Museum Of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa: Introducing Te Papa Tour

Maybe I am just a museum buff but I really enjoyed my visit to this museum - learned a lot. I did the tour - it gave me a good background to explore the museum further.

Very insightful tour with lovely Susan .

Because entrance is free it was unbelievably busy! However we opted for the one hour guided tour for $16 and it was worth it. Well laid out in n a contemporary style with views across the harbour from the roof. Decent cafe and restaurant as well.

Awesome experience. Lots of things to see

We enjoyed this tour and was so glad we booked this tour. The tour moved us quickly beyond the entry/overpopulated area of the museum.

Our tour was excellent and our guide very personable and knowledgeable! Beautiful museum! Very glad we booked the tour and spent the day learning so much!

Beautiful museum well laid out. Exhibits divided up nicely plenty of room. Arrive early since many school groups arrive late morning. Expect to spend at least 2 hours but can certainly spend more time. Great gift shop with many items from all over the country standard pricing. Definitely would not miss.

Sam, our tour guide, was very energetic and dynamic, and pointed out numerous highlights during this one-hour introduction to the museum. He rightly recommended that we then take our time to look more deeply into our preferred exhibitions. This was the perfect way to get an overview of the variety of subjects - history, nature, geography, culture - available to visit at this magnificent museum. One could easily spend all day here! Thank you, Sam, for your passion, clarity and humour!

This is a stunning museum and gallery. It costs around $20 for non NZ residents. It is worth every cent and you can use your ticket the next day. Wonderful thought provoking and interactive displays. Excellent.

Absolutely fabulous! Well curated museum with every small detail attended to. We went as a couple but would have loved this when our children were younger - so much thought had been put into ensuring all ages were engaged. I saw several children enthralled by the interactive activities and it was lovely to see. There was a challenge to see if you could tip the scales to be more than the biggest Moa ever, a tsunami activity and so much. Tickets are for 48 hours and this is so helpful because there is so much to take in - visiting over two days could be useful.

An absolutely astounding establishment full to the brim with informative exhibitions, culture, and people. One definitely requires more than a day alone to visit Te Papa. Given the weather while we were in Wellington, the museum was a much needed respite.

$ 170. for two admissions and a 1 hr tour was overpriced. Walk Wellington was much better experience/value.

We visited Te Papa while on a city tour of Wellington, It included a 1 hour guided tour of the highlights. The museum is impressive (you could spend days) and the tour guide did a great job of showing us the highlights. After the tour, we took a few minutes to walk through the Gallipoli exhibit. It is also impressive, particularly the sculptures done by the folks at WETA. This is a highlight of Wellington.

The Te Papa Museum is truly one of the most awe-inspiring places I’ve ever visited. The guides are incredibly knowledgeable, always pointing us toward the best exhibits and helping us discover hidden gems throughout the museum. One of the highlights is the colossal squid, an unforgettable sight that feels larger than life. Beyond that, the museum offers fascinating displays about the history of New Zealand, unique bird species, and cultural treasures that make the experience both fun and educational. What I love most is that the exhibits are beginner-friendly, making it easy for visitors to explore at their own pace while still learning so much. Overall, Te Papa is not just a museum—it’s an adventure, and one of the most enjoyable places I’ve ever been.

Te Papa Museum is an outstanding place to experience the heart of New Zealand’s history and culture. The exhibits are interactive, well-designed, and suitable for all ages. Māori heritage, natural history, and modern art are presented beautifully, making the visit both educational and enjoyable. The museum is spacious, well maintained, and located in a perfect waterfront setting. Staff are friendly and informative, and entry is free, which is incredible for such a world-class museum. A must-visit attraction in Wellington.

Everything you ever could want to know about New Zealand’s indigenous people and subsequent European settlers. There are so many artifacts that it can be an overwhelming amount of content for a casual visit. A docent lead tour is a good way to get the major content and without spending a full day in the museum. The serious visitor will need a full day to absorb the content.

We highly recommend this ONE hour tour during your visit to Te Papa- but you need many more hours to see it all! We were tired but Aoife brought our experience to life- showing us things we had missed in our first 2 hours - sharing her passion for New Zealand and the people! She did such a great job of explaining the treaty, the relationship Maori and immigrants! Thank you for sharing!

Great information, give extra time because there is a lot of ground to cover inside. It is a fantastic experience.

I joined the Te Papa Highlights in Mandarin tour today and absolutely loved the experience! It was a fantastic way to explore the stories behind New Zealand’s land, people, culture, art, and history—all delivered in fluent, engaging Mandarin. Our guide, WenBin, was incredible. He was warm, professional, and so knowledgeable—not just about the museum itself, but also about native birds, planets, politics, and Aotearoa’s rich history. You could tell he genuinely loves sharing knowledge and connecting with people. I left feeling both inspired and a little smarter! If I had one wish—it would be for a longer tour! The 60 minutes went by far too quickly. I’d love to see a 90-minute version offered in the future, or I might just book a private tour next time with friends to dive in even deeper. Highly recommend this for anyone who speaks Mandarin and wants to experience Te Papa in a deeper, more meaningful way! If you do not speak Mandarin, no worries! I am sure the English introduction tour would be as great as the Mandarin tour. Te Papa does have a great team here to offer fantastic opportunities to both domestic and international visitors an unforgettable experience. No wonder it is ranked #1 via TripAdvisor Award 2025

The 1 hour tour is well worth the price. It gives a great overview of what the museum has, and provides deeper insight into many of the exhibits.

The content of the museum is varied and set out in a spacious building. It never felt crowded on the visit. Staff are friendly and informative. Tip we received: don’t bother with top floor, it’s just old pottery. Would recommend for a half day visit.

The Museum of New Zealand has an interesting charging policy. Free for New Zealanders but $35 for international visitors. I've bern to many museums in different countries and never experience a charging policy that discriminates between visitors and residents.

We spent 4 hours looking round the museum, learning about the geology of the islands, the unique animal and plant life, the maori culture and the battle at gallipoli. We didn't have time to view the Vivien Westwood fashion and jewellery exhibition. Each part we attended was excellent, there were interactive elements designed for children but equally good for adults. The information was interesting and we found ourselves emersed for hours! The gallipoli exhibition was particularly moving.

Nice to do the tour to get familiar with the museum. It is large, so allow time after the tour or you can return next day using same ticket. Interesting museum. Worth it to visit.

A great introduction to the exhibits Anna was very engaging as a guide and very knowledgeable There was room to move around comfortably

We did the intro guided tour with AJ (excellent and very energetic!). This one hour tour provides a great into into the overall museum and history of NZD. After the tour we spent a good two hours exploring it for ourselves, with a heavy focus on the volcanos and natural history sections. Plenty of children's activities as well.

Wonderful experience and well worth it. If you visit New Zealand, you owe it to yourself to understand the place. The history of the island, animal, and people was easy to understand and entertaining.

We had a fabulous knowledgeable enthusiastic guide in Samir. Fabulous experience guiding us through this amazing museum. There is so much to see a guide is recommended and he kindly suggested what we do in our free time. We practically spent the whole day there. We visited the Gallipoli section which was fantastic powerful and sadly with what's going on in the world we have learned little free. We had a break in the cafe and the food and service was excellent despite being extremely busy. Thank you to Samir and the fabulous producers of this museum.

$35 for international visitors! Yeah,nah… not happening. We will use your WIFI, drink your tea and visit the shop but we refused to be blackmailed into spending $35 each for something sponsored by the NZ Government & corporations I’m keeping my hard earned pension money in my pocket thank you very much. Give it a miss.

Although a small country by some standards, New Zealand has captured and presented its cultural heritage and unique history in a number of museums, the capstone of which is the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (a concatenation of both English and Māori terms; Te Papa, for short) in Wellington, the country's capital. Exhibits cover every aspect of the island country's history, botany, geology, wildlife, and culture. Many of these exhibits are "hands-on," in which one can press a button, smell a flower or spice, watch an animation, listen to natural sounds and can become engaged rather than just spectate. There is even the means to view the earthquake-proofing foundation on which the structure stands. Of particular note is the exhibit called "Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War." That campaign of World War I was New Zealand's entry into global politics, and is commemorated with relics, film clips, dioramas, and impressive sculptures that were created with the aid of the award-winning design and special effects studio, Wētā Workshop. Make sure you don't miss this part! It lasts through April, 2025. There are kids' learning areas, and of course, a café where one can rest their feet and refresh with hot and cold beverages. Best of all, admission is free (charges apply to some short-term exhibitions and activities).

All of the gallery docents were knowledgeable and eager to share their information. Lovely coffee cafe on level 4 for afternoon cake & coffee time. Fun "bush" walk outside and some viewing platforms. Gallipoli exhibit was astounding; the craftsmanship by Weta group making the larger than life story tellers...wow. Even the spray painted defacement of the Whatangi treaty was interesting. Good lunch choice in the regular cafe & reasonable cost although limited seating at busy times. Overall, a terrific experience...full day, whew

Our 90 minute private tour served as a good introduction to the incredible variety of exhibits at the national museum of New Zealand. Our tour guide was personable, but not necessarily personal, as we didn’t get the feeling that anything was tailored particularly towards our interests, as we hoped a private tour might. We stayed afterwards for the Gallipoli exhibit - not to be missed!

Visited Te Papa for the first time in ages to see the Dinosaur exhibition. Great experience. Highly recommend getting there early to avoid too many people (during school holidays).

Easy booking experience. Judith our museum tour guide was informative and you could feel her connection to the history of NZ. A tour that takes in many artefacts to give you an overview of the 5 levels that you can keep exploring after your 1 hr guided tour is over.

Amazing museum. Our tour guide was very friendly and extremely knowledgeable. Definitely left us wanting to stay there all day if we could. The Gallipoli exhibition is a MUST too.

Museum was great, but meeting instructions were not clear. The only information we were given was to meet at 55 Cable Street, the address of the museum. We waited outside, like we do for most of our Viator tours. Never found the guide. Fortunately, after going into the museum, the staff were helpful and added us to a scheduled museum tour. Advice, just go to the museum and go with the museum tour guides.

Museum wonderful but guide spoke softly and very fast. Went back with hubby to see a few exhibits on our own, but got very tired so had to leave. Guide took my evaluation and I explained why it was a 1. She thanked me and said that she doesn’t have enough time to talk slowly. Guess she doesn’t care.

This is a rip off. You pay Viator to take the museum’s FREE tour. Instead of booking this, just show up at the museum, take the free tour, and donate to the museum. Shame on you, Viator.

Despite getting Te Papa confused with the Museum of Wellington (how I do not know!) and arriving slightly late, Portia was very accommodating, friendly and welcoming. She was full of interesting stories and commentary that brought many of the exhibits to life and provided a nice foundation for understanding. It was nice to be able to go back and spend a bit more time at each after the tour. Highly recommend this tour.

We were guided around the museum highlights and given a detailed explanation each time. Physical and spiritual meanings were explained clearly. A great introduction that we were able to follow through later.

Amazing guide Roger explained a little bit about everything in the museum. Great way to be introduced and good basics to then discover this amazing museum on your own.

Introducing Maori culture and it's importance in NZ. The skill and knowledge of earlier Maori tribe in sailing, surviving skill is eye opening.

Unfortunately we were 10 mins late for the tour and we missed it. We could not find and catch up with the tour so just found our own way round the museum We were disappointed.

Lovely museum. Guided tour is fast and informative. Can spend an hour or 5! Cafe is tasty and reasonable

Vast choice of interesting exhibits, I planned to visit the Gallipoli - the cost of war exhibit. This is an anazing experience which tells the stories of real soldiers from the ANZAC forces that landed at Gallipoli and fought against the Turkish army in horrendous conditions.

Many cultures have a welcoming ceremony that is intended to establish interactions between visitors and hosts in the most effective manner. Based on the experience we had at the Te Papa museum in Wellington, we could not envision a better welcoming ceremony than to take a tour with Bruce Roberts, a Kiwi who shares his insight, passion, depth of understanding, and welcoming spirit infused with the central Louisiana accent from his early roots. Mr Roberts can, in the span of a few minutes discuss the anatomy and physiology of the colossal squid while pointing out its unique characteristics, the reproductive cycle of the kiwi bird, the migration of Pacific based peoples over the centuries, and the emotional impact of encounters with Maori elders in sacred places. He reveals the significance of Word War I battles to the identify of the people of Oceania on the international stage, the economic shifts in the relatively recent industrial history of New Zealand, the impact of the railway on the North Island, the linkages among Pacific Islander languages with other languages, and the special vulnerabilities of the people and wildlife in this unique environment. Spend an hour with Bruce Roberts in the Te Papa and you will discover or rediscover millennia of birth and life cycles from land formations to giant now extinct birds to carving, engineering, water transport, and music. You will leave with a sense of respect and appreciation for the land to which you are being welcomed, discovering new facts, new facets or what may already have been familiar, and maybe even learning a bit more about your self as your sense of discovery gets exercised to a rare degree.

The guided tour was a must it gave us so much more information than what we expected. The museum is magnificent with so many interactive stations and the war section was very emotional and moving.

The guide was very knowledgeable and presented the tour in a lively fashion with inside tips I wouldn’t have known , if I was self-guided. But I wish we had more time. I especially liked the art exhibition and the insightful animal explanations.

The guide was great! Paid attention to main things. After the tour it was easier to explore the rest of the museum. Very recommend.