Whanganui is a city on the West Coast of the North Island and was one of the first cities to be founded in New Zealand. Whanganui means ‘big bay’ or ‘big harbour’, and was named this because of the great river that flows through it. The Whanganui River, New Zealand’s longest navigable waterway, runs from Mount Tongariro to the sea.
It is the country’s third-longest river and has special status owing to its importance to the region’s Maori people. In March 2017 it became the world’s first natural resource to be given its own legal identity, with the rights, duties and liabilities of a legal person.
Home to approximately 43,000 people, Whanganui is picturesque and has much to show off. It’s just a couple of hours’ drive from Wellington, Mount Ruapehu and Mount Tongariro, or a quick flight from Auckland. Prominent heritage buildings in the city include the Whanganui Opera House and the Sarjeant Art Gallery. Whanganui is home to New Zealand’s largest arts community with more fine arts, mixed media and glass artists than anywhere else in the country and boasts the country’s only Glass School.
For more on the region, click here.