Wairarapa Region
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Martinborough, Greytown, Featherston, Masterton, Castlepoint, Riversdale, Palliser Bay, Putangirua Pinnacles, Tararua Range, Rimutaka Range, Aorangi Forest Park, Lake Wairarapa, Mount Bruce, rural scenery.
Information
The Wairarapa Region is in the southeast of New Zealand's North Island, close to the capital City, Wellington. A large part of the region is a
plain, but it isalso surrounded by mountains and coastline. The region is known for its many small towns that have retained their charm and character from a
more friendlier past.
The Tararua Mountains to the west protect much of the Wairarapa from the prevailing north westerly wind that is predominate in the southern half of the North Island. The result is a warmer drier climate than neighbouring Wellington region and this provides the perfect climate for the vineyards that exist here. Taratahi, Opaki, Gladstone, and Masterton are some of the quality wines from this region.
The
Wairarapa has some nice uncrowded beaches. The most notable is Castlepoint which has a small settlement with a shop, a campsite, and some holiday homes. The area has an uplifted reef, rugged cliffs, and miles of sand. The beach is suitable for both swimming and surfing. Castlepoint has a scenic walk
on the uplifted reef which leads to a light house and great views of the
Pacific Ocean. Neigbouring Riversdale Beach is also worth visiting and is a popular beach for surfing too.
The
Wairarapa region has some great walks and trails. The Rimutaka Forest
Park or the Tararua ranges has a number of easy walks to challenging tramps. Another area of interest is the
Aorangi Forest Park and Cape Palliser Coast to the south. 
It is here that the scenic Putangirua Pinnacles a valley of limestone pinnacles can be found.
Masterton, Featherston, Carterton, Greytown, and Martinborough are some of the bigger towns in the Wairarapa Region. Eketahuna a smaller rural town is considered by some to be the epitome of rural New Zealand towns.
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