Gisborne City Cycling

OVERVIEW

Take a seat for a leisurely two-wheeled spin through downtown Gisborne and out along a level cycling trail. Along the way, you’ll encounter much the city’s local color and many of its most significant sites – and even take out time for morning tea at a lovely Art Deco café. A town that knows how to appreciate life’s pleasures, Gisborne – or “Gizzy,” as it is affectionately known, has a colorful backstory that revolves around the 1769 meeting of European explorer James Cook and the local Maori who had migrated to these shores hundreds of years earlier. Your guide will elaborate on that history and show you the spot where the meet-up happened, along with other landmarks that usually include an extraordinary post office clock tower, the rustic Tairawhiti Museum nestled in the trees, and the Taruheru River that winds lazily through the city. You’ll also see plenty of “First to See the Light” signs; Gisborne is proud to be New Zealand’s easternmost city and the world’s first to greet the rising sun each new day. Your ride also carries you out of the city center and along part of a long stretch of beach that hugs the arc of Poverty Bay.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Follow your guide on a cycle though compact downtown Gisborne and out along a shoreside path.
• See the main sights and monuments, including the one marking where James Cook landed in 1769.
• Encounter the lovely river that winds through town, surfer-pleasing beaches that line the coast, and the boulevards where the city relaxes and shops.
• Stop mid-ride for a civilized morning tea break at an Art Deco café. Learn about how this town has the distinction of being “First to See the Light.”

HELPFUL HINTS

• Wear casual, weather-appropriate clothing.
• Flat, closed-toe shoes are mandatory.
• Bring a hat, a bottle of water from the ship, sunglasses and sunscreen as needed.