Palmerston North, New Zealand
Palmy Where Nothing Happens
"Half a mile of civilisation, surrounded by paddocks"
Official Coat of Arms
A shield quartered with a roundabout, a paddock of dairy cows, the Manawatu Gorge wind turbines spinning uselessly, and a lone student clutching a Massey University lanyard at 2am, all beneath the motto 'Nothing To See Here, Literally'.
TripAdvisor Review
★★★☆☆ 3/5
"Came for the Manawatū Gorge, stayed because my car wouldn't start on The Square and there's nothing else to do while you wait for the AA. The Te Manawa museum was actually lovely, and Massey University gives the place a weird buzz of students who all seem desperate to leave on weekends. Ate at a decent Malaysian place near Broadway Ave, but by 8pm the whole town had switched itself off like a fire alarm test."— Derek H, Napier
Property Listing
Nestled in the heart of the fertile Manawatū Plains, this charming city offers unbeatable flatness, a thriving student population, and gale-force winds that will keep your washing line perpetually entertained! Close to The Square, close to everything, and only a short drive from somewhere more exciting.
Twinned With
Milton Keynes — Both are meticulously planned settlements famous for being the butt of national jokes about being boring.
Supporting Evidence
Palmerston North is famously windy due to the Manawatū Gorge acting as a wind tunnel, and comedian John Cleese once joked that if he wanted to kill himself he'd 'move to Palmerston North', a remark the city later commemorated with a park bench.