Travis Wetland Nature Heritage Park — Attraction in Christchurch

The Travis Wetland Nature Heritage Park is an excellent project managed by the Christchurch City Council and the Travis Wetland Trust. New Zealand has lost up to 95% of its wetlands due to conversion for other uses, predominately farming and Travis Wetland was itself a farm prior to being purchased by the city council in 1996.

Extensive native plantings and weed control measures have been done and are still ongoing. Not everyone likes the ecological restoration programme. One of the neighbours of the park took matters into their own hands and felled some trees that impeded their view. There is also someone who does not like having poroporo present in the park and took it upon themselves to pull some out that had self seeded in an area that had been planted out with a selection of...

It is a wetland in the suburb of Burwood in Christchurch, New Zealand. An ecological restoration programme is being undertaken to restore the wetland. It covers 116 ha of land formerly drained and used as a dairy farm. The main car park and access point for Travis Wetland is at the end of Beach Road. Easy parking. The wetland is open 8am to 8 pm all year. Dogs are not allowed at the wetlands. There are public toilets near the main car park. Fair bit of walking around on the boardwalk and there is some tree shade. The circuit is long and can take more than an hour to complete. Lots of birds such as swans, swamphen, ducks, geese around - not many animals. Best to go early to avoid the heat. Wear comfy shoes, take water, wear hat, sunscreen. Great place for...

As one of the last remaining wetland areas in Christchurch, it was fascinating to see this place and imagine how the entire region used to look like. There’s one main loop around the entire park, which makes it easy to explore the different areas (info booth, bird watching area, etc). There were several people walking, jogging/running, and just stopping along the path to examine the trees and wildlife. As for getting there, there’s a few different bus stops right in front of the (side) entrance, so it’s not hard to access for those without cars. Although it’s surrounded by the suburbs, it really feels removed and apart from the neighboring community. Such a peaceful place to visit....