Welcome To our Unique, Beautiful and Beloved Pirongia !
This is the web site of the Pirongia Tourism Association. The Association is dedicated to ensuring that visitors have the best possible experience during their time spent in Pirongia Village, on the mountain, and its surrounding countryside.

Mt Pirongia
Mount Pirongia (959 Metres) is an ancient volcano central to the 17,000 hectare Pirongia Forest Park that, with its dramatic skyline, is one of the most distinctive features in the Waikato District. The mountain offers many walking tracks of varying lengths and levels of difficulty. Visitors can experience majestic forest, melodic birdsong, and pristine mountain streams. Pirongia Forest Park is the largest tract of unbroken native bush in the Waikato and stretches to the west coast between Raglan Harbour to the north-west and Kawhia Harbour to the south-west. From the summit of Pirongia on a clear day a climber is rewarded with breath-taking views of:

• Mt Karioi to the north-west
• Mt Kakepuku and Mt Maungatautari to the east
• Mt Taranaki/Egmont to the south-west
• With the snows of Mt Tongariro, Mt Ngauruhoe, and Mt Ruapehu, all shining far away to the south.

Skirting the eastern edge of the mountain is the Waipa River, which served as the major thoroughfare for pre-European Maori as well as during early European settlement. Established on the eastern bank of the river, the military village of Alexandra (later renamed Pirongia) dates back to 1864 when Waikato militia established several redoubts here as a result of the Land Wars of the 1800s.

The serenity of the rich countryside around Pirongia conceals a fascinating history of pre-European power plays and colonial conquests. Delve into this dimension with the help of our Historic Visitor Centre.

Pirongia Village
Pirongia Village today, with its wide tree lined streets and dramatic mountain backdrop is a very pretty village sitting astride SH39 which serves as a popular route for travellers. The village is just 30kms south-west of Hamilton, 11kms west of Te-Awamutu and on the main route south to Waitomo Caves. It is growing in reputation as more and more people are stopping to enjoy a bite to eat at one of its excellent cafés or utilizing its lovely picnic spots. It is also developing as an exciting destination which boasts a wide variety of art and craft ware, a very informative Historic Visitor Centre and also a range of other attractions including horse-drawn carriage rides, a golf course and the oldest existing horse racing club in New Zealand.

If you plan to stay - accommodation is not an issue as Pirongia can offer somewhere to stay that will suit all budgets.

The community of Pirongia is surprisingly diverse. Our Maori community has ancestral lines stretching back to the dawn of human settlement in this ‘Land of the Long White Cloud’ – Aotearoa, while some residents are from families whose forebears were the earliest settlers in the village. There are also the fairy people on Mt Pirongia, the patupaiarehe, to contend with as they delight in making mischief for ordinary folk. We have plenty of farmers and people involved with farming support services, and there is a vibrant arts scene with artists and musicians galore choosing this particular corner of the world as their home because it somehow manages to provide both the utter peace and the strong stimulation so many of them require for their work.

The range of amenities, facilities and services available to both visitors and locals means comfort and taste are not sacrificed to enjoy the natural landscapes and tranquillity of the area. Our website describes them in greater detail – just select from the menu at the top of each page.

Pirongia Tourism Association (Inc)
The Association comprises a network of local businesses which has as its goal the fostering of sustainable and co-operative tourism ventures and services in the wider Pirongia area. We welcome new members. Contact email