Christchurch

Christchurch (Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of Christchurch.

The city was named by the Canterbury Association, which settled the surrounding province of Canterbury. The name of Christchurch was agreed on at the first meeting of the association on 27 March 1848. It was suggested by John Robert Godley, who had attended Christ Church, Oxford. Some early writers called the town Christ Church, but it was recorded as Christchurch in the minutes of the management committee of the association. Christchurch became a city by Royal Charter on 31 July 1856, making it officially the oldest established city in New Zealand.

The river that flows through the centre of the city (its banks now largely forming an urban park) was named Avon at the request of the pioneering Deans brothers to commemorate the Scottish Avon, which rises in the Ayrshire hills near what was their grandfathers' farm and flows into the Clyde.

The usual Māori name for Christchurch is Ōtautahi ("the place of Tautahi"). This was originally the name of a specific site by the Avon River near present-day Kilmore Street and the Christchurch Central Fire Station. The site was a seasonal dwelling of Ngāi Tahu chief Te Potiki Tautahi, whose main home was Port Levy on Banks Peninsula. The Ōtautahi name was adopted in the 1930s. Prior to that the Ngāi Tahu generally referred to the Christchurch area as Karaitiana, a transliteration of the English name.

On 4 September 2010, a major 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Christchurch at 4:35 am local time, causing an estimated total cost of NZ$4 billion in damage. The epicentre was located approximately 40 km west of the central city, 10 km south-east of Darfield.

Overview
Archeological evidence found in a cave at Redcliffs in 1876 has indicated that the Christchurch area was first settled by moa-hunting tribes about 1250. These first inhabitants were thought to have been followed by the Waitaha tribe, who are said to have migrated from the East coast of the North Island in the 16th century. Following tribal warfare, the Waitaha (made of three peoples) were dispossessed by the Ngati Mamoe tribe. They were in turn subjugated by the Ngāi Tahu tribe, who remained in control until the arrival of European settlers.

Following the purchase of land at Putaringamotu (modern Riccarton) by the Weller brothers whalers of Otago and Sydney a party of European settlers led by Herriott and McGillivray established themselves in what is now Christchurch, early in 1840. Their abandoned holdings were taken over by the Deans brothers in 1843 who stayed. The First Four Ships were chartered by the Canterbury Association and brought the first 792 of the Canterbury Pilgrims to Lyttelton Harbour. These sailing vessels were the Randolph, Charlotte-Jane, Sir George Seymour, and Cressy. The Charlotte-Jane was the first to arrive on 16 December 1850. The Canterbury Pilgrims had aspirations of building a city around a cathedral and college, on the model of Christ Church in Oxford. The name "Christ Church" was decided prior to the ships' arrival, at the Association's first meeting, on 27 March 1848.



Captain Joseph Thomas, the Canterbury Association's Chief Surveyor, surveyed the surrounding area. By December 1849 he had commissioned the construction of a road from Port Cooper, later Lyttelton, to Christchurch via Sumner. However this proved more difficult than expected and road construction was stopped while a steep foot and pack horse track was constructed over the hill between the port and the Heathcote valley, where access to the site of the proposed settlement could be gained. This track became known as the Bridle Path, because the path was so steep that pack horses needed to be led by the bridle.

Goods that were too heavy or bulky to be transported by pack horse over the Bridle Path were shipped by small sailing vessels some eight miles (13 km) by water around the coast and up the estuary to Ferrymead. New Zealand's first public railway line, the Ferrymead railway, opened from Ferrymead to Christchurch in 1863. Due to the difficulties in travelling over the Port Hills and the dangers associated with shipping navigating the Sumner bar, a railway tunnel was bored through the Port Hills to Lyttelton, opening in 1867.

Christchurch became a city by Royal Charter on 31 July 1856, the first in New Zealand. Many of the city's Gothic Revival buildings by architect Benjamin Mountfort date from this period.

Christchurch was the seat of provincial administration for the Province of Canterbury, which was abolished in 1876.

In 1947, New Zealand's worst fire disaster occurred at Ballantyne's Department Store in the inner city, with 41 people killed in a blaze which razed the rambling collection of buildings.

The Lyttelton road tunnel between Lyttelton and Christchurch was opened in 1964.

Christchurch was host to the 1974 British Commonwealth Games.

2010 Earthquake
An earthquake with magnitude 7.1 occurred in the South Island, New Zealand at Saturday 04:35 AM local time, 4 September 2010 (16:35 UTC, 3 September 2010). The earthquake occurred at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.0 miles).

The epicentre was located 40 km west of Christchurch; 10 km south-east of Darfield ; 190 km south-southeast of Westport; 295 km south-west of Wellington; and 320 km north-northeast of Dunedin.

Sewers were damaged, gas and water lines were broken, and power to up to 75% of the city was disrupted. Among the facilities impacted by lack of power was the Christchurch Hospital, which was forced to use emergency generators in the immediate aftermath of the quake.

A state of emergency was declared at 10:16 am on 4 September for the city, and evacuations of parts were planned to begin later in the day. People inside the Christchurch city centre were evacuated, and the city's central business district remained closed until 5 September. A curfew from 7 pm on September 4 to 7 am on 5 September was put in place. The New Zealand Army was also deployed to assist police and enforce the curfew. All schools were closed until 8 September so they could be checked.

Christchurch International Airport was closed following the earthquake and flights in and out of it cancelled. It reopened at 1:30 pm following inspection of the main runway.

The earthquake was reported to have caused widespread damage and power outages. 63 aftershocks were also reported in the first 48 hours with three registering 5.2 magnitude. Christchurch residents reported chimneys falling in through roofs, cracked ceilings and collapsed brick walls. Total Earthquake Commission, insurance and individual costs may reach as high as NZ$4 billion according to the New Zealand Treasury.

Gateway to the Antarctic
Christchurch has a history of involvement in Antarctic exploration–both Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton used the port of Lyttelton as a departure point for expeditions, and there is a statue of Scott, sculpted by his widow, Kathleen Scott, in the central city.

Within the city the Canterbury Museum preserves and exhibits many historic artifacts and stories of Antarctic exploration.

Christchurch International Airport serves as the major base for the New Zealand, Italian and United States Antarctic programs.

The International Antarctic Centre provides both base facilities and a museum and visitor centre focused upon current Antarctic activities. The United States Navy and latterly the United States Air National Guard, augmented by the New Zealand and Australian air forces, use Christchurch Airport as take-off for the main supply route to McMurdo and Scott Bases in Antarctica. The Clothing Distribution Center (CDC) in Christchurch, has more than 140,000 pieces of extreme cold weather (ECW) gear for issue to nearly 2,000 U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP) participants in the 2007-08 season.

When the Good Morning America breakfast show from the United States broadbcast from Christchurch during a New Zealand tour in the 1990s, they pointed out the telephone numbers for New Zealand's Antarctic facilities at Scott Base are printed in the Christchurch telephone directory. It's not everywhere one can find telephone numbers for the southernmost reaches of the world.

Geography
Christchurch lies in Canterbury, near the centre of the east coast of the South Island, east of the Canterbury Plains. It is located near the southern end of Pegasus Bay, and is bounded to the east by the Pacific Ocean coast and the estuary of the Avon and Heathcote Rivers. To the south and south-east the urban portion of the city is limited by the volcanic slopes of the Port Hills separating it from Banks Peninsula. In 2006, Banks Peninsula was incorporated into the city, in effect tripling the city's land area while adding only about 8,000 people to the city's population. To the north the city is bounded by the braided Waimakariri River.

Christchurch is one of only eight pairs of cities in the world that has a near-exact antipodal city. Half of these antipodal pairs are in New Zealand and Spain/Morocco–with A Coruña, Spain as Christchurch's antipode.

Christchurch is one of a group of only four cities in the world, that have been carefully planned following the same layout of a central city square, four complimenting city squares surrounding it and a parklands area that embrace the city centre. The first city built with this pattern was Philadelphia, later came Savannah and Adelaide. The fourth city using this pattern was Christchurch. As such Christchurch holds an important legacy and a strong platform for future development.

Christchurch has one of the highest-quality water supplies in the world, rated one of the purest and cleanest water in the world. Untreated, naturally filtered water is sourced, via more than 50 pumping stations surrounding the city, from aquifers emanating from the foothills of the Southern Alps.

On the morning of Saturday, September 4, 2010 at 4:35am local time, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck, bringing damage to most, but not all, parts of the city.

Central city
At the centre of the city is Cathedral Square, surrounding the Anglican cathedral, Christ Church. The area around this square and within the 'four avenues' of Christchurch (Bealey Avenue, Fitzgerald Avenue, Moorhouse Avenue and Deans Avenue ) is considered the central business district of the city. The central city also has a number of residential areas, including Inner City East, Inner City West, Avon Loop, Moa Neighbourhood & Victoria.

Cathedral Square, the heart of the city, hosts attractions such as the Wizard of New Zealand, Ian Brackenbury Channell, and evangelist Ray Comfort, regular market days, free standing food and coffee carts, an aquarium, pubs and restaurants and the city's chief tourist information centre.

The central city also includes the pedestrianised sections of Cashel and High streets commonly known as 'City Mall'. Refurbished in 2008/09 the mall now features especially designed seating, flower and garden boxes, more trees, paving, and an extension to the central city tram route (with trams operating in time for the 2011 Rugby World Cup). The Bridge Of Remembrance commemorating war dead stands at the western end of the mall.

The Cultural Precinct provides a backdrop to a vibrant scene of ever-changing arts, cultural, and heritage attractions within an area of less than one square kilometre. The Arts Centre, the Canterbury Museum and the Art Gallery are located in the Cultural Precinct. The majority of the activities are free and a printable map is provided.

In 2010 the Christchurch City Council released "A City For People Action Plan", a program of work through to 2022 to improve public spaces within the central city to entice more inner city residents and visitors. A primary action is to reduce the impact of motorised private vehicles and increase the comfort of pedestrians and cyclists. The plan is based on a report prepared for the council by reknowned Danish design firm Gehl Architects.

Inner suburbs
(clockwise, starting north of the city centre)


 * Mairehau
 * Shirley
 * Dallington
 * Richmond
 * Avonside
 * Linwood
 * Woolston
 * Opawa
 * Waltham
 * St Martins
 * Beckenham
 * Sydenham
 * Somerfield
 * Spreydon
 * Addington
 * Riccarton
 * Ilam
 * Burnside
 * Fendalton
 * Bryndwr
 * Strowan
 * Merivale
 * Papanui
 * St Albans

Outer suburbs
(clockwise, starting north of the city centre)


 * Marshland
 * Burwood
 * Parklands
 * Waimairi Beach
 * Avondale
 * New Brighton
 * Bexley
 * Aranui
 * South Brighton
 * Southshore
 * Bromley
 * Mt Pleasant
 * Redcliffs
 * Sumner
 * Ferrymead
 * Heathcote Valley
 * Hillsborough
 * Murray Aynsley
 * Huntsbury
 * Cashmere
 * Westmorland
 * Hillmorton
 * Hoon Hay
 * Halswell
 * Oaklands
 * Wigram
 * Middleton
 * Sockburn
 * Hornby
 * Islington
 * Templeton
 * Yaldhurst
 * Russley
 * Avonhead
 * Harewood
 * Bishopdale
 * Casebrook
 * Redwood
 * Regents Park
 * Northwood
 * Belfast
 * Spencerville
 * Brooklands

Satellite towns

 * Lyttelton
 * Tai Tapu
 * Lincoln
 * Prebbleton
 * Rolleston
 * West Melton
 * Rangiora
 * Kaiapoi
 * Akaroa
 * Motukarara

Climate
Christchurch has a dry, temperate climate, with mean daily maximum air temperatures of 22.5 °C in January, 11.3 °C in July. Under Koppen's climate classification, Christchurch has an Oceanic climate. The summer climate is often moderated by a sea breeze from the Northeast, but a record temperature of 41.6 C was reached in February 1973. A notable feature of the weather is the nor'wester, a hot föhn wind that occasionally reaches storm force, causing widespread minor damage to property.

In winter it is common for the temperature to fall below 0 C at night. There are on average 70 days of ground frost per year. Snow falls occur on average once or twice a year in the hill suburbs and about once or twice every two years on the plain.

On cold winter nights, the surrounding hills, clear skies, and frosty calm conditions often combine to form a stable inversion layer above the city that traps vehicle exhausts and smoke from domestic fires to cause smog. While not as bad as smog in Los Angeles or Mexico City, Christchurch smog has often exceeded World Health Organisation recommendations for air pollution. The city has funding available to upgrade domestic home heating systems, and in order to limit air pollution has banned the use of open fires as of 1 January 2006. As of 2008, woodburners more than 15 years old are prohibited.

Demographics
The area administered by the Christchurch City Council has a population of making it the second-largest in New Zealand, and the largest city in the South Island. The Christchurch urban area is the second-largest in the country by population, after Auckland.

Ethnicity
The following table shows the ethnic profile of Christchurch's population, as recorded in the 2001 and 2006 New Zealand Census. The percentages add up to more than 100%, as some people counted themselves as belonging to more than one ethnic group. Figures for 2006 refer to just Christchurch City, not the whole urban area. The substantial percentage drop in the numbers of 'Europeans' was mainly caused by the increasing numbers of people from this group choosing to define themselves as 'New Zealanders'–even though this was not one of the groups listed on the census form.

The 2006 Census also provides information about the multilinguality of the region. Accordingly, 283,986 people in Christchurch City spoke one language only, while 37,947 spoke two, and 7,881 could converse in three or more languages.

Economy
The agricultural industry has always been the economic core of Christchurch. The city has long had industry based on the surrounding farming country. PGG Wrightson, New Zealand's leading agribusiness, is based in Christchurch. Its local roots go back to Pyne Gould Guinness, an old stock and station agency serving the South Island. That firm helped take deer farming techniques abroad. PGG Wrightson's overseas diversification includes dairy farming in Uruguay.

Other agribusinesses in Christchurch have included malting, seed development and dressing, wool and meat processing, and small biotechnology operations using by-products from meat works.

Dairying has grown strongly in the surrounding areas with high world prices for milk products and the use of irrigation to lift grass growth on dry land. With its higher labour use this has helped stop declines in rural population. Many cropping and sheep farms have been converted to dairying. Conversions have been by agribusiness companies as well as by farmers, many of whom have moved south from North Island dairying strongholds such as Taranaki and the Waikato.

Cropping has always been important in the surrounding countryside. Wheat and barley and various strains of clover and other grasses for seed exporting have been the main crops. These have all created processing businesses in Christchurch.

In recent years, regional agriculture has diversified, with a thriving wine industry springing up at Waipara, and beginnings of new horticulture industries such as olive production and processing. Deer farming has led to new processing using antlers for Asian medicine and aphrodisiacs. The high quality local wine in particular has increased the appeal of Canterbury and Christchurch to tourists.

In earlier years, Christchurch was one of the two heavy-engineering centres of New Zealand, with firms such as Anderson's making steel work for bridges, tunnels, and hydro-electric dams in the early days of infrastructure work. Now manufacturing is mainly of light products and the key market is Australia, with firms such as those pioneered by the Stewart family among the larger employers.

Before clothing manufacture largely moved to Asia, Christchurch was the centre of the New Zealand clothing industry, with firms such as LWR Industries. The firms that remain mostly design and market, and manufacture in Asia. The city also had five footwear manufacturers, but these have been replaced by imports.

In the last few decades, technology-based industries have sprung up in Christchurch. Angus Tait founded Tait Electronics, a mobile-radio manufacturer, and other firms spun off from this, such as Dennis Chapman's Swichtec. Tait proteges include Chapman. In software, Gil Simpson founded LINC, which became Jade. Neither Angus nor Gil completed high school education.

However, there have been spin-offs from the electrical department of the University of Canterbury engineering school. These included Pulse Data, which became Human Ware ( making reading devices and computers for blind people and those with limited vision) and CES Communications (encryption). The Pulse Data founders had moved from the Canterbury University engineering school to work for Wormald when they set up Pulse Data through a management buyout of their division.

Nowadays, the University of Canterbury engineering school and computer science department play an important role in supplying staff and research for the technology industries, and the Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology provides a flow of trained technicians and engineers. Similarly, nearby Lincoln University has played an important role in Christchurch agribusiness.

Tourism is also a significant factor of the local economy. The closeness of the ski-fields and other attractions of the Southern Alps, and hotels, a casino, and an airport that meet international standards make Christchurch a stopover destination for many tourists. The city is popular with Japanese tourists, with signage around Cathedral Square in Japanese.

Government
Christchurch's local government is a democracy with various elements including:
 * Christchurch City Council, comprising the Mayor of Christchurch, and 13 councillors elected in seven wards.
 * Community boards (six in the pre-amalgamation city area), each covering one ward, with five members each plus the two ward councillors. The Banks Peninsula ward has two community boards with five members each, plus the ward councillor, who is also a member of each board.
 * District councils in surrounding areas: Selwyn, and Waimakariri. The Banks Peninsula district council was amalgamated into Christchurch City in March 2006 after a vote by the Banks Peninsula residents to disestablish in November 2005.
 * Canterbury Regional Council, known as 'Environment Canterbury', including four Christchurch constituencies with two members from each constituency.
 * District Health Board (Canterbury), with five members for Christchurch.

In 1993, Christchurch was selected as the "Best Run City in the World", also known as the 'Carl Bertelsmann Prize: Local Government', by the Bertelsmann Foundation of Germany. Especially noted was the increased efficiency of communal services in competition with private enterprises. Christchurch shared the award honour with Phoenix, Arizona, USA.

Some of the local governments in Canterbury and the New Zealand Transport Agency have created the Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy to facilitate future urban planning.

Secondary schools
Christchurch is the location of Burnside High School, the second largest school in New Zealand with 2,788 pupils. Cashmere High School at Rose Street is another large co-educational secondary school. In recent years, Papanui High School has undergone rapid growth to reach a similar size. Riccarton High School was one of the first state schools in the country to adopt a strong values base - the Riccarton Way. Christchurch is also well-known for several very traditional schools of the English public school type, such as St Margaret's College, Christ's College, St Bede's College, St Andrew's College, Villa Maria College and Rangi Ruru Girls' School, but also has several less conventional schools such as Unlimited Paenga Tawhiti and Hagley Community College.

Tertiary institutions
A number of tertiary education institutions have campuses in Christchurch, or in the surrounding areas.
 * University of Canterbury
 * Lincoln University
 * Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology
 * University of Otago Christchurch School of Medicine and Health Sciences

Transport
Christchurch is served by Christchurch International Airport and by buses (local and long-distance) and trains. The local bus service, known as Metro, is provided by Environment Canterbury. The car, however, remains the dominant form of transport. The central city has very flat terrain and the Christchurch City Council is establishing a network of cycle lanes and paths.

There is a functioning tram service in Christchurch, but as a tourist attraction; its loop is restricted to a circuit of the central city. The trams were originally introduced in 1905, ceased operating in 1954, but returned to the inner city (as a tourist attraction) in 1995. In addition to normal bus services, Christchurch also has a pioneering zero-fare hybrid bus service, the Shuttle, in the inner city.

The Main North Line railway travels northwards via Kaikoura to Picton and is served by the famous TranzCoastal passenger train, while the Main South Line heads to Invercargill via Dunedin and was used by the Southerner until its cancellation in 2002. The most famous train to depart Christchurch is the TranzAlpine, which travels along the Main South Line to Rolleston and then turns onto the Midland Line, passes through the Southern Alps via the Otira Tunnel, and terminates in Greymouth on the West Coast. This trip is often regarded to be one of the ten great train journeys in the world for the amazing scenery through which it passes. The TranzAlpine service is primarily a tourist service and carries no significant commuter traffic. Commuter trains used to operate in Christchurch but were progressively cancelled in the 1960s and 1970s. The last such service, between Christchurch and Rangiora, ceased in 1976.

Vehicles, as they do throughout New Zealand and most Commonwealth Nations, drive on the left side of the road.

Visitor attractions

 * Garden and parks
 * Botanical Gardens
 * Hagley Park
 * Mona Vale
 * Riccarton House and Bush
 * Canterbury Museum
 * Ferrymead Heritage Park
 * Orana Wildlife Park
 * Willowbank Wildlife Reserve
 * Air Force Museum
 * Southern Encounter Aquarium and Kiwi House
 * International Antarctic Centre
 * Christ Church (the Anglican cathedral), the centre of the Church of England settlement was built between 1864 and 1910.
 * The Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, consecrated in 1905, is widely considered to be the finest renaissance-style building in Australasia.
 * Christchurch Art Gallery (A new gallery opened 2003 to replace the 1930 Robert McDougall Art Gallery situated in the Botanic Gardens).
 * The Christchurch Arts Centre, formerly Canterbury College and the site of "Ernest Rutherford's Den".
 * The Provincial Council Chambers, 1857–1865.
 * The Timeball Station in Lyttelton.
 * The New Brighton pier.
 * Heathcote (Christchurch) Gondola
 * Punting on the river Avon
 * Nga Hau E Wha Marae
 * The Summit Road along the top of the Port Hills and Godley Head Road provides numerous spectacular views of the area and features the buildings created as wayside rests, the Sign of the Takahe (now a function centre) and Sign of the Kiwi. The Mt Pleasant Trig offers 360° views from Lyttelton Harbour back over the hills to the southern alps and the city, and out over Pegasus Bay.
 * Walkways including Victoria Park, the Bridle Path and Whitewash Head, a bird sanctuary.
 * Mountain Biking on the Port Hills and Bottle Lake Forest. Christchurch Mountainbiking
 * There is a large nesting colony of spotted shags immediately south of Christchurch.

Parks and nature
The large number of public parks and well-developed residential gardens with many trees has given Christchurch the name of The Garden City. Hagley Park and the 30-hectare (75 acre) Christchurch Botanic Gardens, founded in 1863, are in the central city, with Hagley Park being a site for sports such as golf, cricket, netball, and rugby, and for open air concerts by local bands and orchestras. To the north of the city is the Willowbank wildlife park. Travis Wetland, an ecological restoration programme to create a wetland, is to the east of the city centre in the suburb of Burwood.

Cinema
While historically most cinemas were grouped around Cathedral Square, only two cinemas remain there. The Regent complex was rebuilt as 'Regent on Worcester' in 1996. In 2009 Metro Cinemas opened in Worcester Street with three screens.

Only one of the first generation of suburban cinemas, the Hollywood in Sumner, remains open. The largest multiplexes are the Hoyts 8 in the old railway station on Moorhouse Avenue and Reading Cinemas (also eight screens) in the Palms shopping centre in Shirley. Hoyts in Riccarton opened in 2005 with one of its screens for a time holding the record for the largest in New Zealand.

The Rialto Cinemas on Moorhouse avenue specialise in international films and art house productions. The Rialto also hosts the majority of the city's various film festivals and is home to the local film society.

The Christchurch Arts Centre includes two art house cinemas, Cloisters and The Academy, screening a wide selection of contemporary, classic and foreign language films.

The Canterbury Film Society is active in the city.

Theatre
Christchurch has one full-time professional theatre, the Court Theatre, which is based in the Christchurch Arts Centre. There is also an active recreational theatre scene with community based theatre companies, such as the Christchurch Repertory Society, Elmwood Players, Riccarton Players, and Canterbury Children's Theatre, producing many quality shows.

Music
The city is known for its many live acts, has a professional symphony orchestra, and is the base of professional opera company, Southern Opera.

There are usually buskers around the town square, and Christchurch also hosts the World Buskers Festival in January each year.

Christchurch also has an active and relatively large Metal scene, with metal acts playing in various locations around the central city almost weekly.

In recent movements, hip hop has effectively landed in Christchurch. In 2000, First Aotearoa Hip Hop Summit was held there. And in 2003, Christchurch’s own Scribe, released his debut album in New Zealand and has received five times platinum in that country, in addition to achieving two number one singles.

Television
Christchurch has its own regional television station Canterbury Television. CTV was first formed in 1991 and still today reflects the Canterbury community through locally made programmes.

Venues
The CBS Canterbury Arena is New Zealand's second largest permanent multipurpose arena, seating between 5000 and 8000, depending on configuration. It is home of the Canterbury Tactix netball side. It was the venue for the 1999 World Netball championships and has been host to many concerts in recent years.

The Christchurch Town Hall auditorium (2500 seats, opened 1972) was the first major auditorium design by architects Warren and Mahoney and acousticians Marshall Day. It is still recognised as a model example of concert-hall design. It has an excellent modern pipe organ.

Christchurch also has a casino, and there are also a wide range of live music venues –some short-lived, others with decades of history. Classical music concerts are held at the Christchurch Music Centre.

Teams

 * The Crusaders, formerly the 'Canterbury Crusaders' are a rugby union team based in Christchurch that compete in the Super 14 competition and are made up of players from the Buller, Canterbury, Mid-Canterbury, South Canterbury, Tasman, and West Coast provincial rugby unions.
 * The Canterbury Rugby Football Union represents the city in New Zealand's annual professional domestic rugby union competition, the Air New Zealand Cup.
 * The Canterbury Wizards are Christchurch's men's cricket team in New Zealand's State Championship while the Magicians play in the counterpart women's tournament
 * The Canterbury Tactix play in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship netball league. Prior to 2008, the Canterbury Flames played in the national netball league, competing for the National Bank Cup.
 * Canterbury United play in the New Zealand Football Championship. They play their matches at English Park.
 * The Christchurch Cougars play in the National Basketball League replacing the Canterbury Rams.
 * The Canterbury Red Devils play in the New Zealand Ice Hockey League (NZIHL) and play at Alpine Ice.
 * The Christchurch Football Club was founded in 1863, believed to be the oldest club of any code in New Zealand.

Events

 * 1974 British Commonwealth Games
 * 1982 Women's Cricket World Cup
 * 1992 Cricket World Cup
 * 1999 Netball World Championships
 * 2000 Women's Cricket World Cup

Venues

 * AMI Stadium (formerly Jade Stadium & Lancaster Park) is Christchurch's premier outdoor sporting ground, which plays host to rugby union in the winter months and cricket in the summer months. It is home to the Crusaders Super 14 and Canterbury Air New Zealand Cup rugby teams. It is also used by the New Zealand national cricket team and occasionally hosts a New Zealand Warriors rugby league match. AMI Stadium has a capacity of around 44,000 people, 50,000 with temporary seating.
 * Queen Elizabeth II Park was built for the 1974 British Commonwealth Games, which Christchurch hosted. It is used primarily as an athletics park, but also contains a newly upgraded swimming pool complex. It has hosted major concerts from bands such as AC/DC and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
 * Porritt Park in Avonside and Nunweek Park in Bishopdale are the main hockey venues of the city.
 * Westpac Arena in Addington, Christchurch. Hosted the 1999 Netball World Championships and continues to host international basketball and netball games.
 * Christchurch has more than a dozen golf courses, and has hosted the PGA Tour of Australasia/Nationwide Tour co-sanctioned Clearwater Classic/NZ PGA Championship at Clearwater Resort since 2002.
 * Alpine Ice Arena is home to the Canterbury Red Devils. It has hosted many national and international Ice Hockey tournaments, figure skating and speed skating events. The Aardwolfs Ice Hockey Club also play at the arena.
 * English Park in St Albans is the home venue for the Christchurch United Soccer team that plays in the national league.

Sister cities
Christchurch has seven sister cities around the world. They are:
 * 🇦🇺 Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
 * 🇬🇧 Christchurch, Dorset, United Kingdom
 * 🇨🇳 Lanzhou, Gansu, China
 * 🇯🇵 Kurashiki, Okayama, Japan
 * 🇺🇸 Seattle, Washington, United States of America
 * 🇰🇷 Songpa-gu, Seoul, South Korea
 * 🇨🇳 Wuhan, Hubei, China

Official organisations

 * Christchurch City Council (official council website)
 * Environment Canterbury (official regional council website)
 * Canterbury District Health Board (official district health board website)

Culture & information

 * Christchurchmusic.org.nz (music industry portal)
 * Christchurch City Libraries (official libraries website)
 * Christchurch & Canterbury (official tourism guide & visitor information)
 * BeThere (events in Christchurch and Canterbury)
 * Localeye (online gateway to Christchurch & Canterbury)
 * Christchurch.org.nz (official website promoting Christchurch)
 * Ti Kouka Whenua (local Māori history of the Christchurch area)
 * The Big City (private website listing events, New Zealand music info archive)
 * WhatsonChristchurch (events and local resources website)

Tourism & maps

 * Christchurch maps (from www.zoomin.co.nz)
 * Christchurch maps (from www.wises.co.nz)
 * Heritage Maps (from Christchurch City Libraries)