2 Best Sights in Paihia and Waitangi, Northland and the Bay of Islands

On the main street of Kawakawa, a nondescript town just off State Highway 1 south of Paihia, stand surely the most artistic public toilets in the country—a must-go even if you don't need to. Built by Austrian artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser in 1997, the toilets are fronted by brightly colored ceramic columns supporting an arched portico, which in turn supports a rooftop garden of grasses. There are no straight lines in the building, finished inside with mostly white tiles, punctuated with primary colors, and set in black grout (something like a Mondrian after a few drinks). If you sit in one of the cafés across the road you can watch the tourist buses stop so the visitors can take pictures of the facilities.

On the National Trust Estate beyond the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, Mt. Bledisloe showcases the splendid view across Paihia and the Bay of Islands. The handsome ceramic marker at the top showing the distances to major world cities was made by Royal Doulton in London and presented by Lord Bledisloe in 1934 during his term as governor-general of New Zealand. The mount is 3 km (2 miles) from the Treaty House, on the other side of the Waitangi Golf Course. From a small parking area on the right of Waitangi Road, a short track rises through a pine forest to the summit.