10 Best Museums on the West Coast

Last Updated: 20 August, 2025

Where are the West Coast Museums?

A good excuse for a pitstop while exploring the West Coast or good back-up for when the weather isn’t playing ball is visiting the excellent museums of the West Coast.

In a region that held important resources for the locals, like pounamu (greenstone), gold and coal, the early settlers of the West Coast went through unimaginable risk to find their treasures and make their fortunes.

Their stories are best told in the museums on the West Coast, containing the machinery and items used to recover their “taonga” (treasure).

Check out some of our top West Coast museum recommendations below!

While you’re here, you might also be interested in 10 West Coast Must-Dos.

1. Coaltown Museum

The Coaltown Museum, housed in an award-winning modern building, offers a vibrant journey into the West Coast’s coal-mining heritage.

Be amazed by the eight-ton coal wagon from the legendary Denniston Incline dramatically poised over a slope. Explore fascinating artefacts, including a 20-ton brake drum and a simulated underground mine that immerses you in miners’ daily life.

Watch vintage footage, delve into personal stories, and enjoy interactive exhibits that weave together coal extraction, maritime history, transport and community spirit.

Push buttons, explore a darkened replica tunnel, and literally step into the drama of mining life. The Coaltown Museum is open daily.

It’s one of the 10 Things to Do in Westport on a Rainy Day.

Location: 123 Palmerston Street, Westport

2. Hokitika Museum

The Hokitika Museum building is a relic in itself, situated in the iconic 1908 Carnegie Library, widely celebrated as the most-photographed landmark in Hokitika.

As the region’s largest museum and archive, it’s dedicated to preserving the stories of Te Tai Poutini, including the gold rush, Māori heritage, and pounamu (greenstone).

Among its treasures is a meticulously built 1:24 Meccano model of the Grey River gold dredge, crafted over 3,000 hours.

While the exhibition galleries have been closed since 2019 for seismic strengthening, its esteemed Research Centre remains operational, offering access to substantial photographic archives, artefacts, and stories.

Check out more 5 Hokitika Must-Dos.

Location: Corner of Tancred and Hamilton Streets, Hokitika

3. Pop-Up History House Museum

[Update: The History House Museum has been relocated to what’s now called the Pop-Up History House Museum on 8 MacKay Street].

Learn about early pioneering life in the Grey District through a huge collection of photographs and relics.

Of course, much of this is focused on coal and gold mining. An interesting feature of the museum is a 3D map of the area showing all of the coal mines in the area.

Check out 5 Greymouth Must-Dos for more things to do.

Location: The Pop-Up History House Museum – 8 MacKay Street. The original History House Museum building – 27 Gresson Street.

4. Inangahua Junction Earthquake Museum

This tiny town between Reefton and Westport houses the Inangahua Junction Earthquake Museum recalling the 1968 earthquake that shook the area. Measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale, this seismic event led to a temporary evacuation of the town.

The museum, located in the community hall on Highway 69, chronicles this dramatic chapter in local history through a powerful exhibit of relics, manuscripts, photographs and personal accounts from Inangahua Landing, Junction, Camp and nearby settlements like Capleston and New Creek.

Open seasonally from September through May (daily, excluding Saturdays), this modest yet compelling display offers a poignant window into a catastrophe that uprooted homes, cut off communities, and transformed lives.

Location: Community Hall, Highway 69, Inangahua Junction

5. Blacks Point Museum

Full of memorabilia from yesteryear, the Blacks Point Museum is chock full of artefacts and old everyday items used by the local people.

The museum is located in an old church for Methodist miners. Find this museum on the Lewis Pass Road just before reaching Reefton.

Black Points is also home to some mountain biking trails which you can learn more about in Mountain Biking in Reefton. Blacks Point museum is open October to April, Wednesdays to Fridays and Sundays.

Location: Franklyn Street, Blacks Point

6. Shantytown

Step into the recreated 19th Century gold mining town at Shantytown Heritage Park.

This open-air museum, nestled in lush rainforest just 10 km south of Greymouth, brings the gold-rush era to life with over 30 historical buildings, including banks, shops, a sawmill, and even a “Chinatown” area.

Ride a heritage steam train along a 1.5 km tram line, try your hand at gold panning, and explore a vast collection of over 10,000 artefacts.

With stories spanning from 1850 to the 1940s, Shantytown offers a vivid slice of New Zealand’s pioneering past. Open daily, it’s a must-visit for history buffs and families alike.

Location: Rutherglen Road, Paroa

7. Murchison Museum

Step into this trove of information and discover the gold and coal mining history at the Murchison Museum. You’ll see a wealth of goldfields items, as well as learn about the devastating 1929 earthquake which shaped the landscape and affected local families.

The museum’s powerful photographs and firsthand accounts offer a poignant glimpse into this defining chapter of Murchison’s past.

Adjacent to the main building, you’ll find a “barn-style” vintage machinery annex showcasing early agriculture, sawmilling, and gold-mining hardware.

These artifacts provide a hands-on feel for how people made their lives here.

Open daily (except statutory holidays), this volunteer-run, family-friendly museum operates by donation and offers reference library facilities.

Location: 60 Fairfax Street, Murchison

8. Karamea Museum

Check out the displays of the Karamea Museum covering local Maori history, farming, gold mining, flax-milling, sawmilling, shipping and more!

Opened in 1974 to mark a century of regional history, this small-but-mighty local treasure explores how people carved livelihoods from the land.

You’ll find genealogical and school archives, rich photographic collections, and even surprising artifacts that speak to Karamea’s pioneering spirit.

There’s also information on the 1929 earthquake that closed the port and brought on a wealth of challenges to this isolated community.

Recently, a records and research room was added, making it a local history hub where stories live and connections form.

Location: Waverley Street, Karamea

9. Northern Buller Museum

Aptly located in a former State Coal Mines building, the Northern Buller Museum, also known as the Granity Museum, is a fascinating window into the region’s coal mining heritage.

The museum welcomes visitors with charming Nissan hut entrances that whisper tales of coal country.

Inside, walls brim with photographs tracing the pulse of Granity, Seddonville, Stockton, and Millerton. Cubicles recreate everyday life with a bar, sewing room, schoolroom, and kitchen, while stationary mining engines hum alongside saw-milling artefacts.

Admission is by donation, and the museum supports guided tours, reference library access, picnic tables, and a nostalgic walk along the former Millerton Incline. The Northern Buller Museum is open daily in summer.

Location: Back Road, Granity

10. Westland Industrial Heritage Park

The Westland Industrial Heritage Park is a hands-on, working museum powered entirely by passionate volunteers dedicated to bringing Westland’s industrial legacy roaring back to life.

Wander into the “Big Engine Shed” to witness thunderous restored machinery paired with magnetic sound-and-light shows, or explore “The Livery”, an evocative trove of coaches, saddles, whips and stagecoaches that chart West Coast travel’s evolution.

The park also features fire engines, historic boats, steam and horse-drawn vehicles, sawmill hardware and heritage vehicles, all presented within a lively, family-friendly setting. Open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 am to 3 pm.

Location: Brian Waugh Lane, Hokitika aerodrome reserve

More About Greymouth

That’s it for our guide to the best museums on the West Coast; for more information about other attractions, check out the following articles:

Finally, if there’s anything we’ve missed, you’re likely to find it in 10 West Coast Must-Dos.

Sources:

The information in this guide has been compiled from our extensive research, travel and experiences across New Zealand and the South Pacific, accumulated over more than a decade of numerous visits to each destination. Additional sources for this guide include the following:

Tourism New Zealand (General travel advice - Updated [2025])
Adventure Mark (Health and Safety Audit - Updated [2025])
Work Safe NZ (Adventure Activities Guidelines - Updated [2025])
Department of Conservation (Tracks, hikes, campsites and more - Updated [2025])
AdventureSmart (Know before you go - Update [2025])
NZ Māori Tourism (Official Māori Tourism platform - Updated [2025])
Tourism Export Council New Zealand (Tourism trade association - Updated [2025])
TIA (Independent tourism association - Updated [2025])
Tiaki Promise (Care for people place and culture - Updated [2025])
Council websites and freedom camping maps (Local travel advice region by region - Updated [2025])

Our editorial standards: At NZ Pocket Guide, we uphold strict editorial standards to ensure accurate and quality content.

About The Author

Laura S.

This article has been reviewed and published by Laura, the editor-in-chief and co-founder of NZ Pocket Guide. Laura is a first-class honours journalism graduate and a travel journalist with expertise in New Zealand and South Pacific tourism for over 10 years. She also runs travel guides for five of the top destinations in the South Pacific and is the co-host of over 250 episodes of the NZ Travel Show on YouTube.

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