Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Ngati Awa buys White Island Tours

Rotorua Daily Post
4 Apr, 2017 11:05 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Photo/Supplied

Photo/Supplied

Ngati Awa Group Holdings, the commercial arm of Te Runanga o Ngati Awa, has announced it is buying iconic Whakatane tour operator White Island Tours.

White Island Tours has been operating out of Whakatane for more than 25 years showcasing New Zealand's only active marine volcano, Whakaari-White Island.

White Island Tours holds an exclusive licence for marine-based tourism on White Island.
The license to land a boat on White Island will transfer as part of the sale.

Photo/Supplied
Photo/Supplied

The sale also includes White Island Rendezvous, a 38-room motel complex with a villa, bungalow and micro-village, as well as PeeJays Cafe.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Ngati Awa Group Holdings chief executive Geoff Hamilton said the business was a strategic acquisition and part of a wider plan to develop Ngati Awa assets in the Ngati Awa rohe.

"The investment is a commercial decision and will benefit Ngati Awa financially, but comes with wider benefits. We are thinking long term, and see White Island Tours as a key part of the community here in Whakatane.

"As the local iwi Ngati Awa will be able to incorporate this unique business into a wider Ngati Awa tourism experience, in line with increasing tourist demand for authentic cultural experiences.

"As well, a much-admired business will stay locally-owned, and with an organisation that has a long-term commitment to supporting economic growth in our region.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Photo/Supplied
Photo/Supplied

"Peter and Jenny Tait have developed this visitor experience from an idea, into the fantastic operation that it is today. From their first tour, with just six people on board, to more than 17,000 visitors in the past year, White Island Tours' success is testament to the hard work of Peter, Jenny and their team.

"White Island Tours is an outstanding international tourism experience. This is an investment that all Ngati Awa can be proud of."

Ngati Awa Group Holdings said the sale would have no effect on the staffing and the employment conditions of the current staff of White Island Tours.

"It is a well-run operation with excellent staff and we hope the staff will work with us to incorporate the business into the wider Ngati Awa portfolio."

Photo/Supplied
Photo/Supplied

Ngati Awa settled a Treaty of Waitangi claim with the Crown in 2005, including assets and cash of about $42 million. It has interests in agriculture, fisheries, forestry, equities and property totalling $114 million.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Business

Premium
Rotorua Daily Post

'Extremely rare move' – consultant has developer put into receivership

Premium
OpinionMark Lister

Opinion: Why Mary Meeker's latest AI insights can't be ignored

Premium
Opinion

Balancing power: What the employment law changes mean for you


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Business

Premium
Premium
'Extremely rare move' – consultant has developer put into receivership
Rotorua Daily Post

'Extremely rare move' – consultant has developer put into receivership

Developer Marcus Jacobson denies he owes debt and described receivership as a 'stunt'.

13 Jul 11:00 PM
Premium
Premium
Opinion: Why Mary Meeker's latest AI insights can't be ignored
OpinionMark Lister

Opinion: Why Mary Meeker's latest AI insights can't be ignored

13 Jul 05:00 PM
Premium
Premium
Balancing power: What the employment law changes mean for you
Opinion

Balancing power: What the employment law changes mean for you

06 Jul 05:00 PM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP