Kauri Museum

We share stories of courage and determination, tragedy and triumph, boundless hope and unfathomable loss; kauri making a nation. Dig deeper here. Since 1962, the Kauri Museum has been gathering, displaying, and sharing with visitors an internationally significant collection of:

- humble tools made important in the time of mud, grit, smoke, and fire.

- Handcrafted objects of rare and exquisite beauty.

- Dazzling displays of precious kauri gum, the hardened resin of kauri trees.

Enjoy "The Great Indoors" to explore a treasure of "The Great Outdoors". As the largest undercover visitor attraction north of Auckland, the Kauri Museum has 4,500sqm of exhibition halls, galleries, and rooms of treasures. Walk through a Once-and-Future Forest, an enchanted space which has echoes of the forest that's gone and is yet to come. The Forest Walkway is a journey from darkness to light, where the Kauri stars in the Māori creation legend Te Waonui o Tāne about the beginning of time. It's the Kauri Museum's latest addition. Rain or shine, a visit to the Kauri Museum adds fresh meaning to a timeless story that captures hearts and ignites imaginations about the past and present, encouraging hope for tomorrow. If you seek wonder, awe, and delight for several hours or a day (or more), this award-winning attraction is a long-established and popular destination for travelers, scientists, researchers, families, and children alike.

Our Gumdigger cafe is open from 10 am to 3 pm, and our parking allows for fully self-contained vehicles to camp overnight.