Last updated October 2026
Paraite is a rural community in the New Plymouth District, on the inland side of the coastal plain east of New Plymouth city. It is not a township with a main street. The setting is farmland and lifestyle properties, reached by local roads off State Highway 3.
Paraite Road meets Devon Road, the local name for that highway, at a junction that has been formally realigned as part of the state highway network. The Marton-New Plymouth railway line runs between this rural area and the industrial land at Bell Block.
For anyone weighing country living within easy reach of the city, Paraite is a working rural locality rather than a suburb with its own shops and schools.
Official Locality Facts
- Population (2023 Census)
- About 580, up 11% since 2018
- Land area
- 8.78 km²
- Location
- 7.7 km east of central New Plymouth
- Council
- New Plymouth District Council
- Neighbouring suburbs
- Bell Block, Lepperton, Hillsborough, Tarurutangi, Sentry Hill
- Ward or local board
- Kaitake-Ngāmotu General Ward and Kōhanga Moa General Ward; Te Purutanga Mauri Pūmanawa Māori Ward. Also recorded in the Puketapu-Bell Block community area.
- Getting there
- By road on State Highway 3 (Devon Road) to the Paraite Road intersection, then local rural roads. Postcode 4373. No passenger rail stop or local bus route was confirmed on the rural roads.
- Nearby landmarks
- Paraite Road and State Highway 3 (Devon Road) intersection; Marton-New Plymouth railway line; Everett Road
Who Lives in Paraite
About 580 residents in 210 households. From the 2023 Census, with the New Zealand figure alongside for comparison.
About Paraite
Paraite sits east of New Plymouth city, on the country side of the coastal highway corridor. The Marton-New Plymouth line is the clearest edge in the landscape: it separates this rural community from the industrial area of Bell Block. South and inland of that line, the pattern is paddocks, shelter belts and scattered houses rather than a built-up street grid.
Day to day, Paraite reads as a rural locality. There is no verified town centre, retail strip or school inside the area. Residents use New Plymouth, and the centres along the highway toward Bell Block, for shopping, health services and most other errands. The appeal is space and a short run into the city, not a walkable village high street.
The highway junction is the practical front door. A New Zealand Gazette notice records a realignment of the intersection of State Highway 3, Devon Road and Paraite Road, with the state highway land vesting in the Crown and adjoining road vesting in New Plymouth District Council.
The same notice describes land at that junction as part of the historic Hua survey district, the old survey name for this part of the district.
The recorded Pākehā history of the locality is tied to the First Taranaki War. Around 1860 a Māori chief named Aporo, also recorded as Aparo, confronted Charles Everett, a farmer at Paraite. Instead of shooting him, the chief removed Everett’s tie and told him to leave.
The episode is remembered as an unusual act of mercy for that time. Everett Road takes its name from that farming connection.
Settlement followed quickly in official terms. The area was divided into allotments for sale in 1867. From that point Paraite developed as rural land on the edge of the growing town, a role it still has. Anyone moving here should expect country roads, limited footpaths and a drive for everyday services, not an urban neighbourhood.
Getting Around
The straightforward approach is east from New Plymouth on State Highway 3, known locally as Devon Road, to the Paraite Road intersection. From there, local roads serve the farms and lifestyle properties.
The 2012 Gazette record shows that this junction has been adjusted so that part of the alignment is state highway and part is local road under New Plymouth District Council.
The Marton-New Plymouth railway is a landscape and access feature, not a passenger stop for the locality. No station or local bus route serving the rural roads of Paraite was confirmed in the sources checked.
A private vehicle is the realistic way to get around. The highway is busy, so the intersection needs ordinary care, especially at peak times when traffic is moving between the city, Bell Block and places further east.
History and Heritage
Paraite’s best-documented story is the encounter between Aporo (or Aparo) and Charles Everett during the First Taranaki War. Contemporary memory of the incident, later retold in local street-name research and in a Wanganui Herald report, turns on a small gesture: the chief took Everett’s tie and ordered him off the farm rather than killing him. It is a reminder that this quiet rural edge was contested ground in the 1860s.
Within a few years the Crown land system had moved on. A Taranaki Herald notice in 1867 advertised the area in allotments for sale. That sale marks the shift from a wartime farmstead story to the patchwork of rural titles that still shapes the locality. There is no verified historic building, pā or public reserve inside Paraite in the sources checked for this guide.
The heritage interest is in the land, the road names and the wartime anecdote, not in a visitor site with opening hours.
A meaning for the name Paraite was not confirmed. It should be used as the official locality name, without an assumed translation. Wider questions of hapū and iwi association for this specific rural area are also better taken from mana whenua sources than guessed from the city centre.
The New Plymouth coastal pā network is a different set of places, and it should not be read as a guide to Paraite.
Country Living and Services
Paraite suits people who want rural surroundings in the New Plymouth District and are happy to drive for shops, schools and health care. It is not a self-contained settlement. There is no confirmed shopping centre, café strip or community hall to list, and no school was verified inside the locality.
Enrolment zones for schools in Bell Block and on the city fringe should be checked with each school or the Ministry of Education before assuming an address is in zone.
The outdoors here are working countryside rather than a park network. Roadsides, farm boundaries and open views are the character of the place. There is no verified public walking track, playground or reserve to send visitors to inside Paraite. For beaches, the coastal walkway and the city’s gardens, the trip is back toward New Plymouth.
Because this is a rural locality, expectations about footpaths, lighting, rubbish collection and building rules can differ from suburban streets. New Plymouth District Council is the territorial authority for roads, rates and the district plan. Checking the rural zoning and any site constraints on a specific property is the practical next step for anyone thinking of living here.
Near Paraite
Just outside Paraite, within 10 km of its centre, nearest first.
Places
Businesses
Where to Learn More
Paraite on Wikipedia: summary of the rural community, its location, wards and the cited 1860s history.
New Zealand Gazette notice 2012-ln6896: official record of the State Highway 3, Devon Road and Paraite Road realignment.
Stats NZ place summary for Paraite: official statistical profile for the Paraite area.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Paraite part of New Plymouth?
Yes. It is a rural locality in the New Plymouth District, east of New Plymouth city, not a separate town with its own council.
How do you get to Paraite?
Drive east from New Plymouth on State Highway 3, also called Devon Road, and turn at the Paraite Road intersection. Local roads serve the properties beyond that junction. The postcode is 4373.
Is Paraite a town?
No. It is a rural community of farmland and lifestyle properties. It does not have a town centre.
Are there shops in Paraite?
No shopping centre or retail strip was confirmed inside Paraite. Everyday shopping is in New Plymouth, including centres along State Highway 3 toward Bell Block.
Is there a school in Paraite?
No school inside the locality was confirmed in the sources checked. Families should confirm enrolment zones directly, because nearby schools may not include every rural address.
What is Paraite known for historically?
Around 1860, during the First Taranaki War, the chief Aporo (also recorded as Aparo) confronted farmer Charles Everett at Paraite, removed his tie and told him to leave rather than shooting him. The land was offered as allotments for sale in 1867.
What does the name Paraite mean?
A meaning was not confirmed in the sources checked. Use Paraite as the official locality name rather than an assumed translation.
Is Paraite a practical base for visiting New Plymouth?
It can be, if you have a car. The city is a short drive west on State Highway 3, but Paraite itself has no confirmed visitor facilities, walks or public transport stop.
Spotted something incorrect on this page? Let us know.
Explore New Plymouth only lists suburbs officially recognised by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), and Paraite is one of them. Suburb boundary: LINZ, CC BY 4.0.