Māori Tourism experiences in Northland, Auckland and Gisborne

Monty Manuel, operations manager and head guide for Ngāti Pourou's Maunga Hikurangi Experience in Tairāwhiti Gisborne. Photo / Supplied

In honour of Te Wiki o te reo Māori (Māori language week), we meet more of the country's tourism operators offering experiences that celebrate te ao Māori

Te Ahurea, Kerikeri

Kipa Munro
Kaitiaki

How does your work at Te Ahurea celebrate te ao Māori?

Te Ahurea celebrates te ao Māori by creating a living, breathing cultural and educational centre and interactive pā site. Te Ahurea literally translated means "Culture" and in this case it refers to our Māori culture and, more specifically, the history, traditions and history of Māori in Kerikeri and surrounding areas.

What can guests expect on a visit to Te Ahurea?

Guests are greeted by the direct descendants of the chiefs Hongi, Rewa and Tāreha who lived, settled and were key to the narrative of our early historical encounters with settlers and missionaries. An historical account of these chiefs and their deeds are part of the many stories that are shared with visitors to Te Ahurea.

Kipa Munro, kaitiaki of Te Ahurea, part of Kerikeri's Kororipo Heritage Park, one of the very first places in Aotearoa New Zealand where Māori and Pākehā began living together. Photo / Supplied

Maps are provided to those wishing to explore on their own. Boardwalks through native bush lead to a large wharenui, whare noho, hāngī pits, rongoā garden and viewing platforms looking over the rest of Kororipo Heritage Park. Te Ahurea currently offers whakairo (carving), rāranga (weaving), tū taua (Māori weaponry) and rongoā (Māori medicine) workshops facilitated by tribal members of Ngāti Rēhia.

Once fully operational, Te Ahurea will provide guided tours through native bush, trips up and down Te Awa o Ngā Rangatira (the river of chiefs) on a newly carved waka, which will be housed in a carved Whare Waka sitting prominently alongside the river.

What is your favourite thing about your role as kaitiaki?

Being kaitiaki is not a role but more a privilege that has responsibilities to whānau, hapū, iwi and community. To be able to transfer knowledge from your ancestors and educate people about their important role within our history is both fulfilling and rewarding. As Kaitiaki Māori we are here to preserve our te ao Māori heritage and culture so that our tai tamariki (children) and mokopuna (grandchildren) can learn the rich kōrero of their ancestors.

Do you have a favourite whakataukī (saying) relating to what you do?

He maunga, he Rangatira
He Rangatira, he kōrero

For every mountain, there is a chief
For every chief, there is a story

Regardless where you may travel in Aotearoa you will encounter great mountains. For each great mountain there will be associated an even greater ancestor and for each great ancestor there will be a story that will endure in our history.

Te Ahurea is part of Kororipo Heritage Park, one of the very first places in Aotearoa New Zealand where Māori and Pākehā began living together. Kororipo Heritage Park is recognised as a Tohu Whenua, one of our country's best heritage experiences. tohuwhenua.nz

Pōtiki Adventures, Waiheke

Bianca Ranson
Owner/operator

How do your tours/experiences celebrate te ao Māori?

As a business, Pōtiki Adventures celebrates living and working by Māori customs and values. As Māori, it is important that we do not have to put our culture, customs and values to the side in the workplace. Pōtiki Adventures is a Māori tourism company that has been operating for 18 years. Visitors are introduced to te ao Māori, the Māori world, through experiences on the land, the sea and the marae. Marae stay, tours and walks take our visitors on a journey through kōrero about our connection to our environment, our customs and our language.

Bianca Ransom, owner-operator of Waiheke-based tourism business Pōtiki Adventures. Photo / Supplied

We are celebrating our worldview and its importance to the well-being of our people, our environment and our community. Guests are able to step inside te ao Māori for a brief moment and see how beautiful it is and how traditional knowledge informs our lives today.

What can guests expect on a tour/experience with you?

We offer a range of experiences, from a day trip to Waiheke Island to an overnight or multi-day stay at Piritahi Marae. Staying at the marae is the most immersive way to experience te ao Māori. We often have domestic visitors who have been born and raised in Aotearoa and have never stayed on a marae before. It is amazing to see them realise the depth and beauty of our culture.

From the moment they arrive they learn about ceremony and tikanga through the process of pōwhiri. As well as sharing kōrero about the marae, carvings and meeting house, we also like to get people active. We have a significant maara (vegetable garden) at the marae where we grow kai for our visitors and the wider Waiheke community. We always tour our visitors through the maara and also run workshops.

Summer allows an opportunity to experience our moana. Either paddling on top or diving within it, we talk about the mauri and biodiversity of the ocean and always return to the marae with kina to shell and share.

Coming up this November is the Waiheke Walking Festival and we offer a walk from Matiatia to Piritahi Marae. During the walk, we share about Te Atawhai Whenua restoration project and the significant amount of rongoā (traditional plant medicine) around us as we walk through the native bush.

At the top of Piritaha mountain there are 360-degree views of Waiheke and the outer islands. We finish the walk at Piritahi Marae, where our visitors are welcomed and then learn about the marae, wharenui and maara. We finish with a shared kai and refreshments.

What is your favourite thing about your job?

That I do not have to compromise who I am as a Māori woman.

I am able to work with friends and whānau who are passionate about our culture, our language, our marae and about Waiheke and I see that reflected in our visitors. Treading lightly as our ancestors did, with a deep appreciation and understanding of the importance of living in balance with our environment. I also value our succession planning by allowing our rangatahi an opportunity to be involved in visitor experiences and for them to know this is a career pathway that celebrates being Māori.

Do you have a favourite whakatauki relating to what you do?

Ka pū te ruha, ka hao te rangatahi
When the old net withers another is remade.

I have been thinking a lot about this whakatauki lately due to the importance of always making sure we are putting time and energy into our young people so they are ready for the times ahead and that our mātauranga (knowledge) is held safely to inform generations beyond them. In these changing times it is important we continue this practice with aroha and intention.

potikiadventures.co.nz

Big Aroha Tours, Waiheke Island

Darren and Jane Rippingale
Owner-operators

How do your tours/experiences celebrate te ao Māori?

Darren: Our name, Aroha, in Māori means "to love, to feel compassion, and to empathise". We offer cultural art and wine tours for every occasion. We understand the joy and positive energy that visitors bring to the Island. In return we want to share our korero.

I am Māori, I am Kiwi, I know who I am on both sides. I am upholding the memories of our ancestors and that's important to me.

Jane and Darren Rippingale from Waiheke Island's Big Aroha Tours. Photo / Supplied

My wife, Jane, who runs Big Aroha Tours with me, is an early childhood teacher of 25 years. She has a huge respect for biculturalism and believes that positive relationships are built around the concepts of whanaungatanga (shared experiences) and manaakitanga (hospitality).

What can people expect on a Big Aroha Cultural Tour?

Jane: From ancient stories of our people you will get an insight into te ao Māori, the past, present and the future. Darren values the knowledge passed on to him from some Ngāti Paoa elders. Some highlights of a Big Aroha Tour include hearing the stories of the great fleet from Hawaiki, discovering where Captain Cook landed in the Hauraki Gulf, visiting Whakanewha regional park, and taking in the breath-taking sights - Papatūānuku (Earth Mother) at her best.

Guests can also visit our family's "Big Aroha workshop", for an opportunity to view some of Darren's unique individually crafted pieces of art made from 40,000-year-old kauri and other natural materials. From large pou to pounamu pendants, each piece is handcrafted and made with aroha and wairua (living essence). Be prepared to have a good old kōrero with Darren about his art - it's an expression of who he is and what he believes in. Making connections with the past, the present and the future. "Whiria te tāngata". Weave the people together.

Follow Darren's work on Facebook - @darrenrippingaleart

bigarohatours.co.nz

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