New Zealand Maritime Museum

New Zealand Maritime Museum

New Zealand Maritime Museum
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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About
Dive deeper into our maritime history and discover the genius of early Pacific navigators, their great voyages of exploration and the discovery Aotearoa New Zealand. Cruise Auckland’s sparkling Waitemata Harbour in one of our heritage vessels - sailing twice daily. Help the crew hoist the sails or sit back and take in the city skyline. Find out what it takes to win the America’s Cup - from backyard boat-builders to teamwork and race-winning technology. Plus, see one of only seven replicas of the America’s Cup. Immerse yourself in early European immigration and test your sea-legs in the replica 1840s rocking cabin. Bang! Watch from the concourse as our replica cannon fires every day at 12pm into the marina. Soak up our stories of the sea with a complimentary guided tour departing from our ticket desk 10.30am Friday - Sunday.
Suggested duration
2-3 hours
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  • ksufan88
    Wichita, Kansas5,282 contributions
    variety of boats small and large
    We arrived at 10:20AM and decided to take the guided tour at 10:30. Our tour guide, Brian, was nice and told stories about a number of the exhibits . It was difficult to hear during portions of the tour due to videos playing in in the museum and a loud neighboring bar at the waters edge. The tour lasted about 80 minutes, and we covered most all of the museum. At noon, they shoot a small cannon off by the boats in the harbor.
    Visited December 2019
    Written January 26, 2020
  • Michael F
    88 contributions
    Great sailing
    Midweek sailing on Ted Ashby - if the winds are good and the sky is bright, its a marvellous introduction to the city, or a useful and relaxing way to pass a day before the big flights out in the evening. Certified relaxation for jet lag. Crew can be informative, amusing and interesting
    Visited January 2020
    Written January 10, 2020
  • Rhon G
    Macksville, Australia69 contributions
    Excellent for everyone
    This museum was so much more than we expected. Apart from the real boats and the models, they have cleverly managed to resurrect a bye-gone era, which captures your interest at the start with the video on discovery, and keeps you there all the way through 3 floors of sailing history of early New Zealanders and immigrants to New Zealand. @ hours will pull you up but definitely worth a visit. Next time in better weather we will try a Heritage sail around the harbour as part of the Museum attractions.
    Visited January 2020
    Written January 13, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions

4.5
1,199 reviews
Excellent
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Very good
448
Average
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Poor
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Terrible
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YJ A
York, UK173 contributions
Feb 2023 • Couples
The museum looks small and unassuming from the outside but in this case, looks were deceiving as we spent a good few hours here and learned a lot. In fact it was a brilliant introduction to New Zealand and how it was settled by different seafaring folk at different times in history. Some really interesting facts and fascinating stories of those travelling by sea to and from NZ. Well worth a visit.
Written March 8, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Novageorge
Sydney, Canada59 contributions
Feb 2023 • Couples
This is one of the best museum experiences we have had anywhere. NZ is famous for sailing and rugby and this museum certainly represents the sailing and nautical heritage of NZ very well. Many of the exhibits are interactive and there were so many exhibits overall: a very rich collection of life size boats and artifacts from the Polynesia / Maori migration times to the present day Olympics and America Cup races. The special exhibit on the Blakelegacywas moving. We also enjoyed the harbour sailing on the Ted Ashby very much. It is commendable that the cruise sailing crew are volunteers (just the captain being an employee) and that the Ted Ashby itself was built by volunteers a few years ago. The pleasant museum staff informed us that the entry ticket was valid for two days. Highly recommended.
Written February 25, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

robin J
1 contribution
Nov 2022 • Solo
Went on a harbor cruise on the beautiful Breeze.

The crew were fun, warm, knowledgeable and engaging; their passion and love for sailing and the vessel herself was both clear and contagious!

I had a blast helping out with setting and trimming the sails, and learning exactly how to tidy the lines.

Highly recommend the trip to anyone keen on getting a hands-on experience with tall ships, or just wanting to enjoy a peaceful 3-4 hour cruise with a fantastic crew on a stunning ship!
Written November 27, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

PigletWinnieAndRoo
Hampton, UK1,050 contributions
Mar 2023 • Solo
A local recommended the museum as I have an interest in maritime SAR. The museum is on the heritage pier on Auckland Waterfront and seems unprepossessing. But once you get inside, gallery after gallery unfold in front of you. The impressive parts were the NZ America’s Cup winning vessels and the technology involved. Sir Peter Blake has a section commemorating his life.
There are many models of ships with their history. There are Māori vessels which were very impressive and a section showing graphically what immigration the NZ must have been like.
I had not appreciated just how much NZ armed forces played in so many wars.
Would I go again or recommend to others? Yes! Allow 2.5-3 hours.
Written March 29, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Wanda F
Stuart, FL335 contributions
Mar 2023 • Couples
We regretted not having sufficient time to see much of this museum but there is lots to see and learn here. In spite of rushing through the museum, there were lots of vessels and boats on exhibit. The setting at the harbor was spectacular.
Written March 19, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Pam K
Coloma, MI13 contributions
Jan 2023 • Couples
Visited this wonderful museum near the cruise dock. Great info on the native people, emigration to New Zealand, early exploration as well as all kinds of sailing info and a great display about the America's Cup. You can leave to grab a bite to eat then come back to finish discovering. Spent most of the day here
Written January 13, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Laura B
Victoria58 contributions
Jun 2023 • Business
With a few hours to kill before heading to airport on way home, I knew the Maritime Museum would have some fabulous exhibits not only on Māori culture but other aspects of life on the sea for this Island nation. There is something here for everyone from boat fans to families. The Americas Cup exhibit was almost as wonderful as the Māori section. Highly recommend
Written June 23, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lindynz
Te Awamutu, New Zealand149 contributions
Jun 2023 • Family
An excellent, informative, well laid out museum. Not something I had on my bucket list while in Auckland, but after a recommendation from friends we took our young children for a visit. We found it very child friendly with colouring pencils and pictures. So many different nooks and crannies for them to explore! Definitely recommend if you have the time!
Written June 24, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Steve M
2 contributions
Feb 2023 • Couples
Located right on the Port. One of the best museums we have been to around the world. Has something for all ages interactive displays and a surprise around nearly every corner. We loved this place and highly recommend it for all travellers, Wether your a maritime enthusiast or just like history in general both ancient and recent. 5 stars 🌟.
Written February 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

JEBLLB
coventry231 contributions
Nov 2022
We cancelled an excursion to the island due to the bad weather on the day in question and visited here instead. The displays were very well thought out and informative. I especially liked the section about the Brits who travelled over under the cheap passage scheme as a cousin of mine did that when I was a child. There is a large section on the America's Cup which was very interesting. We spent several hours here, visiting the cafe at one point and also the shop. There were a couple of points where we had to dodge school parties but otherwise it wasn't crowded. We thought the entrance fee was very reasonable.
Written January 28, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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New Zealand Maritime Museum (Auckland Central) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go

New Zealand Maritime Museum Information

Excellent Reviews652
Very Good Reviews448
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