Best Island, previously Bests Island, is an island in the

Waimea Inlet Waimea Inlet is a section of Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere, in New Zealand's South Island. It is at the southern end of the bay, and separated from it by the partial barriers of Rabbit Island and Bell Island to the west and Monaco Peninsula and ...

, an arm in the southernmost part of

Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere Tasman Bay (; officially Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere), originally known in English as Blind Bay, is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along ...

, on the northern coast of New Zealand's

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

. The island runs northwest to southeast for . It is connected to the South Island on the southwest and to Bell Island to the northeast by causeways. It is in the Richmond Ward of

Tasman District Tasman District () is a local government district in the northwest of the South Island of New Zealand. It borders the Canterbury Region, West Coast Region, Marlborough Region and Nelson City. It is administered by the Tasman District Council, ...

. The northeastern half of the island contains the Greenacres Golf Club. The middle of the island contains farms. The population is concentrated at the southwestern end. Legal access to properties is only from the sea, although private roads have been used for decades to give property-owners access. A plan for the district council to buy land for public road access failed in 2016. The island was originally called Bests (or Best's) Island after a local family.

Demographics

These islands are contained in the statistical area Islands Tasman District, which covers and also includes the sparsely populated

Moturoa / Rabbit Island Moturoa / Rabbit Island is a small island that lies across the southernmost part of Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere, on the northern coast of New Zealand's South Island. The long narrow island runs east–west for , and covers . It lies opposit ...

, Bell Island and Rough Island. The statistical area had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Best Island contains almost the entire population of the area, with the population of Best Island and Bell Island being 93 in 2018. Islands Tasman District had a population of 99 at the

2018 New Zealand census Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 * one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...

, an increase of 3 people (3.1%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 6 people (6.5%) since the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. There were 45 households, comprising 51 males and 48 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.06 males per female. The median age was 43.8 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 24 people (24.2%) aged under 15 years, 9 (9.1%) aged 15 to 29, 57 (57.6%) aged 30 to 64, and 15 (15.2%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 93.9% European/

Pākehā Pākehā (or Pakeha; ; ) is a Māori term for New Zealanders primarily of European descent. Pākehā is not a legal concept and has no definition under New Zealand law. The term can apply to fair-skinned persons, or to any non-Māori New Ze ...

, and 3.0%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

. The percentage of people born overseas was 24.2, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 66.7% had no religion, 24.2% were

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, 3.0% were

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and 3.0% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 21 (28.0%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 12 (16.0%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $36,800, compared with $31,800 nationally. 9 people (12.0%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 39 (52.0%) people were employed full-time, 18 (24.0%) were part-time, and 3 (4.0%) were unemployed.

References

{{Tasman District Islands of the Tasman District Populated places in the Tasman District Populated places around Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere Islands of Tasman Bay