LOCATION  The city of Nelson sits not only in the centre of the "Top of the South" but it also sits at the centre of New Zealand! The combined urban area made up of Nelson and Richmond sits on the south eastern shore of Te Tai-o-Aorere Tasman Bay. Nelson City has a population of 50800, making it the country's 15th most populous city, while Richmond adds a further 19700 to the population of the area. Nelson is well known in New Zealand for generally having the highest number of sunshine hours per year, and the entire top of the south region benefits from this weather trend, whether its glorious days at the beach, or sampling world reknowned products from the wineries of the Marlborough and Tasman regions. ARRIVING BY AIR  Nelson and Richmond are served by the Nelson Airport, located 6km south west from the central city and 8km north east of the Mega venue. Blenheim Airport is also an option for arriving by air, being located a 1.5hr drive to the east. There are multiple Air New Zealand flights each day to and from the major centres and international airports of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, providing easy access to the city from all parts of New Zealand, including domestic and international connections. Also providing services between Nelson and a number of destinations in the Lower North and Upper South Island are Origin Air, Sounds Air and Golden Bay Air. Air New Zealand along with some smaller airlines, including Origin Air, Sounds Air and Air Chathams, provide services between the regions, while Air New Zealand and Jetstar are the primary airlines that operate between the main centres. ARRIVING BY ROAD  Located about as close to the centre of New Zealand that a mega event could be, Nelson is accessible by road from almost anywhere in the country, including the North Island via the ferry between Wellington and Picton. From Christchurch, Nelson is a very scenic 5hr drive, not including geocaching stops. Alternatively, the drive from Picton to Nelson will take about 2hrs. If public transport is your thing, Nelson is also served by the InterCity bus service. There are busses available to Nelson from most areas of the South Island. ACCOMMODATION Accommodation in Nelson and the surrounding Nelson/Tasman area is plentiful with options to suit all levels of budget - from camp grounds, campervan sites and budget motel accomodation to hotels. Additionally, within easy driving range are other accommodation options throughout the Tasman Bay, including Motueka and Kaiteriteri. A little further from the mega venue, there are also an array of options in Takaka and Golden Bay to the north west, Murchison and St Arnaud to the south, and the Picton and Blenheim area to the east. CAMPERVANS We appreciate that many Mega attendees will arrive in campervans, and will be keen on overnight parking. There are a number of locations in the vicinity of the Mega Event venue where campervans can stay overnight, and the Tasman Disctrict council has a map of these. There is also information available from the Department of Conservation regarding overnight camping locations in the area. There are a number of camping grounds and holiday parks in the Nelson/Richmond area, with powered and non-powered sites available, along with a New Zealand Motor Caravan Association (NZMCA) park located in Motueka, 32 km from the venue, exclusively for NZMCA members. Close to the Mega event are a number of paid options for camping in a motorhome, including the Richmond Park Motorhome Camp located at the A&P Showgrounds on Queen St exclusively for NZMCA members but with very limited facilities. Other options include the Queen Street Holiday Park and the Richmond Motel & Holiday Park. This is not an exhaustive list and none of these organisations are affiliated with, or endorsed by, the Mega team. | 
