Kerikeri offers a whole bunch of attractions and activities. First of all, there is the history evidence of the Maoris first encounter with European missionaries is still around today in the Stone Store, Kemp House and replications in Rewas Village. The Northland town of Kerikeri has a long, colourful history. The area was home ground for the fearsome Maori chief Hongi Hika, who terrorised many tribes throughout the North Island in the early 1800s. Yet he was kind to missionaries, allowing Samuel Marsden to establish New Zealand's second mission station here. The Kerikeri Mission Station, also known as Kemp House, is New Zealand’s oldest standing European building. Built to house the Reverend John Butler in 1821, this elegant wooden home has the protection of the Historic Places Trust.
