Māori Culture Tour
Experience a 3.5 hour authentic Māori Culture tour spanning from Tairāwhiti Gisborne to Uawa – Tolaga Bay and retrace the pivotal moments of first…
Located in the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand in beautiful Tolaga Bay.
Tipuna Tours is a iwi (tribe) owned eco-tourism operator offering cultural and historic guided tours.
A region of great significance – to many, the East Coast is recognised as the birthplace of New Zealand, where the origins of Aotearoa New Zealand’s dual heritage began.
Journey with us and let our local guides share with you the defining moments of this welcoming place.
The Experience
Discover a place where first encounters flourish
Since the first encounters between European and Māori at Tolaga Bay, the welcoming spirit and manaakitanga (hospitality) of this region continues to grow. It is through the hosting of manuhiri (guests) and the sharing and exchanging of our stories that help keep our rich cultural heritage alive.
Our Māori guided tours are cultural, historical and bespoke. By foot or by 4 x 4, our tours can be tailor-made to your travel needs and interests.
Local History Tour
Our local history tour involves bi-cultural perspectives of the first encounters by Captain James Cook and his crew with local Tangata Whenua (people of the land) in…
Customised Tour
Take your favourite parts of each of our tours, or let us create something bespoke for you. Our completely bespoke tours are available to both small or large…
About Us
Established in 2007, Tipuna Tours is an iwi (tribe) owned, eco-tourism operation with sustainability at its heart.
Originally founded by Anne McGuire, Hana and Victor operate Tipuna Tours on behalf of the iwi at The Te Aitanga a Hauiti Centre of Excellence.
Hana and Victor are deeply passionate about sharing the stories of their iwi (tribe) and their whenua (land).
Welcoming manuhiri (guests) from all corners of the world, our bespoke tours are available to both small or large groups and can be crafted to your needs and interests – with the possibility of extending tours further afield to Tolaga Bay, Anaura Bay and Tokomaru Bay.
-
One of the best tours we did in New Zealand! Such a personal experience, we feel to privileged to have learnt so much about Hana and her family.
Kathrine - Arizona, United States
-
Our family had an incredible time. Hana is so welcoming, and we loved hearing all about the history of the area. Definitely a must do if you are travelling to Gisborne.
Debbie - Sydney, Australia
-
Thank you, Hana! We loved every minute of our tour with you.
Anon - United Kingdom
FOLLOW US
As I’ve mentioned before, a huge part of eco tourism is doing our bit to look after papatuanuku (Mother Earth). So when other people leave stink packets of rotten bait, plastic waste, fishing lines and Paru socks. Yes socks! YOU PICK THEM UP. Proud to be part of a community that believes in sustainability and looking after our slice of paradise. #ecotourism #cleanupouroceans #tipunatours
Today was one of the best tours I’ve ever done. 4 Canadians and 1 Italian. Their friendliness, willingness to try new things and knowledge and interest about eco-systems, geology and wildlife was so refreshing! I just loved my day with them despite the immense tooth ache pain up the side of my face. But overall, this is one of those days where the company Makes it all worth it. Roberto, Bonnie, Lucy, Robert and Cara. Come back to Uawa any day!
Kiaora Everyone! Thanks so much for participating in this weeks fb & Instagram giveaway. As promised, the winners of the eco packs are: Gloria Brown @melxomaafusinoti Thanks again for entering! Congratulations to our winners, your packs will be in the mail this week :) Hana x
G I V E A W A Y - Because it’s Friday eve and we want to celebrate, we’re giving away 2 eco packs! We’ve teamed up with the awesome ladies at the Tairawhiti Environment Centre and we have some goodies to giveaway ! #Each pack includes: -a handmade tote by @plastic_free_tairawhiti -2x bamboo toothbrushes -1x 4pk stainless steel straws -1x beeswax wrap -Handmade soap from the bored beekeepers -1x Go Bamboo Dish Scrubber T O E N T E R : -Follow @tipunatours -Like this pic! -Tag 3 friends in separate comments (or more is fine 👍 -Share this post to your story! One comment = one entry ☝️ You can enter as many times as you like! The winner will be selected and announced on Sunday night 23 Feb 2020 in our story! #nztourism #nzmaoritourism #giveaway #ecogiveaway #gisbornenz
Today in our travels, we stopped at the tairawhiti Environment Centre and I was so glad we did, honestly it is just a little treasure trove! They sell all things nice and natural from deodorant to dish scrubbers, lady products and beeswax wraps! right here in sunny little gizzy on Palmerston rd. I think I thought it was like a recycling place! Well it ain’t. Lol. Anyway, you are also able to hire a bunch of different pest traps here, so you pay a bond and then your bond is returned once the trap is returned. The kind people who work here are also able to give you a run down of hot to use everything. So if you’re in need or just bored, pop on down for a visit! I will definitely be back!
Part of cultural eco-tourism is doing our bit to look after the place so it will be here for visitors and tangata whenua (people of the land) to appreciate in years to come. Today we teamed up with DOC and the Tairawhiti Environmental Centre to learn about pest trapping and looking after native trees and species in our parks and reserves. It is quite exciting! @docgovtnz We have been given a little project to tiaki (look after) a small patch of ngahere (forest) so for the next couple of months you will be seeing more of us weeding, trapping and enjoying ourselves out in the wild 🤙🌱🌿🍃 #environmentalist #outinthebush #tiakitaiao #nz
Cray fish for dinner... again!! 🤥 jokes! Blessed with an abundance of seafood. Grateful for my live-in diver. Just need some spiky gold hehe pushing it. #blessed #seafood #newzealand #aotearoa
Get that blood pumping with a guided hikoi (walk) up to Te Pourewa - The Beacon of Light in Uawa! Take in the impressive views of the bay whilst hearing all about our local stories. Come for a tiki tour with Tipuna Tours!
This error message is only visible to WordPress admins
Error: Access Token for tipunatours is not valid or has expired. Feed will not update.
There's an issue with the Instagram Access Token that you are using. Please obtain a new Access Token on the plugin's Settings page.
