Your home surrounded by lush managed gardens.

Craig moved to Remuera Gardens in August 2022 after deciding that a retirement village would offer him the community and companionship he was looking for. His choices were limited because he was 60 years old at the time, and very few villages have such an early entry age. He found out that Real Living has an entry age of 55+, and he quickly became interested in Remuera Gardens. When he first entered the village, it was love at first sight: “It just felt right for me. Lyn, the Sales Manager, showed me an apartment, and I decided that very same day that it was the apartment for me. I loved it, and it was everything I had hoped it would be.”

Craig is a very sociable person, so he quickly became involved in the social events around the village. He was elected as the Chairperson of the Residents’ Committee, and he enjoys the Quiz nights and the Men’s Club, a gentlemen’s group with monthly trips to different locations such as Maraetai Beach or the Car Museum in Hamilton. “Remuera Gardens ticks all the boxes I hoped it would. It’s giving me the company and the sense of belonging I was looking for, and it’s just a lot of fun. The more you put in, the more you get back.”

Nan has lived such a full life that her apartment at Remuera Gardens is filled with photos, newspaper articles, and music programs. Her mind is still razor-sharp, so she remembers all the details of her successful career, which included periods in England, Australia, Southeast Asia, and New Zealand, encompassing broadcasting, recitals, adjudicating, and lecturing.

As a young woman, Nan was awarded a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London, where she studied under Norman Greenwood and many other distinguished musicians. This marked the beginning of a very fulfilling career that has included solo recitals at St. Martin in the Fields in London and St. John’s Cathedral in Hong Kong.

From her lovely apartment at Remuera Gardens, Nan enjoys meeting new people and sharing with them the unbelievable adventures she’s lived. Nan still plays the piano, and her passion for music and life is contagious. She is a lovely resident to be part of our tight-knit community at Remuera Gardens

Remuera Gardens Clinical Manager, Megan Batra, is one of Real Living's most valued employees. She oversees the running of the rest home with health and safety protocols at the top of her priorities.

When Megan moved from India to New Zealand in 2009 she discovered a new calling: the aged care industry. After 13 years of experience, she started working as Remuera Gardens’ Clinical Manager in 2021. She loves the friendliness and ease of communication she finds here: “In a small retirement village you’re able to make more connections. You can spend more quality time with the residents and the staff.”

Megan is in charge of 16 staff members. Glaiza Tamiao is the clinical nurse coordinator of her close-knit team. Both they work together to ensure the wellbeing of the residents.

Margaret Cocker moved to Remuera Gardens almost five years ago because her brother was one of the team that designed the retirement village, back in the eighties. One day during a shopping trip she discovered that she could join the “Wednesday Wanderers”, a group of residents who go on trips outside of Auckland every Wednesday.

“I worked all my life, so I haven’t been outside Auckland for about 50 years. I forgot where we went first but it was a long way away and I was totally amazed by how much it has changed.”

Margaret’s favourite outings are the ones where she can take her camera out to photograph nature, specially the gorgeous beaches around Auckland. Omaha beach, the gannet colony at Muriwai, the waterfall at Hunua Ranges… are some of her favourite trips. Margaret has taught herself the essentials of photography, including how to use a telephoto and a micro lens. Her pictures have impressed fellow residents and the Village activities coordinator, Louise Smith, who is keeping albums with Margaret’s best pictures.

Remuera village is a paradise for birds, with its spacious landscaped gardens and the tranquillity of being at the end of a cul-de-sac. Margaret enjoys taking pictures of the gorgeous friends that come to feed at her garden: blackbirds, song thrushes, tuis, fantails, sparrows, and homing pigeons.

Aaron Sweden started working for Real Living more than seven years ago. He’s so passionate about his job as a gardener that he’s been photographing and cataloguing the plants since he arrived. “Sometimes it’s like detective work”, he says, because he spends lots of hours on the internet finding the scientific name of each plant. Then he creates a badge for every shrub so the residents can have a more complete experience of the garden. “The village is full of beautiful flowers and beautiful people; I love working here”.

Remuera Gardens has more than 130 different kinds of roses and camellias, with the collection growing every year. Aaron thinks he has labelled 80% of the garden but he’s not stopping yet: “My plant knowledge has increased ten-fold since I started working at Remuera Gardens. Unfortunately, there are some plants that I still cannot identify, including a magnolia, a camellia and a few varieties of roses. I haven’t given up though!”

Aaron has designed beautiful labels for the plants and now the residents can walk around the village not only admiring the camellias, but also knowing which variety they are, which gives a more complete experience of the garden. Aaron loves sharing his passion with the residents and some of them even like challenging his expertise.

We have been in the village two years. We chose to move to Remuera gardens because of its uniqueness, location, the gardens and the appealing design of the villas.

We were thrilled with the assistance provided with our move as we navigated the sale of our home. We were delighted to be able to have input into the villa décor and garden make-over.

Since moving in we have participated in the many activities and particularly enjoyed the companionship of other residents. There have been new friendships established and old connections renewed, while maintaining our friends and activities in the local community.

The support of staff, without question has been personal, appropriate, and professional when needed.

Angela Dunsmuir started working as a hairdresser at Remuera Gardens more than two years ago, after eight years working as the manager of a hair salon. “I love how people are loyal at the village. They have all the time in the world, so you don’t feel the hustle and bustle of working at a salon, where you’re constantly looking at the time and people are always in a hurry. Here is so much more relaxed and even if they don’t have an appointment they stop and have a chat which is really nice. They end up becoming your friends.”

Angela has made lots of friends working at the village. She loves listening to the residents’ life stories and seeing the family pictures they sometimes bring along. She also enjoys her lunch break, when she can step outside the salon and enjoy the tranquillity of Remuera Gardens’ spacious landscaped gardens – with over 150 different kinds of roses!

Angela studied graphic design but after finishing her studies she decided to try hairdressing and she has never looked back. She loves the creativity involved in her job: “When you’re cutting hair it is like you’re sculpting”, she says with her lovely big smile, “I like working with my hands and the social aspect of hairdressing.”