Matamata: Walks, Cycling Routes and Heritage

Matamata offers different ways to experience short walks, cycling and heritage: in town, there are Centennial Drive and Swap Park; nearby, there are places including Firth Tower Museum and Reserve and Wairere Falls. If you are looking for a hotel in Matamata, distinguishing between activities in town and excursions in the surrounding area can help structure your plans.

On Foot and by Bike

Hawes Bush Walk is a short, 400 m loop through a stand of mature kahikatea trees. The Hauraki Rail Trail offers a different scale: it runs from Kaiaua in the north through several towns and the Karangahake Gorge to Matamata in the south. The options therefore range from a short loop to a longer cycling route.

The Hauraki Rail Trail is classified as “Grade One – Easiest” and is suitable as a Great Ride for people of all ages, fitness levels and abilities. The section between Te Aroha and Matamata is 37 km long, with a stated riding time of two to four hours. Riding time may vary depending on the person and conditions.

In southeastern Matamata, Swap Park has the Matamata BMX track. Stanley Farm Walkway connects Peria Road with Dawson Street. These details point to other cycling and walking options in town, without suggesting they are part of the Hauraki Rail Trail.

Green Spaces and Getting Around Town

Centennial Drive is a botanical park that runs through Matamata city centre. It can be accessed from Broadway or Tainui Street. At the Tainui Street entrance to Centennial Drive, a 13-tonne rock and a surrounding basin form a memorial to Māori, missionaries and Matamata’s early settlers.

At the western end of Broadway is the Matamata i-SITE Visitor Centre, an information office. It opened there as an information office on 12 May 1988. Tom Grant Drive can be accessed from Rawhiti Avenue or Tawari Street. These two local landmarks therefore have different access streets.

Nearby Destinations

Firth Tower Museum and Reserve is 2 km from the town centre along Tower Road. The museum’s exhibits are housed in 13 buildings. Josiah Clifton Firth built Firth Tower in 1882 as a lookout tower overlooking the landscape.

Separate from this is the 2 km-long Tower Road Walkway, which connects the edge of Matamata with Firth Tower Reserve and Museum. One detail describes the distance from the town centre along Tower Road; the other gives the length of the walkway. This helps place the nearby museum both as a destination in its own right and in relation to the walkway.

East of Matamata, Wairere Falls plunges 153 m. Hobbiton Movie Set is also near Matamata, about a 15-minute drive from the town centre. Actual driving time may vary depending on road conditions. These nearby destinations add further landscape and cultural experiences to the options in town.

Matamata in the Matamata-Piako District

Beyond the town, the Matamata-Piako District Heritage Trail connects Matamata, Te Aroha and Morrinsville, passing historically significant sites along the way. Another site in the Matamata-Piako District is the Piako County Tramway in Waiorongomai Valley. It is New Zealand’s oldest bush tramway, and the original rails remain. These regional destinations are geographically distinct from the attractions in Matamata itself.

When choosing your base, you can first consider whether you mainly plan to visit places within the town or also destinations nearby and elsewhere in the Matamata-Piako District.

Discover more destinations: Te Aroha, Te Aroha West, Te Poi, Morrinsville

Back to the main travel overview: Matamata-Piako District.