Pompallier Mission offers one of New Zealand's most enjoyable heritage tours and is the country's oldest industrial building, having been built in 1842 by the French Marist Brothers. It was originally a printery where Catholic missionaries translated religious texts into Māori before printing and binding them into beautiful books, it now provides a fascinating insight into the lives and times of the nineteenth-century French missionaries. The building itself features unique architecture, surrounded by award-winning gardens and wonderful views across the bay. Tour times are dependent on the season and there is an entry fee for the garden walk.
