Matariki Puanga

About Matariki Puanga

The rising of Puanga (also known as the star Rigel in Orion) and the Matariki star cluster (Pleiades, or the Seven Sisters) mark the Māori New Year, a time to remember our loved ones who have passed and to prepare for the New Year, as we enter the colder months. 

It is a special time to get together, to restore faith and hope for the future, to celebrate whanaungatanga (kinship), to be with others, to share stories and kai, and plan to work towards a sustainable future.

Puanga is a single whetū (star). It’s not part of the Matariki cluster but appears in the evening sky shortly before Matariki rises each year. Puanga can only be seen by a few iwi – those who are in parts of the Far North, Taranaki, Whanganui, Wellington, the Hutt Valley, and parts of the South Island. Puanga is the star acknowledged by our mana whenua iwi Te Āti Awa, while Ngāti Toa acknowledges the Matariki cluster. In Wellington we can see both Puanga and Matariki.

Matariki Ahi Kā

Āhea | When 6pm–9pm, Thursday 19 June - Sunday 22 June 2025
Ki hea | Where Wellington Waterfront | View on Google Maps, Te Papa | View on Google Maps
Te utu | Cost Free

We invite you to celebrate the Māori New Year in a uniquely Wellington way.

Honour our culture and history, with a big, bold, immersive Wellington Waterfront walk-through journey including fire, projections, performances, and a special ceremony each night honouring those who have passed away. Share kai with friends and whānau each evening at our kai courts.

The ‘Pōhutukawa & Hiwa-i-te-rangi’ ceremony is on each evening. From 6pm to 7.30pm, write down the names of loved ones who have passed since last Matariki, memories, wishes, and hopes for the future. Place these in the baskets provided at the Memorial Wall and Whairepo Lagoon.

The ceremony begins at the Barnett Street tomokanga (entrance) at 7.40pm, and will move along the Te Papa Promenade to Whairepo Lagoon. Our pāpā and tamariki will walk together and discover the story of the Matariki whetū (stars). At the Pōhutukawa and Hiwa-i-te-rangi locations, we will release the names and memories (Pōhutukawa), and the wishes and hopes (Hiwa-i-te-rangi), into the flames to rise to the stars.

See the new projection 'Super Star Waka - Te Waka Kāhui Whetū Nui', by the Dreamgirls Art Collective and Artificial Imagination, from the Te Papa forecourt. The artists say: Titiro ake! Look up! Come on a celestial journey as Te Ika a Māui gazes to the stars, seeking the stories of te moana, te whenua, and te rangi. Witness Puanga call in the new year with the Super Star Waka as it begins te haerenga mai Hawaiki ki Aotearoa and beyond!

View our stunning new light pou exhibition, 'Ka maumahara tonu tātou ki a rātou We Will Remember Them'. This powerful display features historical photographs and a sound installation, honouring the Māori Battalion and commemorating the passing of its last member, Sir Robert Gillies.

Special thanks to the National Gallery for providing the images, and to Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision for curating the evocative soundscape, which includes interviews and recordings from the Battalion’s return to Aotearoa, as well as songs from their concert in Cairo.

Event map

Download our event map below.

Visit this page later in June for stage programmes.

Food vendor registrations have now closed.

Event guide

Not sure what to expect at Matariki Ahi Kā? Read our handy event guide to help you prepare.

Matariki Ahi Kā 2025 event guide PDF version (1.16MB)

Matariki Ahi Kā 2025 event guide Word version (3MB)

Mana Moana Pōneke

Āhea | When 6pm–9pm, 7–8 June, 14–15 June, 19–22 June
Ki hea | Where Whairepo Lagoon | View on Google Maps
Te utu | Cost Free

In the lead-up to Matariki Ahi Kā and during the long weekend, enjoy Mana Moana Pōneke, a series of indigenous short films about our ocean, projected on a water screen. Watch as millions of water droplets fall and catch the light, creating the illusion of images appearing from the darkness and floating on the water.

This year’s Mana Moana Pōneke features fresh work - some pieces coming to the moana for the first time and some archival films speaking to the theme of futurism, activism, mobilisation and mana.

The films have been curated by Israel Randell (Rarotonga, Tainui, Ngāti Kahungunu) and are guided by the wise words of Moana Jackson: ‘In time, like te ao marama emerging out of te pō, mourning gives way to dreaming.’ Randell says her curatorial direction has been informed by the 50th anniversary of the land march led by Whina Cooper and how that time is mirrored again with our recent largest hīkoi ever to parliament.

Mana Moana Pōneke is a collaboration between Māori and Pasifika musicians, artists, writers, and choreographers. For more information, visit the Mana Moana website.

For event updates and cancellations please visit the Mana Moana Pōneke Facebook event page.

Transport and accessibility

To avoid parking frustration during this busy time, we encourage everyone to walk, bike, scoot, or use public transport. If you do drive, remember to Drive Safe and Drive Sober.

There won't be any road closures for this event.

• City parking information
• Council-owned car park buildings and areas
• Metlink train, bus, ferry and Cable Car schedules

The Waterfront is accessible and there are accessible toilets. There is an unmanned drop-off point at the Te Papa main entrance (view on Google Maps).

Find a mobility parking space

Other Matariki events

Matariki Puanga traditions in our region

He mihi nā te mana whenua o Te Upoko-o-te-Ika - an introduction from our mana whenua

Tērā Puanga ka rewa i te pae
Nau mai, hara mai ngā hua o te tau
Tākiri ko te ata, ka pua te ata
Korihi te manu tino awatea
Ko te tangi mai o te kō, kō korimako
i te atatū, tū ka takatū ki te ao mārama Tēnei
te raukura, tēnei te rauhuia, tēnā koutou
katoa

Behold the rise of Rigel.
Welcome the fruits of the new year.
As dawn strikes, morning blooms
The early bird calls.
It is the call of the bellbird
After sun rise, prepared for the world of light.
Here is the plume of the Toroa, here is the
feather of the Huia. Greetings to you all

In the last few years, Aotearoa New Zealand has embraced the celebration of Matariki, the Māori New Year. Riding the wave of interest from all walks of life, as mana whenua, we’d like to share some of the whakaaro (thinking) about the authentic Matariki tradition in Te Upoko o te Ika a Māui, and about the lesser-known single star Puanga.

Ngāti Toa and Te Āti Awa ki te Upoko o te Ika a Māui, alongside Wellington city and regional councils, have come together in acknowledgment of the shared significance of Matariki and Puanga.

We invite you and your whānau, iwi and communities to share in our knowledge and tikanga and explore the ways that we can all celebrate and uplift Matariki and Puanga this year.

Kura Moeahu – Tiamana (Chairman), Te Rūnanganui o Te Āti Awa ki te Upoko o Te Ika a Māui
Dr Te Taku Parai – Pou Tikanga, Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira

Highlights from previous year

See the photos below for an overview of Matariki Ahi Kā 2024.