Kerikeri - North Island, New Zealand

Kerikeri is a service town 25 kilometres northwest of Paihia. It is very intensely involved in the fascinating history of the Bay of Islands. Two kilometres to the east of the town, Kerikeri Basin was chosen by Samuel Marsden to establish the second Christian mission in New Zealand.

The sub tropical crops mainly citrus fruits thrive in this region and is a huge source of employment in the period January to June in the numerous orchards. In recent years, lot of craft shops have sprung up amongst the orchards.

 

Air New Zealand flights from Auckland land at Bay of Islands airport, 5 kilometres out of town from where taxis are available to Kerikeri. All major bus operators stop at Cobham Road.

There are lot of buses running to Paihia. Although Kerikeri does not have a Visitor Centre, information leaflets are available from the foyer of the library on Cobham Road. The Department of Conservation (DOC) ofice is on Landing Road and this has information on local hikes.

Kerikeri Accommodation

Though Paihia forms an excellent base for accommodation when visiting Kerikeri, the accommodation choices in Kerikeri are decent and is particularly well suited for the budget type.

The work opportunities on local orchards creates a good demand for long stay casual workers. The month of January sees a spike in accommodation hunters. There are a range of motels, lodges, cottages, hostels and campsites available in Kerikeri.

Kerikeri Activities

The Kerikeri Basin is home to New Zealand's oldest style European building The Kerikeri Mission House. It is a two storey 19th century colonial architecture surrounded by colonial style gardens.

Next door is the Old Stone Store, the oldest stone building in Aotearoa built in 1836. It has served many purposes along the way and is open to the public today. The upper floors include a museum that has a hand operated flour mill from 1820, supposedly the oldest piece of machinery in New Zealand today.

Opposite the Old Stone Store, a path along the river leads to the Kororipo Pa, the European style dwelling of the local chief Hongi Hika built in the 1820s.

The pre European Maori lifestyle is reflected in the Rewa's Village on Landing Road, a reconstructed Maori fishing village across the river from the pa site with marae, weapons and kumara stores completed by an authentic hangi site. There is also the Discovers Garden with over 50 species of plants used by Maoris for eating, healing, tattooing and lifting of tapu.

The Kerikeri Basin Reserve goes past Kerikeri's first hydroelectric station and leads on to the swimming spots at Fairy Pools and onward to the impressive Rainbow Falls. There is a beautiful one hour steamboat cruise on the Kerikeri Inlet on two pretty 19th century boats, the Eliza Hobson and the Firefly.

The numerous orchards of Kerikeri have lots of craft shops on the roads running between the orchards. The Kerikeri Art and Craft Trail gives a good idea of the major outlets. The town itself has a Kauri Workshop which stocks stuff made of kauri wood.

There is also a confectionery making hand made chocolates. There is also a guided tour of the Steam Sawmill, a working steam driven mill, 4 kilometres east of the town on Inlet Road.

Kerikeri, though small in size, offers a nice selection of eating places in good cafes and restaurants. There are couple of wineries 4 kilometres to the south of town.

LooknbookNZ can take care of your Kerikeri accommodation and Kerikeri activities bookings and let you and your family/friends savour the historical importance of Kerikeri in the Bay of Islands region.