The Lakeland Queen is under new ownership and it's hoped to have the iconic boat back on the water by the end of 2025. Photo / Kelly Makiha
The new owners of the iconic Lakeland Queen paddleboat say the “heartbeat of Lake Rotorua” will be back on the water by the end of the year.
Damon Hagaman, the son of the late rich-lister and Scenic Hotel founder Earl Hagaman, bought the Lakeland Queen last year and has worked alongside locals over the past months to restore the boat to its former glory.
Hagaman, who has lived in Rotorua for 12 years, told the Rotorua Daily Post this week he hoped to have the Lakeland Queen back on the water, potentially by November.
The paddle steamer previously operated for nearly four decades on Lake Rotorua and was a thriving night spot, restaurant and bar in its heyday, as well as a venue for private functions and corporate events.
It was dry-docked in October 2021 following a sudden downturn of visitors during the Covid-19 pandemic. Former owner Terry Hammond was forced to put the business into hibernation and struggled to get it afloat again.
The lakefront was redeveloped and the Lakeland Queen’s jetty was found to be in disrepair.
The cost of a new jetty was finalised in 2022 and Hammond told the Rotorua Daily Post at the time it would have cost between $345,000 to $460,000 to repair.
Hammond’s company was liquidated last year and, according to a liquidator’s report, the boat sold for $40,001.
The boat has been parked up at Rotorua’s Sulphur Point and security gates have been erected around it. The boat is monitored by Watchdog CCTV cameras.
A billboard on the gates said the Lakeland Queen cruises were relaunching in late 2025.
The Lakeland Queen’s website said bookings would open “soon”.
It said the business was “completely refurbished and under new ownership”.
The website said the “Lady of the Lake” will offer hour-long cruises, food, scenic views and the retelling of Rotorua’s very own famous love story of Hinemoa and Tūtānekai.
The website said visitors could experience rich Māori culture as the vessel cruised past Ōhinemutu and the iconic buildings of St Faith’s Church and Tamatekapua Meeting House.
Rotorua Lakes Council last month publicly notified Hagaman’s application to the Rotorua District Licensing Committee for a new on-licence.
The notification said a liquor licence was being sought for 7am to 1am, seven days a week. The notification period ends on July 31.
Hagaman is the sole director of new company Lakeland Queen 2004 Ltd.
He told the Rotorua Daily Post a lot of work had been done in the last six months and he would be looking to employ a general manager and was potentially looking for other partners moving forward.
Hagaman said he had received “unbelievable” support from members of the community, who had spent “thousands of unpaid hours” helping to clean, restore and rebuild the boat.
He said he had spent $400,000 restoring the boat, including repainting and installing new bathrooms and a bar, and another $400,000 on “engine work”.
He said work was still being done to finish the jetty at the redeveloped Lakefront.
The Hagamans set up a public Facebook page that has documented the work carried out by community members during the past few months.
Photos show the locals hard at work painting and cleaning.
Hagaman said many of the volunteers were close friends he and his wife had met since moving to Rotorua after the Christchurch earthquake in 2011.
He said he couldn’t thank the volunteers enough for their passionate hard work, and it was going to be “amazing” to see the boat back on Lake Rotorua.
“It is the heartbeat of the lake and it’s too beautiful to let it go to scrap.”
The council said its involvement had been to ensure the Lakeland Queen’s wharf, as it was attached to a reserve, was structurally safe for operations.
The council also needed to permit the relocation of a ticket-selling kiosk on the Lakefront reserve. There was some more work required on the wharf by the owner, which needed to be approved by Bay of Plenty Regional Council, the council said.
The Press reported in 2023 that Hagaman was estranged from his father and wasn’t involved in a court battle over his will, following Earl Hagaman’s death at the age of 92 in 2017, having received money and other assets in an earlier settlement.
American-born Earl Hagaman’s fortune was estimated to be worth $180 million in the 2013 National Business Review Rich List.
Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.