● In 1896, a single explosion killed 65 workers at the Brunner Mine. It's still the country's worst workplace accident site, but the fascinating display boards and crumbling ruins make for an evocative and sobering experience. In certain conditions, you can still smell the sulphur.
● Best free view #1: The Grey River bar in a storm. Equal measures humbling and horrific.
● If it's raining, you'll get wet. Raincoats don't really work on the Coast.
● Go to the cinema or an art gallery or an artisan craftmaker's workshop or an independently owned book shop. Just because it's the Coast, doesn't mean it's uncultured.
● Truman Track (after the windy bit from Greymouth and before the windy bit to Westport) is 700m worth of the best short walk in the country. Subtropical forest opens up to a spectacular coastline with fossils in the cliff and a giant sea cave that is safe to explore when the tide is out. Stay up top and watch for blowholes when it's not.
● Learn how to read a map. Cellphone coverage is inconsistent but only locals are allowed to complain about this.
● Best free view #2: If in doubt, look to the horizon. They don't call it The Coast for nothing.