Our ''Combo' TouR includes THE Waihi Gold Experience AND A Waihi Gold Mine Tour 

Our Gold Story Tour takes visitors on the ultimate journey of discovery, uncovering Waihi’s quest for gold that has spanned three centuries.

It begins with an interactive and intriguing visit through the award-winning Waihi Gold Experience. This hands-on experience provides visitors of all ages with unique opportunities to dig into the lives of the early miners and their families. You'll find out what drives this quest for gold and silver, and how we use these precious metals once we’ve extracted them.

After setting the scene in the Waihi Gold Experience, you'll head out onto the modern gold mine site with a local tour guide. Although mining operations are normally off-limits to the public, Waihi Gold Mine Tours has the exclusive rights to take visitors inside the security fence to experience modern-day gold mining up close. You'll be shown the complete process and learn how today’s miners extract the gold and silver from the quartz rock and turn it into bars of bullion.

This is an interactive, informative, and fun tour that gives visitors fascinating stories and a comprehensive insight into the enterprise that has shaped Waihi, both past and present.

GET THE INSIDE STORY

Rattle the drill, crank the handles, push the plunger and become immersed in interactive activities at the Waihi Gold Experience.

Our award-winning interactive experience gives visitors of all ages a unique opportunity to get the inside story on the events and technology that have shaped Waihi since the late 1800s. You'll become the explorer as you press the buttons, crank the handles, and push the plunger to reveal fascinating stories from the past and the present.

Young and old will marvel at the intricate detail of the dynamic models, then push the buttons to discover what happens next. You will open windows into the past to learn what it was like to grow up in a bustling New Zealand gold town.

The Ghost Theatre is unlike any other, with 3D holograms bringing to life the townsfolk’s stories of love, conflict, and social change.

Interactive technology also allows you to challenge the shady dealer at a game of Two-up, plus make your own piece virtual jewellery. You will be amazed by the real weight of a pure gold bar and experience the power and scale of modern-day gold production.

GET INSIDE THE FENCE

Discover modern gold mining up close and on a grand scale. Learn how today’s miners get the gold out of the rock and into gold bars.

Although mining operations are ordinarily off-limits to the public, Waihi Gold Mine Tours can take you inside the fence to experience modern-day gold mining up close.

You’ll be fitted out with safety gear as you board our comfortable van, given a safety briefing then taken inside the security fence to view the mine operations from the best available vantage points. You’ll be shown every stage of the process from ore extraction and crushing, through to final processing. There is plenty of massive mining equipment on show too.

We’ll relate colourful stories from the mine’s past and answer any questions you may have about the modern operation.

TOUR ROUTE

NOTE: Route may vary depending on access availability.