The 1931 Napier earthquake and a subsequent fire destroyed much of the downtown business area. When this area was rebuilt, it was reconstructed in the prevailing Art Deco style. Napier is a city in Hawke’s Bay, on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The city is famed for its Art Deco architecture. Now it is the Art Deco capital of the world. The demolition rubble was dumped along the eastern foreshore and turned into gardens and a recreational reserve. The earthquake also raised the land by several metres. The airport and low lying land in the suburb of Pandora was previously an estuary. Some of the streets in the area have retained the names they had when they were on the coastline - streets called a quay or a bay may be inland now. National Aquarium of New Zealand, 546 Marine Parade, Napier. The National Aquarium has a reef tank, a travelator which spirals its way beneath the enormous Oceanarium, creating the impression of a true underwater experience, and a typical New Zealand rocky shore environment. There are sharks, stingray and hundreds of fish species, many of them representative of the catches from along the East Coast. There are eels, trout, sea horse, turtles, octopus, tropical marine fish, kiwi, tuatara, water dragons, native frogs and crocodile also on display. Things to do: Ther's plenty to do in Napier and Hawkes Bay! Must do's include The Art Deco Walk around our lovely 'Art Deco' city and a Wine Tour, either guided or D.I.Y. Grape Escapes offer a great Wine Tour to 4-5 local wineries led by Greg Beacham, who is extremely knowledgable and interesting. Great value at $50. The National Aquarium of New Zealand is situated on Marine Parade and well worth a visit, you can even get in and feed the sharks! You can also see NZ's native Kiwi bird too! The Sunday Farmer's Market at Hastings is well worth a visit, selling local produce and plenty of free samples!! In the summer there is also a Saturday Farmer's market at Havelock North. Te Ma...