Hawke's Bay-Waimarama Maori Tours @ Hakikino

Hawke's Bay, Waimarama Maori Tours-an authentic cultural experience blended with traditional food, beautiful landscapes and interesting locals.

I love the beach and Hawke's Bay has some of the best including Waimarama Beach which is about a 20 minute drive from Havelock North Village.
 

As well as the great swimming, surfing and fishing Waimarama has one of Hawke’s Bays most sacred Pa sites. ‘Hakikino’ is a 15th century heritage and archaeological site and home to Waimarama Maori Tours who run a variety of cultural tours.

I went on “Food of Chiefs’ which is a private three hour tour that explores Maori culture of the past and present and includes a meal of traditional Maori coastal foods. Having experienced several different cultural tours around New Zealand I was pretty sure I knew what to expect but boy was I wrong! This is a seriously authentic experience and I loved every minute of it.

Upon arrival at Hakikino we had to nominate a ‘Champion’ to accept the warriors challenge (Luckily for me this had to be a man as the warrior looked very scary!) This was followed by a powhiri (or welcome).

Hosts Robert and Denise and the rest of the team are so incredibly friendly and truly make you feel like part of their family. I often worry about saying or doing the wrong cultural thing but there is no need for that at Hakikino, they gently guide you through everything and if you get it wrong (like when I accidentally kissed Tyler the Warrior on the nose!) it doesn’t matter.

We spent time in the outdoor grotto whilst Ben one of the senior guides played traditional Maori instruments and told us about their history. Sitting outside in such a peaceful special place listening to his beautiful melodies made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up-it’s really special and the German lady next to me was moved to shed a few tears. We also learned about flax and its many uses and then fed their Eels.

We enjoyed a feast of fresh seafood that included Paua, Mussels, Eel and Kina with freshly baked Maori bread. While we ate the group shared stories and legends relating to the food-my favourite was the story of why a Paua shell is pretty on the inside and dull on the outside. We drank Kawakaka tea and learned about the many natural medicines growing all around us.

We finished off the afternoon with singing and as a special treat the group performed an electrifying Haka. It was a super afternoon and well worth the visit.