The Museum of New Zealand “Te Papa Tongarewa” is the national museum of New Zealand. It is branded and commonly known as “Te Papa and Our Place”. “Te Papa Tongarewa” is broadly translatable as “the place of treasures of this land”. The main Te Papa building is on the waterfront in Wellington, on Cable Street. Inside the building are six storeys of exhibitions, cafes and gift shops dedicated to New Zealand’s culture and environment.

The museum was opened to enable the people of New Zealand to learn more about their cultural identity and their country’s geography and has attracted international acclaim for its ultra-modern and interactive displays. Over the five floors of our huge building you can explore the breadth of the New Zealand story – from the shaping of its land to the spirit of its diverse peoples, from its unique wildlife to its distinctive visual culture. It occupies a floor space measuring 36,000 sq m and houses many national artefacts, enabling visitors to learn about the art, history and natural environment of New Zealand.

New Zealand’s geology and natural environment and the stories of New Zealand’s indigenous people, the Maori, are celebrated in Te Papa’s permanent exhibitions, while Te Papa’s Marae is a vibrant contemporary meeting house and a living communal centre, unique in a museum. Te Papa has extensive collections: of birds from the New Zealand region, collection of land-based plants, the fishes collection contains around 175,000 specimens ( it’s the world’s largest collection from the New Zealand region), the largest Crustacea Collection – includes crabs, lobsters, prawns, krill, sea lice, water fleas, and others, collection comprises historical photography dating from the 1850s, art and visual culture intersects a variety of photography, botanical art, craft and design, and Maori and Pacific visual culture. Te Papa’s collection includes creatures as small as snails and slugs, and as large as octopuses and giant squids.

Te Papa is a place that welcomes visitors of all ages and interests. Along with stimulating exhibitions there are also engaging and fun presentations, including an animated theatre, motion simulator rides into the past and future, and interactive such as a virtual bungy-jump. With its hands-on learning areas and interactivity, Te Papa is a wonderful place for children.