Lots going on in the Tron, my friends! Let’s get straight to it! Have a great long weekend.

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🧩 Games Night | Thu 5th 5:00 - 7:00pm at Central Library. A night for board game fans to come together and play! Every Thursday night from 5pm at both Central and Chartwell Libraries. Info.  

Quiz Night | Thu 5th 6:30 - 8:30pm at The Keg Room & Eatery. Every Thursday is quiz night at one of Hamilton's best venues. Kicking off at 6.30pm, the quiz offers five rounds of big-screen trivia that's not too hard, not too easy, but includes content that relates to you and your crew! Info.  

🏉 Fiji Hamilton 7s | Friday and Saturday 8:00am at FMG Stadium. Bula Vinaka, and get ready for the FIJI HAMILTON SEVENS NZ rugby tournament! FMG Stadium Waikato is set to host an unmissable weekend of non-stop rugby action in the heart of Hamilton. Tickets.  

🌈 Waitangi Day Festival 2026 | Fri 6th 1:00pm - 5:00pm at Waikato Museum. The annual Waitangi Day Festival brings together whaanau, performers, makers, and creators to celebrate culture, creativity, and the stories of the region. Info.  

☘️ Authentic Irish Folk and Ballads | Fri 6th 5:30 - 8:30pm at Biddy Mulligans. Seanachie will be playing authentic Irish folk & ballads, beautiful instrumentals, and toe tapping tunes. Info.  

The Op Shop Car Boot Sale | Sat 7th 9:00am - 1:00pm at 15 Ruakura Road. There will be lots happening on site, including a sausage sizzle, barista coffee, and a bouncy castle for the kids! Info.  

🌸 Plant Sale | Sat 7th 10:00am - 2:00pm at Hamilton Gardens. Friends of Hamilton Gardens' monthly plant sale - Great range of plants at great prices. Info. 

🎥 Waitangi Film Screening: Whina | Sat 7th 12:30 - 4:00pm at Waikato Museum. Experience the inspiring story of Dame Whina Cooper, whose leadership, courage, and compassion shaped Aotearoa. A free film screening as part of the Museum’s extended Waitangi Day Festival. Book.   

A Gluten Free Night Out | Sat 7th 5:00 - 8:00pm at The Barn, Claudelands. Enjoy delicious food from a wide range of passionate gluten free foodies - from pizza, to tacos, to donuts, gelato, and more!  Whilst enjoying your dinner you'll be serenaded with the beautiful sounds of acoustic music, and the kids can play with the giant outdoor games! Info.  

🎵 Waikato Ukulele Jam | Sun 8th 11:00am at Hamilton Cosmopolitan Club. Hamilton Cossie Ukes are hosting the next Waikato Ukulele Jam, kicking off at 1 pm, with the song sheets projected on the screen. There’ll be a coffee/tea break halfway through. Info.

The Room | Mon 9th 6:30pm at Clarence St Theatre. A heels led movement class designed for all levels, including beginners. No dance experience needed. Tickets.  

Pop Up Playgroup | Tue 10th 10:00am at Nurtured at Home. Come and spend the morning at a playgroup with Nurtured at Home and see what they are all about! Info.  

Nia Dance | Tue 10th 11:00am at Wesley Hall. Feel better, improve your mobility, stability, strength and more with this beautiful choreographed barefoot movement, danced in your body’s way. Info.  

📸 Photography Results and Insights Night | Tue 10th 7:30pm at Melville Methodist Church Hall. See a wide range of images, hear professional judges’ feedback, and learn what makes a photo really stand out. Info.  

Quiz Night | Wed 11th 6:00pm at Still Working Bar. Time to put the brain at work. Every Wednesday night. Info.  

💞 Hamilton Speed Dating | Thu 12th 7:00pm at Biddy Mulligans. Find your perfect match in a friendly relaxed social environment. Ages 26-44. Tickets. 

Out of the Wings | Fri 13th Feb - Fri 27th March 9:30am at The Meteor. Every Friday come to Meteor’s new drop-in theatre group for the youngest actors, 18 months to 5 years. Learn how to roar like a dragon, pounce like a cat and whinny like a unicorn! Tickets.  

🍷 Twilight Wine and Cheese Event | Fri 13th 5:00 - 9:00pm at The Sculpture Park. Great food, music and a perfect location is on the menu. Tickets.  

Live Music, Meditation, Yoga Wisdom & Delicous Feast | Fri 13th 6:00pm at Mantra Lounge. Join at the meditation centre for an uplifting experience featuring all-you-can-eat vegan food, live mantra music meditation, and inspiring yoga wisdom. Tickets. 

🎡 The Extravaganza Fair | Saturday and Sunday 9:00am at Claudelands Park. New Zealand’s biggest and most fabulous traveling fair is rolling back into town, with unique market stalls, street food, kids' rides, circus, live music and more! Info.  

Valentines Day Flash Day | Sat 14th 10:00am at Paradiso Tattoos. Whether you like valentines or anti it, Paradiso Tattoos have got some cool designs for you! Come have some fun walk-ins, all day, no bookings required! Info.  

🧺 Filipino Market | Sat 14th 11:00am - 3:00pm at The Barn, Claudelands. Filipino Market NZ brings together the best of Filipino cuisine and culture from across Aotearoa. Enjoy a vibrant mix of food trucks, hot food vendors, bakers, and drinks merchants serving favourites from home. Info.  

🏅 On Parade | Sat 14th 3:00pm at Waikato Artillery Museum. Don't miss the Band's first visit to its excellent companion Museum - playing a full concert of military and popular music for all ages. Tickets.  

🎶 Bridge City Fight Music | Sat 14th 8:00pm at Last Place. Featuring Wellington heavy hitters Shuriken, Cease and desist, Nuclear Blunt hailing from the 07 and the Auckland’s finest metal core Hunter. Tickets.  

Danny Bhoy: Dear World | Sat 14th 8:00pm at Heaphy Room, Claudelands. Dear World is a hybrid of stand up and theatre, but really that just means Danny gets to sit down for bits of it. Tickets.  

🎵 Toby Barrett Quartet 'Catharsis' Album Launch | Sat 14th 8:30pm at Nivara Lounge. Toby Barrett is a saxophonist and composer who is highly regarded in both the New Zealand and Melbourne jazz scenes. Tickets.  

Family Village Mornings | Sun 15th 10:00am at The Village Cafe. A monthly hour of calm, coffee, and community. Village Mornings are the monthly coffee mornings created for parents who just need… a moment. Tickets.  

🐲 Chinese New Year Storytime | Sun 15th 10:30am at Rototuna Library. Join at the library to celebrate Chinese New Year! Perfect for parents and children aged 2-7. Info.  

🏉 2026 NRL Harvey Norman All Stars | Sun 15th 2:25pm at FMG Stadium. Watch the best of the best showcase unrivalled skill and passion in a game that honours Māori, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture. Tickets.  

Earth Tongue - Dungeon Vision | Sun 15th 7:00pm at Last Place. Fresh off the announcement of their forthcoming third album Dungeon Vision, Aotearoa’s heavy-psych duo Earth Tongue return home this February for a run of six album release shows across the country. Tickets.   

The dream of taking a summertime dip in Hamilton’s Lake Rotoroa isn’t dead, with new plans to be considered to help improve water quality. The lake is currently at a ‘caution’ level, meaning people should avoid the water - something we have been advised to do for decades. Read.

All three Hamilton MPs appear to be united behind the retention of the Te Huia passenger rail service between Hamilton and Auckland, as well as potentially expanding it to Tauranga. The trio were the three guest speakers at a pro-Te Huia rally at the Frankton Railway Station on Sunday afternoon. Dubbed Stack the Station, the event was attended by an estimated 400 supporters - and one objector. Read.

Hamilton’s city boundary could be on the verge of its first expansion in more than a decade, as new fast-track consenting laws spur development along the city’s outer edges. A proposed project timeline shows a 210-ha block of land to the northeast could be absorbed by the city by July next year. Read.

After a nearly seven year hiatus, Waikato Supper Club is back in 2026 to deliver guests dinner with a difference. Coming to Hamilton on March 4, diners will begin the night with a cocktail party before being whisked off to a mystery restaurant for a three-course meal, with proceeds going towards Ronald McDonald House Charities to support families with a child in the hospital. Read.

New venue signals momentum for Hamilton riverfront, with bar and restaurant ‘Regatta’ set to open late autumn in the former Ferrybank Reception Centre in Grantham St. Fresh hospitality investment is set to lure diners to the banks of the Waikato River at the spot that’s long been eyed for projects to show off the city’s biggest natural asset. Read.

Art meets altitude at peaky exhibition in Hamilton. The powerful presence of mountains and hills - and those who climb them - is the theme of a new exhibition at Hamilton’s Welcome Swallow gallery. Peaks is the 40th exhibition to be held at the gallery, and is in keeping with a mountaineering theme already well established - or some might say, traversed - at the Grey St institution. Read.

South Island property developers are planning on turning empty land on Te Rapa Rd into social housing. Thirty five two bedroom and 18 one bedroom apartments will be built at the site of the former Te Rapa Motor Inn, which was sold for $5 million last June to Te Rapa Hamilton Development Limited. Read.

Thanks for reading Hello Hamilton today!

As always, please direct reply to this email if you have any suggestions for what you would like to see in future editions of Hello Hamilton. I’m all ears!

— Ben and Sarah