2 Best Sights in Akaroa and the Banks Peninsula, Christchurch and Canterbury

The focus of historic interest is the Akaroa Museum, which has a display of Māori pounamu (greenstone) as well as alternating exhibits on the area's multicultural past. The peninsula supported a significant Māori population, and the collections and displays tell some of the exciting stories of Kai Tahu, the people of the land. The Old Courthouse, the old Custom House, and Langlois-Eteveneaux House, the two-room cottage of an early French settler, are also part of the museum.

This collection of buildings contains 20,000 Māori and 19th-century colonial artifacts, including waka used in Waitangi Day celebrations and displays such as a smithy and print shop. There are also a wharenui (Māori meetinghouse), colonial homes, including a totara slab cottage, and a saddlery and harness shop. If you happen to be in the area on Waitangi Day (February 6), New Zealand's national day, the museum marks it in style.