Were you back to work this week? Next week? Didn’t get a break at all? Whatever’s going on in your world, I hope you’re making the most of the beautiful summer days we’re having. Why not chill by the river this weekend? There’s a lovely spot by the river here in Pukete. ☀️

Thanks for your support as always, friend! This issue of Hello Hamilton is packed, so I’ll let you get to it!

Want more? Check us out on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Join our Dinner Club. Contribute to keep this thriving. Partner with us.

It’s ours! Hello Hamilton was founded in January last year (still strange to say last year). I sent my first note on the January 23, the same day as our upcoming Dinner Club.

Since then, I’ve published every single week, writing more than 82,000 words. And those editions have been read over half a million times 🤯.

Halfway through the year, Sarah joined the team as we expanded into social media. Today, our content reaches over one million views each month, and our community has grown to 25,000+ Hamiltonians like you!

Along the way, we launched the Hello Hamilton Discount Card, Dinner Club, and gave away more than $1,000 in prizes 🎉. Most importantly, we hope we’ve helped Hamiltonian’s feel a little more connected to, and proud of, our city.

As we head into 2025 and approach our first anniversary, I wanted to thank you for being part of the journey. I’d love to hear what you’ve enjoyed, what you’d like more of in 2026, and anything else you’d like to share.

Our first Dinner Club of the year is happening Friday 23 January, and it’s the perfect excuse to shake up your routine and meet some great new people in Hamilton.

You’ll be matched with a small group of fellow members based on your personality quiz results, then brought together for dinner with people you’ve never met before.

Take the quiz, get matched, and come out to meet some new friends!

🌭 Bites and Beats Hamilton! | Fri 9th - Sun 11th at Claudelands Park. Enjoy mouthwatering food trucks, live music, boutique retail stalls, desserts, and free family activities - including lawn games, outdoor kids’ movies, and giveaways. Get there >

"From Resolution to Reality" with Stambha | Fri 9th 6:00 - 9:00pm at Mantra Lounge. Gear up for the New Year 2026 with Kirtan, a plan based feast and yoga wisdom with speaker Stambha Bhava. Sounds special >

🥷 The Ninja Run | Sat 10th Jan - Sun 1st Feb 9:00am - 7:00pm at Claudelands Oval. The Ninja Run - NZ's most epic inflatable obstacle run. 14 epic inflatables over 5km. Music. Food. A 13m waterslide. Outdoor games. An unforgettable summer adventure for all ages. Grab your tickets >

Summer Fiesta in the Park | Sat 10th 10:00am - 2:00pm at Tamahere Park. Grab a rug, slip, slop slap and come on down for a day in the park with market stalls, food and drink, hangi, treasure hunt, spot prizes, face painting, live music and more! Enjoy the summer weather > 

🚙 Hamilton Meet and Cruise | Sat 10th 11:00pm at Hamilton Gardens. Cruise from the Hamilton gardens to the lookout in Raglan. Brrrrrm down there > 

Run and Walk - Hayes Hash | Sun 11th 8:00am at Hayes Common. Join for a run and walk along the river path, doing the Round the Bridges course from a different direction. Get your running shoes on >

Hello Hamilton is 100% free to read (and always will be), independently owned, and locally run - it’s just Sarah and I working on it outside our day jobs 😅.

I’ll never put this publication behind a paywall. That said, the costs of running a growing project like this do add up. It costs thousands each year just to send these emails.

A few people have asked how they can help keep Hello Hamilton free and thriving, so I’ve shared a link below for anyone who’d like to contribute. While you can think of it as shouting us a coffee, it goes directly towards covering our running costs.

I appreciate any and all support, my friends!

💦 Disney’s Moana Jr | Tue 13th - Sat 17th at Riverlea Theatre. Disney’s Moana JR. is a 60-minute musical adaptation of the 2016 Disney animated film, bringing the adventures of Moana and her village of Motunui to life onstage. Tickets to go watch >

🐝 From Seed To Sprout | Wed 14th 10:30am at St Andrews Library. It's all about the birds and the bees and butterflies! Join for the first gardening talk of the year. This is a time to exchange insights and gain gardening tips. Register for a goodie >  

Lunar New Year Workshops | Fri 16th 3:30pm at Glenview Library. Join for a colourful journey into Chinese culture. Explore window flower paper-cutting, calligraphy, opera masks, year of the horse and more. For children aged 5-12. Register the kids >   

🎶 No Exit Band | Fri 16th 9:30pm at Biddy Mulligans. No Exit is a dynamic 4-piece live classic rock band with Neil Pascoe (Thames) on guitar & lead vocals, Mike Lynch (Huntly) on keyboard & vocs, and complemented by the rhythm section of Greg Allen (Huntly) on bass/vocs and Bevan Carlyon (Papamoa) on drums. Go support >   

Tamahere Country Market | Sat 17th 8:30am - 1:00pm at Tamahere Country Market. The Tamahere Country Market is an open-air market featuring local produce and products made, grown, and created in New Zealand. Get down there >

🧚 Stories in the Garden | Sat 17th 10:00am at Garden Place. Come on a magical adventure under the trees in Garden Place for an hour of storytelling and games with characters from Enchanted Entertainment. Take the kids >

Paintvine in the Park | Sat 17th 2:00 - 4:00pm at Hamilton Gardens. Paintvine in the park is a beginners painting class in some of New Zealand's most beautiful parks and gardens. Sit in the sun and paint the day away. Lovelyyy - tixs here >

Hamilton Biggest Food Bazzar | Sat 17th 4:00 - 10:00pm at Innes Common. Join for the biggest food bazaar at the lake with 20+ food stalls, delicious flavours from around the world, and a beautiful lakeside setting. Yummy >

Slummer Slam | Sat 17th 8:00pm at Last Place. Presenting mixed genres gigs including Job Site, Slippery Slim, King Komodo, Static and more! Get groovy >

🕺George FM Summer Tour XL | Sat 17th 10:00pm - 3:00am at The Factory. Hyoketsu Presents: George FM Summer Tour XL. XL Venues, XL Lineups, XL Production. Grab your tixs > 

🏑 Battles of the Bombays | Sun 18th 10:00am at Gallagher Hockey Centre. Waikato will host the first edition of the Battle of the Bombays against the Auckland Hockey Association! 8 games will be played throughout the day, so come on down and cheer for our Waikato teams. Hockey time >  

After a wet and wild New Year’s, Hamilton residents can finally expect a run of classic summer weather. MetService says a high-pressure system is bringing sunny spells and humid tropical air to the region, and it could stretch out for quite some time. Read >

From Homegrown to the Hamilton Arts Festival and the upcoming opening of the Waikato Regional Theatre, summer will bring a wave of live music to the city. For those seeking more intimate gigs, one highlight will be the long-awaited return to Hamilton of The Bats. The four-piece group were pioneers of “the Dunedin Sound”. Read >

Wintec is re-charting its own course as it returns to regional governance, splitting off from the soon to be former mega polytechnic Te Pūkenga. Enabled by recent Government law changes, the move will see the Waikato institute regain local decision-making when it becomes fully independent in 2026. Read >

Kirikiriroa Hamilton welcomed three NRL All Stars players yesterday as ticket sales launched for the 2026 fixture, with Charnze Nicoll-Klokstad, Harata Butler and Grace Kemp spending the morning at Victoria on the River. The event will return to Aotearoa for just the second time. Read >

Get out there and enjoy it, team!

— Ben and Sarah