North Island's West Coast
We’ve compiled the best of the best in North Island's West Coast - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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1. Hollard Gardens
A 14-acre horticultural haven 16 km (10 miles) southwest of Stratford, Hollard Gardens encompasses native and exotic trees, rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias, and perennials. The 1920s vision of farmers Bernie and Rose Hollard, the gardens are now managed by the local council for all to enjoy. For families, there is a children's playground and a picnic area. Self-contained campervans can stay overnight.
1686 Upper Manaia Rd., Kaponga, Taranaki, 4679, New Zealand0800-736–222Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free -
2. Pukeiti
Established by the Pukeiti Rhododendron Trust, these 900 acres of lush, native rain forest are surrounded by farmland. The Pukeiti (poo-ke-ee-tee) collection of 2,500 varieties of rhododendrons is the largest in New Zealand. Many were first grown here, such as the giant winter-blooming R. protistum var. giganteum, collected from seed in 1953 and now standing 15 feet tall, and the delightful Lemon Lodge and Spring Honey hybrids, which bloom in spring. Kyawi, a large red "rhodo," is the last to bloom, in April (autumn). Rhododendrons aside, there are many other rare and special plants here. All winter long the Himalayan daphnes fragrance the pathways. Spring-to-summer-growing candelabra primroses reach up to 4 feet; and, for a month around Christmas, spectacular 8-foot Himalayan cardiocrinum lilies bear heavenly scented, 12-inch, white trumpet flowers. There’s a classy café on site and a self-guided Kids Treehouse Trail. Located 20 km (12½ miles) southwest of New Plymouth's center, Pukeiti is also a wonderful bird habitat.
2290 Carrington Rd., New Plymouth, Taranaki, 4312, New Zealand06-765–7127Sight Details
Rate Includes: Free -
3. New Plymouth Coastal Walkway
Step out of the city and onto the coast by taking a stroll or cycle along this gentle coastal path, which meanders for 13 km (8 miles), from Port Taranaki to Hickford Park (a rugby and bike park). It explores beaches and playgrounds, crosses rivers, passes by a golf course, and runs beneath the Wind Wand, a sculpture almost as iconic to New Plymouth residents as the Statue of Liberty is to New Yorkers. Created by the late New Zealand artist Len Lye, the red carbon-fiber tube stands 148 feet high and, like a conductor's baton, dances in the wind as Lye's tribute to what he called "tangible motion." Leaving the city confines the walkway crosses the startling white Te Rewa Rewa Bridge (Mt. Taranaki framed in the bridge's struts makes a great photo) into farmland and past the Waipu Lagoons, a wetland reserve.
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4. New Zealand Rugby Museum
This museum—located upstairs in the Te Manawa complex—is worth a visit whether or not you're a rugby fan because it offers insight into a sport that many New Zealanders treat like a religion. The ever-growing collection of rugby memorabilia dates back to the start of this national game in 1870. Interactive components even let visitors "have a go"; you can kick, tackle, and jump in the lineout, testing your playing skills quite safely.
326 Main St., Palmerston North, Manawatu-Wanganui, 4410, New Zealand06-358–6947Sight Details
Rate Includes: NZ$13 -
5. Pukekura Park and Brooklands Park
Together the lawns, lakes, gardens, and woodlands of these connected parks make up a 128-acre urban oasis. Each summer evening the Festival of Lights transforms the gardens and giant trees of Pukekura Park (annually from mid-December through January and during the March WOMAD Festival). Rowboats can be rented to explore the small islands and nooks and crannies of the main lake. The park also has massive botanical display houses and a fernery in caverns carved out of the hillside. The adjoining Brooklands Park is known for its ancient rain forest and exotic trees, such as giant copper beeches, pines, walnuts, and oaks. The Monterey pine, magnolia soulangeana, ginkgo, and native karaka and kohekohe here are the largest of their kind in New Zealand. A giant puriri tree is believed to be more than 2,000 years old. Brooklands is also home to the hugely popular Bowl of Brooklands, a natural amphitheater used for concerts and events, including international acts. Brooklands Zoo has farm animals, meerkats, monkeys, and an aviary.
Park entrances on Brooklands Park Dr. and Liardet, Somerset and Rogan Sts., New Plymouth, Taranaki, 4310, New Zealand06-758–6060-for Brooklands Zoo onlySight Details
Rate Includes: Free -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
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6. Tawhiti Museum
This isn't a boring old museum but rather an outstanding presentation of Taranaki’s lively history. It’s the creation of former schoolteacher-cum-historian Nigel Ogle, who has created life-size fiberglass figures and set them into historic scenes: dioramas depict the huge intertribal wars of the 1830s and European–Māori land wars of the 1860s, for example. More than 800 model warriors, none of them the same, have been created. In "Traders and Whalers," you glide by lantern light on a boat through an eerie world of traders and whalers and witness their first encounters with Māori tribes. Outside, Tawhiti Bush Railway highlights historical logging operations in Taranaki (runs the first Sunday of each month). Mr. Badger's Café, with its Wind in the Willows theme, and a quaint gift shop, can bring you back to the present. To reach the museum, in southern Taranaki, head south on State Highway 3 for 30 km (18 miles). It's a fascinating stop, but well off the beaten path.
401 Ohangai Rd., Hawera, Taranaki, 4672, New Zealand06-278–-6837Sight Details
Rate Includes: Museum NZ$15, Traders and Whalers NZ$15, Bush Railway NZ$6, Closed Mon.–Sat. June–Aug. -
7. Te Manawa
This distinctive complex is divided into three sections that weave together the region's art, science, and history, including natural history and the history of Rangitane, the local Māori people. For young ones, the Mind Science Centre, with its quirky interactive exhibits, is entertaining and educational. Regular touring exhibitions that visit here are also known for their quality. The art gallery has a strong focus on established and emerging artists from the local area, but you'll also find works from national and international artists. Te Manawa also houses the New Zealand Rugby Museum.
326 Main St., Palmerston North, Manawatu-Wanganui, 4410, New Zealand06-355–5000Sight Details
Rate Includes: Life and Art galleries free; charges for some exhibitions
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