Puke Ariki is home to a museum, library, tourist info and community rooms. This recommendation is for the museum which has been renovated in 2015/2016 becoming more hands on and interactive for kids. There are numerous galleries housing everything from dinosaur skeletons to a history of the first settlers, lots of taonga that are important to the region and changing exhibitions.

What makes this museum particularly good for kids, whether they’re visiting for the first time or have been multiple times, are the Ruru Scavenger Hunts that are available from the Host Desk in the main foyer. There are a few different hunts to choose from – ask as they’re aimed at different aged children. Kids engage with different aspects in the museum as they go round searching for answers. This allows kids who are regular visitors to see the museum from a different perspective. At the end, they’ll get a special Ruru badge for handing in a completed form. If you have preschoolers, they might still like to take part but will need a lot of help reading and completing the questions.

There’s a restaurant and cafe onsite within the centre.