Russell Museum
Russell Museum
4
About
The Russell Museum shares the stories of Kororāreka Russell and Īpipiri Bay of Islands. It tells the stories of the first Polynesian arrivals in the Bay, through to the development of Russell / Kororāreka, from a small Māori fishing village, to a port of call for visiting ships and whalers to today's tourist town. Among the museum collections is Māori taonga including a small waka (canoe), a one-fifth scale model of Captain Cook's Endeavour, an original whaleboat and mementos of game fisherman, Zane Grey. Enjoy watching the DVD of historic Russell and see the exhibitions that are on display in the gallery. We hope you enjoy your visit. The Museum gift shop features a wide range of special gifts, souvenirs and books. The Russell Museum operates as a registered charity and does not receive any funding for operational expenses. The Museum is self funded by the entrance fee, research charges and profits from the Museum shop.
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.0
310 reviews
Excellent
100
Very good
136
Average
62
Poor
11
Terrible
1
Robert S
Florence, KY107 contributions
Feb 2020
Excellent examples of early culture of New Zealand. The scale model of the Endeavor is the top attraction in the museum. The model gives a good perspective of how small the Endeavor was. This was the best place to learn about the early capital of New Zealand. There are several nature exhibits too. It took us about 45 minutes for a good visit. It's not expensive.
Written February 29, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
johmf
Coromandel, New Zealand22 contributions
Apr 2020 • Couples
Thoroughly enjoyed our visit here!! Couldnt help but caress the many beautiful Maori relics (soz...we Maori cant help ourselves) and found my self quite teary reading the history of some of them. Beautifully presented collections and well-worth the entry fee
Written April 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Douglas R
Tenterden, UK882 contributions
Feb 2020 • Couples
Idyllic place reached by boat that is well worth a visit. Small and cosy with lovely shops, bars and restaurants. Good history and small museum well worth a trip. 2 hours is long enough for a visit unless you want a good meal as well.
Written March 19, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Iain D
Brighton, UK55 contributions
Feb 2020 • Couples
A small museum that gives so much information about the history of Russell and Captain Cook. Well worth a visit for 10 dollar's.
Written February 22, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wayne L
Tauranga, New Zealand297 contributions
Apr 2021 • Family
Great museum, well worth during a trip to Russell. Presented well, really interesting. The animated presented history of NZ was well done.
Written April 18, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kia ora, thank you for your positive feedback. We encourage visitors to chek out the animation - great for kids, but also great for grown ups too!
Written August 7, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
santo t
Auckland, New Zealand7,465 contributions
Jun 2020
At the town centre, this small museum gives visitors a glimpse in the past, how Russell built and exists. This museum was opened with the big efforts of locals in 1956 from small then developed to a larger museum in 1970 and final development and extensions was in 1990. Take a break by visiting this museum when you are in Russell, see the history of Russell when became the first Capital of New Zealand, Captain James Cook voyages to New Zealand, and whaling story, as well as the Russell's journey from its past to the current place for tourism as a popular summer holiday destination.
Written March 18, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kia ora, thank you for taking the time to provide a review and thank you for your recommendation.
Written August 7, 2022
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
BevTonyAuckland
Auckland, New Zealand119 contributions
Feb 2021
While we like to see retention of NZ historic items for our grandchildren there were not many items here for foreign visitors. Perhaps there has been limited funding available to enable a wider collection
Written February 11, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ShrimpUK
Newton Abbot, UK112 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
A very interesting museum, with lots of artifacts and a video streaming to explain the history of the area. The lovely lady on reception also gave us some great tips as we walked to Flagstaff Hill and Longbeach - also went for coffee at her recommendation. Loved the island itself, well worth the trip from Paihia.
Written November 25, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ethel C
Springfield, IL41 contributions
Apr 2017 • Couples
We stayed in Russell for 3 days, and on a drenching day, ran to this museum as a refuge. We were delighted with this small gem of a place. The history of Russell is presented in a continuously running video program. There are Maori, early European artifacts, ship models, fishing/whaling exhibits, and a quirky gift shop in the entrance way. It is an eclectic collection of local lore as well as general New Zealand history. NZ$10 to enter as this is a private museum. Well worth a visit in Russell.
A hint: the lavatory door opens by sliding to the left........this is from a graduate of the Midvale School for the Gifted.
A hint: the lavatory door opens by sliding to the left........this is from a graduate of the Midvale School for the Gifted.
Written May 10, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MaDunx
Edinburgh, UK43 contributions
Mar 2015 • Solo
I have given this a 5 star rating, mainly because I think it's a good example of a small local museum, clearly supported by the local community, which manages to convey a lot of information about the area in an informative way. There is a small charge of about 10 dollars (less if you double up with the Pompellier House) which I think is likely to barely cover the maintenance and running cost of the building. Well worth a visit.
Written March 26, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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