of the Society's aims, while taking the best advantage of the spectacular location, and its rural and coastal communities. The conference will also let you savour the character of the West Coast's renowned hospitality. A fieldtrip northwards to Punakaiki along the world-famous "Coast Road" highway will be a feature of the conference. Workshops on Monitoring, Hazard management, Community Involvement, and Port development will be included in the Wednesday and Friday programmes.
Keep an eye out for more details of the conference on the NZCS website and email digest, or contact nzcsconference@gmail.com.
For transport to Hokitika, limited seats are available on a special NZCS ‘Coast to Coast’ tour bus option being put on to get you from Christchurch to Hokitika on the Tuesday afternoon, and returning on Friday afternoon.
This extra bonus is a great way to get to and from the conference, for only $90, or $70 one way. BOOKINGS ARE ESSENTIAL. Book your seat on the Coast to Coast NZCS bus when you register for the conference through the website. Later bookings can be made by emailing NZCSconference@gmail.com but will incur an additional $25 fee. Secure parking for up to 20 cars is available at the Ritchies depot in Christchurch, but will be allocated ‘first in first served’.
The ‘Coast to Coast’ NZCS bus trip will depart from Christchurch on Tuesday 19 November at 11.00am from Ritchies Depot at 40 Abros Place (off Wairakei Road), with a Christchurch airport pickup at 11:10am from the coach parking area outside the international arrivals terminal. The trip will include a commentary and a couple of brief stop offs on the way. The bus will arrive in Hokitika about 3.30pm, in plenty of time for you to settle in to your accommodation before the evening Conference Icebreaker.
The ‘Coast to Coast’ bus will return on Friday 22 November leaving at 1.15pm from outside the Hokitika Museum (17 Hamilton St). It will arrive at Christchurch airport for a drop off by 5:30pm and at Ritchies Depot by 6pm.
Passengers must report to the departure point 10 minutes before departure. We advise that there will be no refunds for no-shows.
West Coast Shuttles (www.westcoastshuttle.co.nz), Atomic Shuttles (www.atomictravel.co.nz) and Air New Zealand also provide travel between Christchurch and Hokitika, but please note that the taxi service from the Hokitika airport (03 755 5075) should be booked in advance and paid for with cash rather than credit card.
Kiwirail's Tranzalpine Train journey between Christchurch and Greymouth (www.kiwirailscenic.co.nz/tranzalpine) connects with the Intercity bus between Greymouth and Hokitika (www.intercity.co.nz).
