Wanganui

From WildWiki

Wanganui is a great place to base from on the N Island. By staying at the Settlement, you can access lots of day trips in the area ranging from in town to a few hours away. Below are some suggested excursions.

- Canoe the Wanganui River with Waka Tours- A Maori run operation that guides 3-4 day trips on the river with stays in Marae's along the river.

- Visit the Wanganui Regional Museum- excellent Maori artififact collection and Margie Beautrais at the Settlement is the main tour guide.

- Peruse the extensive Saturday farmers market by the river downtown.

- Visit Bushy Park (approx. 45 km out of town). A great example of remnant bush with several trails. Also an example of an "exclosure" protection system for bird species including baby kiwi.

- The bookshop "Poppies" is a great place to have students pick up any required textbooks. They can be ordered and they are a friendly and helpful bunch. Poppies Bookstore

FURTHER AFIELD

- Hike the Tongariro Crossing- supposedly the best one day hike in the country (though crowded). Good place to base from is the Discovery Lodge near National Park. About 2 hours drive from Wanganui.

- Hike Mt. Taranaki in Plymouth. About 1.5-2 hrs. drive from Wanganui. Everything from day hikes to multi-day hikes and a possible summit hike of the volcanic crater itself regions/taranaki/regional-information.html Info on the Region.

- Visit Kapiti Island. By all accounts, a memorable experience. Kapiti Island is a protected island approx. 2 hours south of Wanganui. It is managed by DOC and represents what NZ was like prior to colonization in terms of bird species. You must get permits well ahead of time and the trip across is often cancelled in bad weather. Nonetheless, do it if you can! Charter Service and Info.

Return to Site Locations