About | Staglands
Staglands Wildlife Reserve, a reserve for wildlife, yet so much more. Come to the wildlife reserve to explore, interact with animals, connect with nature, be taken back in time and spend a great day with the family.
Staglands Wildlife Reserve has heaps to explore, so get out the map and go discover it all. It’ll take you through the wetlands where you’ll see lots of friendly birdlife. Hop on and go for a tractor ride, the kids will love how it crosses the river!
Feel the greasy and thick hair on the kunekune’s back, there are also horses, guinea pigs and little birds being reared under a heat lamp. Walk through the aviaries and spot the different kinds of birds. Stop by the trout pool and see them go crazy when you throw some food in.
Stop for a picnic by the river or if you didn’t bring food, head to Staglands Cafe for a snack or light lunch. When you’re refreshed and refuelled, continue on over the river on the swing bridge to the Old Bush Settlement. Look into how life may have been lived back in the pioneer days during the early settlement of New Zealand. Have fun walking through the village and imagine how life may have been, bring out the camera and get into character by acting out the different jobs and lives of the pioneers.
Reaching the tarn, the kids will love hopping into the train and pushing it along the tracks. Check out all of the turtles – how many can you count? See goats, donkeys, emus, sheep, highland cattle and deer at The Croft and walk up the hill for a better view.
There is so much to see at Staglands, making it one of the top things to do for families in the Wairarapa area.
Opening times
Staglands Wildlife Reserve: 9.30am – 5pm 7 days, closed Christmas Day.
Staglands Cafe: 10am – 4:30pm.
Tips:
- go first thing to avoid the crowds – this place can get busy fast!
- when we first entered the park we had no idea which route to take and ended up mindlessly wandering around the park and didn’t end up seeing everything. Bring out the map and follow the arrows for the best way to see everything.
Nearby
Kaitoke Regional Park
Location
Photos
The moment we stepped into Staglands Wildlife Reserve we knew we were in for a good time and we weren’t disappointed. There are farm parks and then there is Staglands, and Staglands, I believe in on an entirely different level. The place was immaculate and there were surprises around every corner. You can definitely spend a good part of your day exploring the different parts of this wildlife reserve, so don’t forget to pack some lunch and enjoy it in one of the picnic areas.
Staglands Cafe
Hungry from a big day, we were so happy that the Staglands Cafe provided light lunches and stopped in here first to fuel our hungry tummies. We ate inside of a beautiful and unique (and an incredibly cool) log building.
The Stables
Come see Ted the Pony and Jock the Clydesdale and give them a pat. You can actually hop into the guinea pigs enclosure to give them a pat or cuddle. There were also lots of cute, young birds being reared under a heat lamp.
The wetlands
We walked through the wetlands and absolutely adored all of the birdlife and the calm and peacefulness of the bush.
Kunekune’s
Kunekune’s (a New Zealand pig) are such a funny looking thing, with harsh hair, scrunched up faces and tusks sticking out of their mouths.
Kea Aviary
My favourite New Zealand bird, it’s always a pleasure seeing Keas.
Eel & Trout Pond
We loved seeing all of the trout but didn’t see any eels when we came.
You can see Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout and also huge eels here. Usually, you would have been able to feed them but since August 2020 food has been unavailable due to supply issues.
Picnic Area (by the river)
There’s a sweet little picnic spot by the Akatarawa River where we saw lots of peacocks, chickens and ducks wandering about.
There’s a swing bridge that goes over Akatarawa River but we found this way so much more fun.
Old Bush Settlement
Omg, we loved this place. It was set up so well it felt like we were actually stepping back in time. Absolutely beautiful, we had to stop and take a mini photoshoot.
The Tarn
There were so many turtles here, it was so cool to see!
Visit the Tarn where little and big kids can ride the bush railway, then walk along the boardwalk that goes over the water and count how many slider turtles you can see. Black swans, Canadian geese, paradise ducks and other waterfowl can be found here, too.
The croft
We only spent a very little amount of time here because time had flown by and we needed to get going. All of the animals were super friendly here and we saw that you could go for a little walk up to the top of the hill. We were annoyed that we didn’t get enough time to see everything and go at a more leisurely pace because this place is worth taking the time for.
Plus much, much more!
We totally rushed this experience because of other commitments and didn’t actually get to see everything the park had to offer. I would recommend spending a good part of your day here – there is honestly so much to see.
Would we recommend Staglands?
Yes!! I would totally recommend Staglands Wildlife Reserve to families of all ages. As our kids get older we don’t usually head to farm parks or stuff similar to them but this one was something different and included a whole range of other things in it as well. If we’re passing through the area again we definitely will be back to check out some of our favourites again and see the things we missed the first time!
