Cardrona, New Zealand facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Cardrona
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Rural locality
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Cardrona road sign
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| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Otago |
| Territorial authority | Queenstown Lakes District |
| Ward | Wānaka-Upper Clutha Ward |
| Community | Wānaka-Upper Clutha Community |
| Electorates |
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| Area | |
| • Total | 857.83 km2 (331.21 sq mi) |
| Population
(June 2023)
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| • Total | 820 |
| • Density | 0.956/km2 (2.476/sq mi) |
| Postcode |
9382
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Cardrona is a small place in the Cardrona Valley of New Zealand. It's famous for the Cardrona Alpine Resort ski field and Mount Cardrona, which share its name. Cardrona started as a gold mining town in the 1860s. It was built next to the Cardrona River. Today, it's known for its old hotel from the gold rush days. This hotel is across the river from where the original town used to be. Not many of the old buildings are left. Cardrona is located on the beautiful Crown Range road. This road connects the towns of Wānaka and Queenstown.
Recently, Cardrona has grown a lot. There are more places for visitors to stay, fun activities, and even a distillery. A new neighborhood with 400 houses is also being built. Cardrona was also home to the exciting Silverstone Race to the Sky hillclimb event. This race was last held in 2015.
Contents
What is the Weather Like in Cardrona?
Even though most of New Zealand has an oceanic climate (meaning mild weather influenced by the ocean), Cardrona is different. It has a continental climate, which means it has four clear seasons. The weather is quite dry here. Spring (September to December) is the wettest time of year. The area gets about 682 millimeters of rain each year. This is half the amount of rain the rest of New Zealand gets.
Cardrona's summers are warm. Temperatures often reach the low to mid-20s Celsius. The average high temperature in summer is about 21 degrees Celsius (70 degrees Fahrenheit). Winters can be very cold for New Zealand. Daytime temperatures are usually just a few degrees above freezing. Nights are very cold and frosty, and it often snows.
| Climate data for Cardrona (Cardrona Township), elevation 580 m (1,900 ft), (1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 21.2 (70.2) |
21.0 (69.8) |
18.0 (64.4) |
14.4 (57.9) |
10.3 (50.5) |
6.5 (43.7) |
6.1 (43.0) |
8.7 (47.7) |
11.8 (53.2) |
14.4 (57.9) |
16.1 (61.0) |
19.0 (66.2) |
14.0 (57.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 7.6 (45.7) |
7.8 (46.0) |
6.1 (43.0) |
3.2 (37.8) |
0.8 (33.4) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
−2.6 (27.3) |
−1.2 (29.8) |
1.0 (33.8) |
2.9 (37.2) |
4.9 (40.8) |
7.3 (45.1) |
3.1 (37.5) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 55.4 (2.18) |
42.0 (1.65) |
45.7 (1.80) |
46.6 (1.83) |
60.2 (2.37) |
56.3 (2.22) |
46.2 (1.82) |
52.5 (2.07) |
50.0 (1.97) |
50.9 (2.00) |
54.5 (2.15) |
57.6 (2.27) |
617.9 (24.33) |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 231.5 | 201.7 | 182.6 | 164.0 | 135.5 | 120.5 | 126.6 | 155.8 | 172.5 | 193.8 | 202.2 | 212.1 | 2,098.8 |
| Source 1: NIWA | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Lake Wanaka (sun) | |||||||||||||
The History of Cardrona
The name "Cardrona" was given to this area by John Turnbull Thomson. He named it after a village called Cardrona in Scotland.
Cardrona started as a town where people came to mine for gold. But by the 1980s, it began to change. It became a popular place for tourists to visit.
Important Buildings in Cardrona
One special building is Galvin's Cottage. It was built in 1862 using a method called rammed-earth home. This means its walls were made by pressing layers of damp earth together.
Who Lives in Cardrona?
The Cardrona area covers about 857.83 square kilometers. As of June 2023, about 820 people live here. This means there are about 0.96 people for every square kilometer.
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
| 2006 | 429 | — |
| 2013 | 507 | +2.42% |
| 2018 | 633 | +4.54% |
In 2018, the population of Cardrona was 633 people. This was a good increase from previous years. There were slightly more males than females living in the area. The average age was around 45.9 years old. About 15.6% of the people were under 15 years old.
Most people living in Cardrona are of European background (96.7%). Some people are also Māori (4.7%) or from other ethnic groups. About 21.8% of the people living in Cardrona were born outside of New Zealand.
When asked about their religion, most people (58.3%) said they had no religion. About 33.2% were Christian. A small number of people followed other religions like Hinduism or Islam.
Many adults in Cardrona have a university degree or higher education (30.9%). The average income in Cardrona was $42,200. Most adults (57.9%) worked full-time.
See also
In Spanish: Cardrona (Nueva Zelanda) para niños
