Te Pā Tū (Tamaki Māori Village)

Te Pā Tū offers a powerful cultural performance and dining experience through which you can learn about Maori people past and present. Packages include a 2- to 3-hour tour, in which your guide explains pre-European rituals, such as the powhiri welcoming ceremony; demonstrates the meeting house and interactive village; and serves a traditional Hangi feast (food cooked underground on hot stones). You can even stay overnight.

Visits to Te Pā Tū are included in many day trips from Tauranga as well as multi-day excursions from Auckland. Packages often include the village plus Waitomo Caves, the Hobbiton movie set, and other points of interest in Rotorua.

• Te Pā Tū is suitable for all ages.

• The venue is wheelchair and stroller accessible.

• Don’t forget to take a camera or charge your phone—there’s a lot to see.

• Take warm clothes if you travel in winter and comfortable footwear in all seasons.

• Hangi is for everyone; special dietary options are available.

The evening tour runs a bus that collects you in the early evening from your Rotorua accommodation or from the Tamaki Heritage Experiences office at 1220 Hinemaru Street in the central city. The bus also returns along the same route at about 9:30pm. There’s plenty of space to park if you’re driving.

Te Pā Tū is open seven days a week; to escape the crowds, visit on a Sunday or Thursday. Tours can be busy, depending on the season, but numbers are usually well-managed. In summer, most of your experience will take place during daylight hours, while in winter, the sun sets in the late afternoon, making the experience quite different.

If uninspired hotel rooms are starting to wear thin, consider spending the night at Te Pā Tū. Arrive for the afternoon and evening experience before settling in near a campfire to hear traditional Maori myths and oral histories. At the end of the night, enjoy a relaxing spa in the bush before settling into bed in the whare moe (sleeping house).