Buried Village of Te Wairoa

Address: Buried Village, Tarawera Road, RD 5, Rotorua
Hours: Open daily. Summer(Nov - Mar): 9am - 5pm (until 4:30pm in Winter). Closed Christmas Day
Admission: Adults: NZ$30, Children (5-15yrs): NZ$8

ATTRACTION Keywords:
Cultural Experience, Walking/Hiking, Monument - Historical, Museum, Ruin - Ancient, Trail, Waterfall

9:01 PM Saturday, May 25
Rain. Partly cloudy. Cool.
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The Buried Village of Te Wairoa offers a unique glimpse into 19th century New Zealand life, as it was buried and preserved by volcanic ash in an 1866 eruption. One of New Zealand's most popular attractions, this archeological treasure houses a museum to the village and the interaction of Maori and colonial cultures. You'll see towering, carved Maori artwork in the museum and then tour the excavation points around the site.

If you're visiting New Zealand for its outdoor-centric lifestyle, the Buried Village is a good hub for great hiking. Beyond the village is the spectacular Waterfall Trail. It provides two different hiking tracks of breathtaking scenery and the famed rainbow trout that live and spawn in the Te Wairoa stream. The Tarawera area is crossed by several other trails, including one at Lake Okareka.

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Review by Tighthead Prop, Australia, October 2010

A visit to the Buried Village of Te Wairoa is like a step back into time. It is a very peaceful setting, wandering around the village which was buried when the Mt Tarawera volcano exploded back in the late 1800's. The museum gives a glimpse of what the village was like, back before the explosion, when it was a thriving community, catering to the tourists in the 1800's which visited the region to see the famous Pink and White Terraces, and to take the 'healing waters'. If you are passing through Rotorua, I reckon it is worth a visit.

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The Buried Village is located in a 12 acre park covered in trees and meadows. New Zealand is known for its outdoor beauty, and this attraction has it in spades; much of it is related to the rugged majesty of the volcanic mountains. Nearby are a host of activities; the volcanic landscape offers fantastic mountain-biking runs and you can also climb the crater of Mt. Tarawera. Two companies book plane tours that take off from the Buried Village.

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