Around 8km south of town, this verdant 4.5-hectare patch of forest is home to around 1500 varieties of native plants, which can be seen on a 20-minute walking circuit. The prize specimen is Taketakerau, a sacred 23m-tall puriri tree, with a huge circumference, estimated to be more than 2000 years old. It was once used as a burial place for the distinguished dead of the Upokorehe hapū (subtribe) of Whakatōhea; their remains have since been reinterred elsewhere.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Ōpōtiki Museum

4.68 MILES

Ōpōtiki's museum has heritage displays including Māori artefacts, militaria, recreated shopfronts (barber, carpenter, printer…), and agricultural items…

2. Hiona St Stephen’s Church

4.69 MILES

St Stephen's (1862) is a white wooden Anglican church with a timber-lined interior and tukutuku (woven flax) panels in the sanctuary. Reverend Carl…

3. Muriwai’s Cave

16.25 MILES

This shallow, partially collapsed cave once extended 122m into the hillside and was the home of Muriwai, a famous seer and sister of Toroa, captain of the…

4. Lady on the Rock

16.35 MILES

A whimsical 1965 statue of local heroine Wairaka stands proudly atop a rock on the mouth of the Whakatāne River.

5. Whakatāne Observatory

16.36 MILES

On a hilltop behind town, this observatory offers abundant Bay of Plenty star-spotting when the sky is clear.

6. Mataatua

16.44 MILES

Mataatua is a large, fantastically carved 1875 wharenui (meeting house) that is the centrepiece of Te Mānuka Tūtahi marae (traditional meeting place). A…

7. Wairere Falls

16.48 MILES

Tumbling down the cliffs immediately behind town, tall, skinny Te Wairere occupies a deliciously damp nook. It once powered flax and flour mills, and it…

8. Te Pāpaka & Puketapu

16.56 MILES

On the clifftops behind the town are a pair of ancient Ngāti Awa pā (fortified village) sites – Te Pāpaka (The Crab) and Puketapu (Sacred Hill) – both of…