Attractions in Napier

Established along with the town in the late 1800s, Napier Botanical Gardens is a delightful place to spend a few quiet hours.

This 40-hectare pa (Maori fortified village), in Taradale, 10 kilometers southwest of Napier's seafront, is one of New Zealand's most important archaeological sites.

Napier Prison is New Zealand's oldest place of incarceration, founded in 1862 and finally closing its doors in 1993.

One of the town's top attractions—and one of the top things to do for free in Napier—MTG Hawke's Bay is a museum, art gallery, and theater all rolled into one that serves as a showcase of the Hawke's Bay region.

About 27 kilometers south of Napier, the headland of Cape Kidnappers juts out into the sea and is a remarkably beautiful place of stark, windswept cliffs shooting up from narrow strips of beach.

Walkers who want to get a good view across Napier and its dazzling blue bay should take a hike up Bluff Hill.

The National Aquarium of New Zealand is home to the country's most diverse range of sea life.

Napier's seafront promenade, Marine Parade, is lined with tall Norfolk Pines.

Beside the town of Havelock North, 27 kilometers south of Napier, Te Mata Peak rises 339 meters above the surrounding countryside, allowing sweeping views across the entirety of Hawke's Bay.

Napier's shattering earthquake of 1931 leveled the center of town, and rebuilding afterwards was largely focused on the Art Deco and Spanish-mission styles, which were then in fashion in the United States.