Whangārei couple celebrate 70 years of marriage - what's their secret?

"I still don't regret it," Myra Madsen affirms after 70 years of marriage to Peter Madsen.

The Puriri Court Lifecare residents have reached an incredible milestone of 70 years of marriage, reporting only mild ups and downs along the way.

They were married on June 24, 1950, just one year after meeting.

Wednesday was their 70th anniversary and the resthome put on an afternoon tea to celebrate.

Peter was 21 and Myra was 20 when they met at a Wellington movie theatre where Myra worked as a cashier.

In their 70 years of marriage they've had three kids and now have two grand-kids with a whole lot of great-grandchildren they don't get to see very often.

Their daughter, Raylee, lives in Brisbane, Australia.

Of their sons Robert lives in Napier and Neil lives in Kamo.

Although Myra now has difficulty remembering things all the time, she preserves a sharp memory of her marriage and the platinum milestone they've just reached.

She reminisces on the time she spent travelling with Peter, in particular India.

With the bitter cold climate of the past week, the warm Indian weather is something she spoke a lot of in our short visit.

Peter says they did a lot of travelling together throughout their marriage.

They lived in Nepal for two years and have spent a lot of time in England and Australia, and India and Canada were two of their more memorable trips.

They've lived all over New Zealand too.

Peter says they've never lived in one part of New Zealand for longer than four years.

Puriri Court Lifecare in Kamo has been their home for the past three years and they love it.

Myra says the staff are so lovely and take really good care of them.

The couple moved back to Whangārei to be closer to their son Neil who lives in Kamo and takes good care of them.

They last lived in Whangārei in the 1980s for three years.

Peter reveals the secret to a long and lasting marriage is finding the person who you get along best with.

"Peter has been a good husband. He's the dearest boy and my best friend," Myra said.