New Zealand Maritime Museum Hui Te Ananui a Tangaroa

Situated in Auckland’s vibrant Viaduct Basin on the Waitematā Harbour, The New Zealand Maritime Museum is the place where the stories of people and the sea are preserved, shared, and explored with our visitors. 

New Zealand is one of the most maritime nations in the world and the story of every one of us is affected by the sea – through immigration, trade, design, innovation, and leisure. The museum houses one of the nation’s most important heritage collections, which covers the breadth of our relationship with the sea; from the Great Pacific Migration a thousand years ago to the cutting edge of modern technology and design used in America’s Cup and modern yachting. 


Heritage Sailings 

Discover the beauty of Auckland’s Waitematā harbour with one of the museum’s heritage sailings, listed below. Times and prices vary by vessel, please check the website for more information.

Ted Ashby Sailing 

Clim aboard our heritage scow, Ted Ashby, for an hour-long cruise on Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland's Harbour.  Help hoist the sails, then sit back and experience the city skyline, Sky Tower, and Auckland Harbour Bridge from the sea. 


Nautilus Sailing  

Get out on the Waitemata Harbour with 110-year-old motor launch Nautilus. With a maximum capacity of 6*, it is an intimate and fascinating experience to cruise on this sweet little launch. Nautilus was one of two motorboats carried by the hospital ship Marama during WWI which commenced duties in the Mediterranean in 1915. 


Breeze Sailing 

Set sail on your next adventure aboard Breeze, a traditional wooden brigantine similar to vessels used for New Zealand coastal and inter-Dominion trades in the 19th and early 20th centuries. A journey on Breeze is an exciting, energetic on-water experience and passengers are encouraged to actively get involved in sailing the vessel. 

Breeze is a vessel with an incredible history. Launched in 1981, designer and builder Ralph Sewell intended to recreate a replica coastal trader built in the traditions of 19th-century shipwright techniques, materials, and construction.  In 1985 she sailed to Mururoa to protest French nuclear testing taking the place of Greenpeace vessel Rainbow Warrior which had been sunk by French agents in Auckland.