The Port Hills are perhaps Christchurch's most valued landscape and recreation resource, offering opportunities for a great variety of activities.

The Port Hills Recreation Strategy sought to identify a common vision for recreation assets on the hills and to guide their improved management for the future.

Port Hills Recreation Strategy 2004 [PDF, 7.4 MB]

The strategy is based on several pieces of research and consultation. It has a number of aims including to:

  • Describe and quantify existing recreational use and values (focus on publicly accessible land) on the Port Hills
  • Provide an analysis and guidelines for future recreational development (or non-development)
  • Identify barriers and constraints to access for recreation. Identify gaps in provision of experiences, facilities and activities on the Port Hills
  • Integrate recreational values with other key values for the Port Hills such as ecological, heritage, cultural, landscape and drainage values
  • Discuss future demographic and recreational trends and provide an analysis for the long-term future Port Hills use.