Te Parapara Garden, Hamilton Gardens
The Te Parapara Garden at Hamilton Gardens is New Zealand’s first and only traditional Maori garden, and a rich record of the region’s pre-European history. Focusing on the plants, techniques and culture associated with pre-European Maori horticulture, food gathering and food preservation and storage, Te Parapara includes the built and carved structures of a rare palisade fencing (taepa), three forms of traditional Maori storehouses (pataka), a ceremonial gateway (waharoa) and ancestral pou.
Once a year the Hamilton Gardens come to life for the Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival. Every February the festival celebrates all things theatre, music, and summer in the gardens and is a must on the Hamilton & Waikato events calendar.
Hamilton Gardens Location:
Hamilton Gardens is located on State Highway 1, just south of the central Hamilton City.
Access is via Cobham Drive by either gate 1 or 2 with free parking at both entrances.