Museum Of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa: Māori Highlights Tour

Found on the waterfront, Te Papa is one of the must visit places in Wellington. International visitors will have to pay to enter and the museum takes cash/card. The Museum has 4 floors which house various exhibits from the Māori to local flora and fauna. We booked a guided tour to better understand the layout and exhibits. Our guide was Cici and she was brilliant. The tour took us from the entrance to the museum up to see an artistic wharanui used in Māori ceremonies and then to learn about the whaitungi or tetiriti (treaty). The tour overran but it didn’t matter as we were given more information about exhibits that we were interested in like the Māori people, their history and customs. We would really recommend visitors take the tour for a good overview of the museum as it can be a little overwhelming with reading many different information boards. Other items of interest within Te Papa include the baby giant squid which is the only complete one in the world and copies of tetiriti which are controversial still because they were written overnight and badly translated by the British which has negatively impacted the Maori. Also worth visiting is the poignant exhibit on Gallipoli with bigatures created by the local Weta Workshop. Learn about what Gallipoli was about and how it impacted on kiwi’s. For a great time, visit Te Papa

This is a fantastic museum- and free. There is a special dinosaur exhibit that was expensive - so I did not enter that part. All exhibits had signs in English and Maori and good explanations. My favorite was the earthquake house which simulates a 4.6 earthquake. There was a 10 minute wait, and only 8 people can fit in at once, so make sure you have time. Our tour group only had 1.5 hours, so its not enough time to see everything. I did stop by the ground floor cafe - it takes a very long time in line and to order and get your food. i had fries - they were about $5USD and a huge quantity and hot. This is definitely a museum worth stopping by.

Loved the museum, and this tour. Angela is an amazing ambassador for her heritage, and passing on some knowledge for us to be more aware of the Māori history.

Led by passionate guides, the tour delved deep into the stories and traditions of the Māori people. From the powerful haka demonstration to the intricacies of traditional wood carving, every moment was a connection to Aotearoa's rich heritage. The interactive sessions, where we tried our hand at weaving and learned about the significance of taonga (treasures), made the experience both educational and hands-on. It's not just a tour; it's a heartfelt journey into the heart of Māori culture. If you're at Te Papa and want a meaningful encounter with New Zealand's indigenous roots, the Mana Māori Tour is an absolute must.

Defiantly a place to visit, I had a great time and I was exposed to Maori culture and culture of Pacific People. There is an exhibition of European Pilgrims art and furniture, there you could see some Greek Orthodox Icons.

Very very informative tour. Highly recommend if you are in Wellington. Our guide was very enthusiastic about sharing his culture with visitors from all around the world.

Excellent guide . Beautiful displays to develop an appreciation of Maori history , expertise and culture

A must visit if in Wellington. I wish we had more time. Exhibits are nice, modern, interactive. Great experience for kids. Traveling from overseas, I particularly enjoyed the Māori exhibits on the top floor.

My daughter and I really enjoyed our Mana Maori tour. Being Maori and educated I knew quite a bit but was a good opportunity for my daughter to learn from a professional not just her mama. The tour itself covered many areas of the museum which was great. I loved how the guide was honest and up to date with new understandings as the light gets brighter so to speak. That was refreshing not being stuck with old information, and nice to see others can get an accurate account of Polynesians that would become known as Maori. Would absolutely recommend otherwise walking around on your own you may miss they whole understanding of things.

Visiting Te Papa Museum was important for me because I am staying in rural New Zealand for 6 months and, although I had availed myself of You Tube videos, I needed to know a more comprehensive history of Maori culture. From the start, the money was well worth the highlight tour. It wetted the appetite of my curious nature about the wonderful and mysterious Maori people. Warrior/whenau. A family oriented warrior culture? Who knew that many Maori can name the boat their ancestors travelled to New Zealand on? There is no way you could cover this museum in an hour or even an afternoon and do it justice, but the tour introduced me to places and customs to explore in person. It was a great place to start my 6 month journey to the land of the long white cloud!

Enjoyed this insight into Maori culture, bit to commercialised but interesting. Good guide who was very informative.

Kia Ora It's the most popular place in Wellington and a must visit for every person visiting the city. Earth's history and feeling of earthquake along with war history are the most important things I liked it. A very good souvenirs shop at the ground floor as well Wahe mai

Great tour during which I learnt a great deal about Maori culture. Very helpful and informative guide.

Excellent museum, awesome to learn about the rich history and culture of Aoteroa and a must do in Wellington

absolutely magnificant display of then nz troops and an great war figures so real Aussies RSL should look at this too

Beautiful displays of Maori art, history and culture showcased in amazing facilities. The art work alone makes this a must see when you are in Wellington.

Did the small 1 hr tour as I didn’t have much time & it was very informative but honestly you could spend 2 days there if you wanted to see everything!! 6 floors of exhibitions & art. Had a quick glimpse of the Gallipoli exhibit & what I saw was very overwhelming but amazing at the same time. A must do in Wellington!! One of the best museums I’ve experienced !!

This area was beautifully showcased and displayed. I loved the gentle way that the carvings and artworks were explained. The green stone information was well laid out too. The WWI display (which is not an option to select) was AWESOME.

The whole museum has very interesting information on the kiwi war, earthquake and other natural disasters in New Zealand, Maori culture and many more facets of New Zealand. Must visit if you go to Wellington.

Excellent very interesting and informative .this is a must see for anyone visiting Wllington. A walk along the waterfront and a cup of coffee in the many cafes is also worthwhile.

off season visit, allow plenty of time to watch everything. interesting performance/show, nice dinner

The tour was great. The kids learned a lot and the Koro was and Māori artifacts, their history and journey were epically explained

Only negative is that we didn’t have enough time to see it all. Very moving presentation on the history of the Maori people. Allow an entire day or go over 2 days.