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Hokitika Travel Guide: The Best Bits of the West Coast's Cool Little Town
Updated: Oct 11
Hokitika is touristy, yet undeniably attractive. It calls itself a "cool little town", and it earns the title: good coffee, pounamu studios, heritage streets and a wild driftwood beach, with turquoise Hokitika Gorge and two deep, inky lakes just up the road.
It's also the West Coast's most visitor-friendly town.
Raining?
Buy a waterproof jacket and keep browsing the galleries.
Hokitika well known for its driftwood festival celebrating wild west coast ocean beaches, South Isla Much photographed Hokitika clocktower located in the middle of a busy intersection Hokitika beach front, South Island NZ Historic Regent cinema Hokitka South Island NZ Impossibly blue Hokitika Gorge a visitor favourite spot Seddon House former government heritage building Hokitika, West Coast NZ Hokitika beach at sunset Wooden jetty bridge at Lake Mahinapua, West Coast 19th century politican fromWest Coast, Seddon, Hokitika
At a glance
Where: The mouth of the Hokitika River, about 40 km south of Greymouth
Known for: Pounamu, Hokitika Gorge, the driftwood beach, the National Kiwi Centre and the Wildfoods Festival
Time needed: One or two days
Best time: December to March, for the warmest weather. Expect rain at any time of year
Top 10 things to do in Hokitika
See a kiwi at the National Kiwi Centre. A guaranteed sighting of New Zealand's national bird, plus giant eels and tuatara.
Walk to Hokitika Gorge. A short track and swing bridges over startlingly blue glacial water, about 30 minutes' drive from town.
Make driftwood art on Hokitika Beach. Build your own sculpture, then pose by the famous driftwood HOKITIKA sign.
Watch the sunset from Sunset Point. Fish and chips in hand, surfers and beachcombers in silhouette.
Shop for pounamu. Watch carvers at work, or carve your own piece at a workshop.
Walk the heritage trail. The clock tower, the Regent Theatre and the old government buildings are all within a short stroll.
Visit the glass studio. Watch glassblowers at work, and try not to buy one of the glass penguins.
Paddle Lake Mahinapua or Lake Kaniere. Calm, reflective water surrounded by rainforest.
Ride the West Coast Wilderness Trail. Hokitika sits in the middle of the trail between Greymouth and Ross, and bike hire and shuttles are easy to arrange in town.
Go to a festival. The Driftwood & Sand Festival fills the beach with sculptures each summer, and the Wildfoods Festival takes over town in March.
Heading south? Pan for gold in Ross, the end of the Wilderness Trail, about 25 minutes away.
Hokitika Gorge
The colour of the water is the star: milky turquoise from glacial flour, flowing through a granite gorge smoothed by thousands of years of water. The walk is short and easy, with swing bridges and viewing platforms. Go early or late in summer to avoid the crowds.
Hokitika Beach and Sunset Point
Hokitika's beach is wild, grey and littered with driftwood, which is exactly the point. Locals and visitors build sculptures, and the wide boardwalk means you can watch the action from a seat. Sunset Point, at the river mouth, is the place for sunset. Swim only between the flags, as the surf here is dangerous.
National Kiwi Centre
Right in the centre of town, this is the place to see a kiwi, with a guaranteed sighting in the nocturnal house. The giant eels, some thought to be around 100 years old, are fed several times a day, and kids can catch and release kōura (freshwater crayfish). It's a great rainy-day stop.
Pounamu and the arts
The Arahura River, just north of town, is a traditional source of pounamu (greenstone), and Hokitika is the place to buy it. Choose carvings from galleries and studios, or join a workshop and shape your own. The town also has photography galleries, jewellers, wood turners and the Hokitika Glass Studio, where you can watch glass being blown.
The heritage trail
Hokitika boomed in the gold rush of the 1860s, and its compact centre is easy to explore on foot, with plaques on the heritage buildings. Allow up to an hour.
The Clock Tower: built as a memorial to the Boer War and Edward VII's coronation
The Regent Theatre: a streamlined Art Deco cinema, opened in 1936 and still showing films
The Seddon Statue and Government Buildings: honouring Premier Richard Seddon, who represented Westland
The Custom House on Gibson Quay: a charming 1897 timber building by the river
The Hokitika Museum's main galleries are closed while the Carnegie Building is earthquake-strengthened. Check the museum's website for updates.
Seaview and Hokitika Cemetery
Up on the terrace above town, the old Seaview hospital grounds and Hokitika Cemetery tell sadder stories of the gold rush. Look for the grand Hungerford Mausoleum, an early concrete monument to two infant sons. Drowning was so common in the early years, crossing the Hokitika bar or the rivers, that it was called "the West Coast disease". Nearby, the restored Seaview Lighthouse (1879) once warned ships off the bar.
Rainy-day Hokitika
Catch a film at the Art Deco Regent Theatre
See the kiwi and the eel feeding at the National Kiwi Centre
Explore the Westland Industrial Heritage Park, with fire engines, steam engines and a bush railway
Browse the galleries and pounamu studios
Settle into a café for whitebait fritters, or fudge and ice cream
Or do what the locals do: put on a raincoat and go anyway
Festivals
Wildfoods Festival (March): huhu grubs, unusual delicacies and plenty of people-watching. The 2027 festival is on Saturday 13 March.
Driftwood & Sand Festival (summer): artists and families turn beach driftwood into sculptures along the shore.
Where to stay
Hokitika is a great base for both Greymouth and Glacier Country. You'll find everything from backpackers and beachfront motels to historic B&Bs and countryside lodges. Book early for summer and festival weekends.
Getting there and around
By air: Hokitika Airport has flights to Christchurch.
By road: About 35 minutes from Greymouth and 2 hours from Franz Josef. Intercity buses stop in town.
Getting around: The town centre is easy to walk. You'll need a car or bike for the gorge and lakes.
Sandflies
Carry repellent. Sandflies are most active at dawn and dusk on still, overcast days, and they're not fans of wind or rain.
Where to stay
Browse places to stay in Hokitika on Booking.com.
This post includes affiliate links. If you book through them, Best Bits Travel may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Plan your trip
Fit it into a 2-week South Island road trip
FAQs
Is Hokitika worth visiting?
Yes. It's the West Coast's most attractive town, with Hokitika Gorge, the driftwood beach, pounamu studios and the National Kiwi Centre all close together.
How far is Hokitika Gorge from Hokitika?
About 30 minutes' drive inland. The walk to the swing bridges and viewing platforms is short and easy.
When is the Hokitika Wildfoods Festival?
It's held in March. The 2027 festival is on Saturday 13 March.
Where can you buy pounamu in Hokitika?
In galleries and carving studios around the town centre. Several also run workshops where you can carve your own piece.
