Founders Park
Founders Park
4.5
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4.5
519 reviews
Excellent
249
Very good
187
Average
62
Poor
13
Terrible
8
Notable Tours NZ
Wellington, New Zealand58 contributions
May 2022
Notable Tours left 40 folks to explore this heritage village by themselves for a couple of hours. Everybody had a great time, favourites were the Newmans' bus display (with iconic TV ad), the Bristol Freighter and the little apothecary. Great organisation and service from the cafe as well - highly recommend for a group of older folks as a lovely place to snoop around for an hour or so.
Written 21 May 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Janet J
19 contributions
Mar 2023
What a surprise this place was. We thought a couple of hours would do it. We got there at 10am and were there all day. So much to see and do and there was even a band playing on the lawn at lunchtime. Great value for money, the cafe was very good too and there was a lot of information and exhibits showing the history of NZ. Very good.
Written 15 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mark S
Worsley, UK209 contributions
Mar 2020 • Couples
We were staying in Nelson and walked along the coast to visit Founders Park.
There was a nominal entry fee, we went to eat first and the cafe had good value food and a range off beer/ soft drinks.
The park consisted of a range of historical buildings from around the area, all of which were interesting.
Unfortunately one or two of them appeared to be closed. It was very quiet the day we went and we spent about 2 hours there. It was well worth the walk to get there and we thoroughly enjoyed the visit.
There were some children there who seems to enjoy it as well.
We went on a Wednesday, I think it would be much busier at weekends.
There was a nominal entry fee, we went to eat first and the cafe had good value food and a range off beer/ soft drinks.
The park consisted of a range of historical buildings from around the area, all of which were interesting.
Unfortunately one or two of them appeared to be closed. It was very quiet the day we went and we spent about 2 hours there. It was well worth the walk to get there and we thoroughly enjoyed the visit.
There were some children there who seems to enjoy it as well.
We went on a Wednesday, I think it would be much busier at weekends.
Written 5 March 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Simon D
Auckland, New Zealand847 contributions
Mar 2022
We stopped by mid afternoon on a Monday. A couple of staff about working on things on the property, but a lot of exhibits were otherwise closed/shut and very few people about on the day we stopped in - may have been Covid impacted? Nobody at the front desk either, so it was a free visit otherwise I think the entry fee may have been a little high for what we saw or could access, and the train was also not running that day.
A few period buildings about that have been well looked after in the main street. The highlights for me really were an old cargo plane in great condition, some older buses (Newmans), a stagecoach and some older transport vehicles and accompanying stories to read/listen to.
A few period buildings about that have been well looked after in the main street. The highlights for me really were an old cargo plane in great condition, some older buses (Newmans), a stagecoach and some older transport vehicles and accompanying stories to read/listen to.
Written 16 April 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ann T
Pascoe Vale, Australia1,386 contributions
Jan 2023
This would be a great place to take kids. Full of historic buildings and streets to explore. And the little train is quirky as well. We arrived a little too late to really take advantage of everything so some things were already closed so while it was a sweet sort of place, it was rather a waste of money for us.
Written 18 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sue M
Wellington, New Zealand138 contributions
Nov 2020 • Couples
There are lots of recreated pioneer villages throughout NZ, but this is one of the better ones I've seen. The story of early colonial Nelson is well told through exhibits and written material. It was pretty quiet the day we visited, so we enjoyed taking our time over two hours to enjoy the lovely gardens, have a coffee and explore the village
Written 12 November 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Colonial 5024
Nelson, New Zealand22 contributions
Mar 2021
Founders Park is a nice historic park in a sunny location. It offers exploration amongst the buildings with great facts and history within. There is also a cafe and playground and a train that occasionally takes you on a nice trip around the area. The best thing is that if you're local you don't need to pay and if you're not local, you only have to pay a very small amount. I would highly recommend giving this place a visit.
Written 6 April 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
JohnSB3
Wellington, New Zealand734 contributions
Dec 2020
This is a kind of heritage museum but laid out in a park so visitors can wander around and linger where they like. There are some old style shops from the colonial era, old buses from Newmans (a pioneering local transport business) and an old freighter aircraft which used to fly across Cook Strait from the 1940s to the 1970s. There is a train ride for small kids, old bikes, a timber shop and other relics of the past. My observation was that it needed more investment and certainly better curation to make it a better experience for visitors. Worth a visit but it could be so much better.
Written 1 January 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
footiesnz
Christchurch, New Zealand71 contributions
Dec 2019 • Family
It was nice to walk around the heritage park and look at all the items.
Quite a few were closed which was a shame.
The train was going but has an extra cost which is quite expensive for the short ride.
The brewery etc. were all closed so we couldn't stop for a drink which would have nice as it was a hot day.
The park was tidy with lovely well maintained gardens.
Quite a few were closed which was a shame.
The train was going but has an extra cost which is quite expensive for the short ride.
The brewery etc. were all closed so we couldn't stop for a drink which would have nice as it was a hot day.
The park was tidy with lovely well maintained gardens.
Written 4 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Brian D
Darlington, UK991 contributions
Jan 2024 • Family
A purely chance visit found this amazing park. We were stunned how beautiful it was couldn't believe how cheap it was to enter this park.
Several buildings were open to view and we also ate at the café which was very pleasant.
A highly recommended place to visit when you are in the Nelson area
Several buildings were open to view and we also ate at the café which was very pleasant.
A highly recommended place to visit when you are in the Nelson area
Written 3 February 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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