Waikato Museum

Exhibitions and activities tell the stories of our region and include visual art, social history, science and Maori culture.

Waikato Museum's exhibitions and events tell our stories from a regional and global perspective, and include art, history, tangata whenua culture and science from touring exhibitions and the museum’s own collections.

Sited on the banks of the Waikato River, in the heart of Hamilton's cultural precinct at the south-end of the city centre, Waikato Museum's 13 galleries feature more than 25 new exhibitions and 100 public events annually. Through this interactive programme, the museum aims to engage and inspire local and international visitors.

Waikato Museum Te Whare Taonga o Waikato has a collection of more than 30,000 taonga/objects.  Highlights include the majestic war waka Te Winika and Exscite the fun hands-on science galleries for children; and the museum’s galleries which exhibit a rich blend of artworks and taonga Maaori.

Waikato Museum in its current building was opened in 1987. The architect was the late Ivan Mercep of JASMaD (now Jasmax), Auckland, the same architect who went on to design New Zealand’s national museum, Te Papa. To find out more visit www.waikatomusuem.co.nz