Whakatāne Observatory


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


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Te Pāpaka & Puketapu

0.32 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…

2. Wairere Falls

0.35 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…

3. Pōhaturoa

0.4 MILES

Beside a roundabout on The Strand is Pōhaturoa, a large tapu (sacred) rock outcrop capped with pohutukawa trees, where birth, death, war and moko (tattoo)…

4. Te Kōputu a te whanga a Toi

0.49 MILES

Attached to the library, this impressive museum and gallery has artfully presented displays on early Māori and European settlement in the area. A gourd on…

5. Mataatua

0.5 MILES

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

6. Muriwai’s Cave

0.77 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…

7. Lady on the Rock

1.01 MILES

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

8. Awakeri Hot Springs

8.28 MILES

About 16km from Whakatane on the road to Rotorua (SH30), this old-fashioned holiday park has a large thermal mineral pool, two smaller children's pools…