Martinborough is a town in South Wairarapa, a district in the Wellington region on the North Island of New Zealand. It is 65 kilometres east of Wellington and 35 kilometres southwest of Masterton. The town has a population of about 1300 full-time inhabitants.
History
John Martin is regarded as the town’s founder and set out the first streets in the pattern of the Union Flag in the 19th century. Many of the town's streets are named after foreign cities visited by Martin. However, before Martinborough was established, the Southern part of the region was known as Waihenga, a point that seems to be lost at times in the history of the district. A feature is the colonial architecture, one example of which is the historic Peppers Martinborough Hotel which was built in 1882.Prior to the expansion of viticulture in and around the town, Martinborough was largely a rural service town for nearby farms.
Martinborough Today
Martinborough has a large number of vineyards producing wines, notably Pinot noir. Martinborough has a warm micro-climate, with hills to the East and West. Almost all of the vineyards are in thin ribbons around the Northern and Eastern sides of the town, and on the Dry River to the South. All follow dry riverbeds, which provide appropriate soils for viticulture. Notable wineries include Te Kairanga, Palliser Estate Wines, Dry River, Martinborough Vineyard, Murdoch James, Ata Rangi and Craggy Range. During November, the region's wines are celebrated in the Toast Martinborough wine festival. This event temporarily enlarges the population by 10,000.Other industries around Martinborough focus on traditional beef and sheep farming, growing olives, lavender and nuts, as well as the fishing at the nearby coast settlements of Ngawi and Cape Palliser. Tourism is an important industry for the town, and the information centre is a good source of advice about accommodation, activities, wineries and where to eat.
For visitors, there are numerous options for accommodation, from casual B&B's to a 5 star hotel. In addition, a small number wineries and specialist tour operators offer quality vineyard tours, while there are many vineyard dining opportunities at wineries, or at the many café's and restaurants dotted around the attractive village square. A vibrant shopping precinct exists with boutique shops.
The town is also home to the chambers of the South Wairarapa District Council.
Education
The town offers education at a primary level and may soon offer some tertiary education. Martinborough has one primary school, Martinborough Primary School, which contributes to the roll of Kuranui College. The international cooking school Le Cordon Bleu, in partnership with UCOL, confirmed it would open its first New Zealand campus in Martinborough by 2009, but they have now changed the venue to Wellington instead, upsetting many who looked forward to the economic boost this would have provided to the town.References
See Also
- http://www.martinboroughnz.com/ Martinborough Business Association website
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Last updated on Wednesday July 16, 2008 at 01:49:25 PDT (GMT -0700)
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