Manawatu

Manawatu

Country High-life

Palmerston North - the Manawatu’s key centre - has a proud innovative and diverse atmosphere. The city is home to more than 70 educational and research institutions, including Massey University, an international rugby academy and the national rugby museum.

Country life and outdoor adventure go hand-in-hand in Manawatu, and there are many ways to enjoy the rural setting - from an extreme flying fox over the Rangitikei river to the bustling activity of the largest stock saleyards in the southern hemisphere.

Māori Culture / History

Rangitane iwi (tribe) - the tangata whenua or people of the Manawatu - trace their origins back to the Kurahaupo and Aotea migratory canoes. Today Māori legends continue to tell the story of the people, Manawatu land formations and the origins of place names.

According to Māori legend, the great Manawatu river received its name from an explorer named Hau who had travelled down the coast from Taranaki, chasing after his run-away wife, Wairaka, and her lover. Although Hau had already had to cross several big rivers, he was so afraid of the latest river that he named it Manawatu or ‘heart standing still’.

For early Māori, the Manawatu gorge was significant. It was the only route through the ranges, and to the regions beyond.

From 1840, traders and missionaries started to arrive in the area and created small settlements near the Manawatu river mouth and inland along the riverbank. Foxton, one of the first towns established, quickly became the European gateway to Manawatu. Within 25 years, the European population in the Manawatu region had grown from 1429 to 14,000 people.

Nature / Wildlife

Manawatu’s fertile plains and rolling hills have had a long and productive agricultural tradition. Even the wind is harnessed to create safe, sustainable power.

Feilding is a busy agricultural town that’s home to the southern hemisphere’s largest working stock saleyard. The Feilding Livestock Centre is an authentic New Zealand rural experience, where local farmers guide visitors through a unique insight into the history of New Zealand farming and the tradition of livestock auctions.

Te Apiti wind farm harnesses high wind speeds around the Manawatu gorge to produce enough power to sustain approximately 45,000 average households. The huge powerful wind turbines are a tourist attraction, and there's a self-drive route into the Tararuas to view the towering turbines and the stunning landscape beyond.

Sand dunes stretching 200km along the coast from Patea to Paekakariki are another unique Manawatu landscape. Formed about 6000 years ago, New Zealand’s largest dune field extends 18km inland.

Adventure / Outdoors

Manawatu’s expansive plains and swift moving rivers provide adventure thrills for all levels including the highest tandem bridge swing, white water rafting or bush walking.

On the Rangitikei river, Mokai Gravity Canyon’s adrenalin-charged activities include New Zealand’s most extreme flying fox, the North Island’s highest bungy, and a 50m free-falling bridge swing. The flying fox, 175m above the riverbed, races 1km down a zip-line reaching speeds up to 160kph.

White water rafting trips on the remote Rangitikei river take experienced thrill-seekers on a wild free-flowing trip over grade four and five rapids. Half-day family-friendly scenic rafting trips offer a more relaxed journey with a picnic lunch stop and relaxed interaction with the river.

The Manawatu’s remote landscape, virgin bush, and abundance of native bird and wildlife also offer an interesting background for horse trekking.

Seasonal Highlights

Manawatu, renowned for beautiful gardens, has one of the world’s top five rose gardens. The Manawatu Garden Festival, held in May, is a nationally recognised event that attracts many garden lovers.

Taihape, a country town north of Palmerston North, is the ‘Gumboot capital’. Each year during the Gumboot Festival, locals gather for a gumboot (rubber boot) throwing contest that draws international attention to the rural town. Although the festival only happens once a year, visitors can try gumboot throwing any day of the year at Taihape’s permanent ‘Gumboot-throwing lane’.

Festival of Cultures, held each March in Palmerston North, is one of the Manawatu’s most vibrant events. The week-long festival celebrates the region’s diverse cultures and lifestyles with food fairs, arts and crafts, music, dance and sport.

DID YOU KNOW

• Feilding has been named - 14 times - as 'New Zealand’s Most Beautiful Town'.
  
• Taihape - known as 'gumboot capital of New Zealand' - has a giant corrugated gumboot.
  
• Massey University, Palmerston North, is New Zealand’s largest tertiary institution.