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Nelson stands on the southern corner of Tasman Bay, on the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand. Nelson received its name in honour of the 1st Viscount Nelson and Admiral of the fleet that defeated both the French and Spanish fleets at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Many of the roads and public areas around the city are named after people and ships associated with that battle. Trafalgar Street is the main city street.
Nelson's Maori name, Whakatu, means "a place to stand", literally meaning "home".
Many people believe Nelson has the best climate in New Zealand, in that it regularly tops the national statistics for sunshine hours, with an annual average total of over 2400 hours.
Nelson Province has beaches and a sheltered harbour. The harbour entrance is protected by a natural breakwater known as The Boulder Bank, which also reduces the effects of the tide on Nelson city's beach, Tahunanui. This allows for some of the safest sea bathing in the country.
Nelson is surrounded by mountains on three sides with Tasman Bay to the north-west. The city serves as the gateway to the Abel Tasman National Park, the Kahurangi National Park, and Rotoiti and Rotoroa in the Nelson Lakes National Park. It is a centre for both ecotourism and adventure tourism, and has a strong reputation among caving enthusiasts due to several prominent cave systems around Takaka Hill and Mount Owen.
The marker at the "Centre of New Zealand"The geographical "Centre of New Zealand" allegedly lies in Nelson; on a hilltop suspiciously convenient to the centre of the city. This supposed "centre" in fact simply marks the point deemed the "centre" for the purposes of early geographical surveys. The true geographical centre lies in a patch of unremarkable dense scrub in a forest on the Spooner Range near Tapawera, 35 kilometres southwest of Nelson.
Nelson also serves as a centre for arts and crafts, and each year hosts popular events such as the Nelson Arts Festival, and, in previous years, the annual Wearable Art Awards, although these have now moved to Wellington.
Nelson is also the birthplace of the scienitist Ernest Rutherford.
The greater Nelson urban area, which includes the adjacent town of Richmond, has a population of approximately 52,000 - and has contuinued to to grow as new arrivals are attracted to the climate lifestyle and employment opportunities.
Offering visitors a range of First Class Restaurants, Casual Street Cafes, Galleries, Museums, Interesting Shops, Concerts and Performers as well as beaches, rivers and harbour cruises. Nelson is an historically interesting and attractive small city easily accessible to all visitors, with plenty to keep you busy and entertained for a few days or perhaps even longer.
Accents on the Park (formerly Trafalgar Square Backpackers) is located on a quiet side street, right next to the famous Nelson Cathedral and Church Hill Park, and a few short steps from the from all the fun back in the centre of town.
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