Nelson is a compact coastal city set amongst some of New Zealand's most stunning scenery. The city is the economic and cultural centre for the Nelson-Tasman region and offers an excellent range of shopping, eating and cultural experiences with an abundance of parks, rivers, beaches and nature trails to explore. Nelson is usually New Zealand's sunniest city with over 2,500 sunshine hours a year.Nelson is New Zealand's oldest city since, although it was proclaimed a Bishop's See and city under letters patent by Queen Victoria on 27 September 1858 and after Christchurch's city charter, Pakeha settlement had started in earnest in Nelson in 1841, 9 years before the good ship Charlotte-Jane arrived in Christchurch on 16 December 1850. Nelson is named after British admiral Viscount Nelson and many streets and features such as Trafalgar Park and Hardy, Collingwood and Nile Streets, are named after his naval battles and comrades.