Nestled under the Rimutaka Range, Featherston, the southern gateway to Wairarapa, is a town crammed with historic interest. The first settlers to live on the site were the redoubtable Henry Burling (who lived to well over 100) and his family, who operated a hotel at...
Greytown was the first of the Wairarapa towns to be settled, in March 1854. It was formed under the aegis of the Small Farms Association, a group of Wellington and Hutt Valley settlers of small means who were worried that the wealthy were in a position to buy the...
Carterton, the daffodil capital of New Zealand, is Wairarapa’s second largest town. Originally known as Three Mile Bush, it was established in 1857 on the road between Greytown and Masterton. Its name was changed to commemorate Charles Rooking Carter, a local...
Masterton is the largest town in Wairarapa, its 19,500 accounting for nearly half the population of the region. It is situated on the banks of the Waingawa and Waipoua Rivers, and serves as the region’s unofficial capital providing most government services. It is also...
