The world's largest ceremonial waka. Get up close and observe the beautiful detail of this Māori war waka called Ngātokimatawhaorua. Book and visit today.

1 day ago · Thousands of people - and waka - gathered for commemorations to celebrate Waitangi Day today. Many had travelled to the same place where, 185 years prior, Māori and Pākehā had come together to sign Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Chairman of Ngā waka o Te Tai Tokerau Robert Gabel said he believed this ...

1 day ago · Robert Gabel painting the family waka ahead of Waitangi Day. Photo / Julia Gabel. Breakfast is from 7am-8am, often a choice of cereals and meat with toast. Meals are eaten in the wharekai tent ...

The ever-popular waka flotilla has drawn a huge crowd of spectators at Waitangi this morning. Over a dozen waka took to the water in a spectacular display, before the kaihoe were welcomed onto the beach by a kaikaranga line.

Sep 10, 2023 · Ngātokimatawhaorua is the waka taua that sits on the Treaty Grounds at Waitangi. Built for the 1940 centennial commemoration of the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the giant war canoe “remains a powerful symbol of Māori identity, strength and pride”.

Hundreds of kaihoe (paddlers) jump aboard their various waka, paddling in front of thousands of visitors. Waitangi Day 2020 marked 80 years since the launch of Ngātokimatawhaorua – the waka taua built for the centennial of the signing of Te Tiriti and today housed at Waitangi.

A waka being launched a day before the Waitangi Day events in February 1940. The waka is now housed in Waitangi in the Bay of Islands. This 100ft waka was built in Kerikeri during the 1930s to mark the centenary of the signing of te Tiriti o Waitangi | the Treaty of Waitangi in 1940.

Waka are woven into annual Waitangi Day commemorations, the main attraction the launching of Ngātokimatawhaorua, which requires at least 80 kaihoe (paddlers). From whakataukī to pepeha to waka ama, waka are a big part of Aotearoa New Zealand’s identity.

Waitangi Day is a time for all Māori to reflect on what was promised when their tūpuna signed the Treaty on February 6, 1840. The document was intended to enshrine a partnership between Māori and the Crown and to protect the right for Māori to maintain their rangatiratanga over their lands, their reo and their other possessions.

1 day ago · Waka parade in front of Te Tii marae. (Source: 1News) In one of the greater spectacles of the day, waka were launched this morning following karakia and a mass haka. The waka parade was key to celebrating Māori culture at Waitangi, as the various waka represented ancestral waka that sailed to settle Aotearoa.