Attracting a steady stream of Woolston locals and passersbys, Shabby Chic Market is a splendid market housed on a residential property, the Rochester Villa and its surrounding grounds …

• markets

Christchurch’s cool crowd is flocking to the Darkroom on a battered looking St Asaph Street. Its incognito location makes you feel like you’re part of a secret society and, as the name suggests, the place is a little on the dark side (so much so that you quickly forget that the sun is shining outside) …

• bars / clubs / pubs

Waikuku is an idyllic beachside settlement just 25 minutes north of Christchurch. Before the turn off to the beach on the motorway is the Waikuku Mill, a spectacular brick building which was used to produce rope and twine in the 19th and 20th centuries …

• café
• excursions

Satisfy your sweet tooth at Raspberry Café, a delightful place in the midst of Tai Tapu with a reputation for good food and a lovely, welcoming atmosphere …

• café

Based in Sumner, a suburb popular with English doctors and surfer types (for the sense of community and occassionally good wave), Aumoana is an independent surf store “providing you with awesomeness” since April 2010 …

• clothing boutique

Want to sip your morning latte in a café bathed in early morning sun? Well, Café Metro can not only offer your daily dose of Vitamin D but they’ll soon be open late (yes past the standard 4pm closure so typical of many Christchurch cafés) …

• café