 Brunner joined a party of six other young improvers which left England on 27 April 1841 aboard the Whitby . During the voyage to New Zealand , the improvers received further instruction and were tested by having to prepare draft layouts for the new settlement , Brunner 's plan being the best of these . On 18 September , the Whitby arrived at Port Nicholson , the New Zealand Company 's first settlement . The approximate site for the new settlement had yet to be finalised ; initially intended for Banks Peninsula , this location was vetoed by the Governor of New Zealand , William Hobson . Instead , it was to be located at the top of the South Island , at Tasman Bay . Early the following month a convoy of the company 's ships , with Brunner aboard one them , crossed the Cook Strait to Tasman Bay . After scouting the area for three weeks , a site adjacent a deep and sheltered natural harbour was identified as being suitable for the settlement . 
