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Bay of Islands iwi Ngati Rehia is gearing up for this week’s reopening of Rewa’s Village at Kerikeri.
The iwi was handed the tourist attraction by the Society for the Preservation of the Kerikeri Stone Store, which opened it in 1970.
Custodian Kipa Munro says it has been extensively refurbished, and the iwi intends to give visitors more of a Ngapuhi perspective on the area, rather than just the missionary focus.
He says it’s part of a triangle of important historic sites around the Kerikeri Inlet, which also includes the Stone Store and Kemp House, and Kororipo Pa, where Hongi Hika based himself through the 1820s.
"So we’re all on the banks of Nga Awa o te Rangatira. When people come to the Kerikeri area, they'e got all of this history in the one place and we invte and we want to encourage people not to spend five minutes and get out of the car but there's an opportunity for people to spend a good half a day exploring the history and the area around the Kerikeri Basin," Mr Munro says.
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