the Best akaroa history Tour
Amazing Akaroa history tour
Akaroa History Tour guided by a seventh generation local.
“A narrative as important as Waitangi”
2 hours - Adults: $90, Children $50
November 2024 - Adults $95, Children $50
Departs Akaroa 12:15pm | Return Akaroa 2:15pm
Minimum number 2 adults
Departure times can be flexible
A driving tour with short walks
Join an extraordinary Akaroa history tour, that fuses Māori and European history together to create an unique worldview that will inspire you.
Akaroa has 5 of the MOST important historic sites in New Zealand, together they tell a “narrative richer than Waitangi”, these sites are little known even by locals, no other tour tells this COMPLETE story, you will simply be amazed you didn’t know…
All told by a natural born storyteller, a compulsive collector of oral history, a connector of narratives, an ecologist and a seventh generation French descendant; Marie.
Every rating is FIVE The Seventh Generation is QUALMARK GOLD
The Akaroa History Tour
1
Takapūneke
The first European involvement in intertribal warfare, setting in motion a chain of events that lead to the establishment of New Zealand as a nation.
2
Ōnuku Marae
The first signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in the South Island, New Zealand’s foundational document.
3
Britomart Monument
Demonstrating British sovereignty over the South Island in a colonial ‘race’ to beat the French.
4
French Landing
The first planned European settlement in the South Island, the only French town in New Zealand, Akaroa has a romantic and astonishing past, made real by a real descendant.
The Akaroa History Tour is an all weather tour, year round. One of the few things to do in Akaroa that is not weather dependent, rain, hail or sunshine… these AMAZING stories can be told under any conditions, from inside a bus, or in our tour van. Marie is a flexible and expert guide who can adapt to any conditions. BOOK NOW!
Marie brings these stories to life.
What Travelers Think
"The stories Marie told us embracing seven generations of her family and their relationship with Akaroa. Her passion for past, present and future is very energising."
"Marie's knowledge, passion and connection to the land was inspiring. She was able to combine history, ecology, culture, geology, storytelling and more into a very informative two hours. I felt we had a much greater understanding of the Banks Peninsula and it therefore gave much more meaning to our visit."
Akaroa is the best place in New Zealand for a History Tour!
Here are the 5 key sites:
- Tuhiraki – The very first demonstration of sovereignty, by the earliest Maori settlers.
- Takapūneke – was the first time that a European was directly involved with Maori inter-tribal conflict and directly resulted in the First British Resident to be sent to New Zealand. Leading to the Declaration of Independence of the United Tribes of New Zealand and ultimately the Tirirty o Waitangi/Treaty of Waitangi.
- Ōnuku – The first place the Tirity o Waitangi was signed in the South Island.
- Britomart Monument – Where the British first demonstrated sovereignty over the South Island, Driven by imperial rivalry and the race for the British to beat the French settlers to claiming Akaroa.
- Britomart Reserve – Where Ngāi Tahu were bullied into selling 8.1 million hectares of their ancestral lands for a puny 2000 pounds, that being a large part of the South Island.