Gisborne Scenic Highlights

Gisborne | Regional Information | Activity Highlights | Scenic Highlights | History

On the surface, the landscapes of Gisborne are serenely beautiful. But after a while you'll feel the deep mysticism which is the result of 30 generations of Māori settlement.

Gisborne Scenic Highlights Overview

Though one of the lesser travelled regions of New Zealand, Gisborne offers some of the the most stunning coastal scenery in New Zealand.

From beautiful white-sand beaches, to lush farmland and wineries to thick native forestry, lakes and rivers, you will never to bored!

Gisborne Botanical Gardens

Established in 1874, the Gisborne Botanical Gardens are a public garden covering some 5.1 hectares. There are a range of gardens here, including:

Australian garden
Japanese garden
Palm Desert garden
New Zealand Native Bush garden
Riverside garden

Eastwoodhill Arboretum

Don't miss a trip to the Eastwoodhill Arboretum, the National Arboretum of New Zealand. The park includes 135 hectares of exotic and native trees, shrubs and climber plantings.

Located about a 30-minute drive from Gisborne City, Eastwoodhill offers visitors walking trails for all levels of fitness, the nationally significant Homestead Garden, accommodation, tours for groups big and small, function venue and catering services.

Urewera National Park

For a rewarding day trip, make the trip to Urewera National Park — a wild, barely touched natural paradise and the third largest national park in New Zealand. This 212,672 hectare park lies between the Bay of Plenty and Hawke's Bay and includes the largest untouched native forest in the North Island.

Activities in the park include hiking, fishing, boating, hunting and birdwatching.