Gisborne, New Zealand
First Light, Last to Get Anything
"First to see the sunrise, last to see a direct flight"
Official Coat of Arms
A shield depicting the meeting point of three rivers choked with silt, rampant grapevines heavy with chardonnay grapes, flanked by a lone surfer perpetually waiting for a gap in the roadworks on State Highway 2, all beneath a rising sun that arrives here first and leaves everyone else waiting.
TripAdvisor Review
★★★☆☆ 3/5
"Lovely beaches and the Tairawhiti waves are genuinely world-class if you're into surfing, but getting here feels like a pilgrimage - the roads wind forever and half the shops close by 5pm. The Rhythm and Vines festival is fantastic once a year, then it's back to being impossibly sleepy. Great chardonnay though, I'll give them that."— Craig_Sunburnt_In_Napier
Property Listing
Wake up before literally anyone else on Earth in this sun-drenched slice of the East Coast, where a modest three-bedroom villa comes with vineyard views and the character-building charm of being three hours from the nearest motorway! Perfect for surfers, wine lovers, and anyone who has given up on same-day courier delivery.
Twinned With
Invercargill — Both proudly claim to be 'first' or 'last' at something and both require serious commitment to actually visit.
Supporting Evidence
Gisborne is one of the first cities in the world to see the sunrise each day, thanks to its position near the International Date Line, though this honour is somewhat offset by being one of the hardest New Zealand cities to actually drive to.