Owing to a sudden change of circumstance for our regular housesitters, my husband and I are requiring housesitters from 27 December 2016 to 12 March 2017, while we are away on an extended holiday. We own our 10 year old home on the outskirts of Blenheim (a 15 minute stroll to town). We are in a quiet cul-d-sac in a recently developed subdivision with very caring neighbours.
With Blenheim always featuring as one of the top 3 sunshine places in New Zealand, there is always plenty to do in the Top of the South. Blenheim is 20 minutes from Picton and the beautiful Queen Charlotte Sound, 25 minutes from Havelock and the Pelorous Sound, and a 1 hour 30 minute drive to Nelson, to Kaikoura or to St Arnaud. We live in the heart of the Marlborough Wine region.
Our rivers are great for trout fishing and beaches for sea fishing; we have many and varied scenic walking/tramping routes nearby and the magical Queen Charlotte and Pelorous Sounds are only minutes away and both are easily accessible by boat, with lesser accessibility by car. Our region hosts museums, the most famous being the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre, where Peter Jackson (of Lord of the Rings fame) has many of his World Wars' planes on display and in truly amazing scenes recreated by his team at Weta workshops. We have art galleries, craft sites, weekly markets, colourful parks with picturesque large shade trees, a selection of handy golf courses and so much more to see and do.
At the head of the Awatere Valley is New Zealand's largest farm at over 1800 square kilometres, home to the country's biggest herd of cattle. A 4WD trek through here will bring the motorist out at Hanmer Springs, and a well earned relax in the Hanmer hot pools.
As we have no pets or wildlife, there will be only minimal attention required for our lawns and gardens, with the only requirement being, that the produce be picked and used. Our home can be left unattended for a couple of nights if our housesitters wanted to go a little further than just a day trip.