Thanks to Saphiya for this review!

We went here earlier in the year and although prices were steep, an adult being $26.00 we did the family pass of 2 adults and children for $52.00 and were told that we could enter and exit the village when we wanted and until the village was closed (but no, we didn’t stay the whole day!)

Firstly, there was a lot of space to park; it was so empty that we didn’t even need to use mobility parking. We were then introduced to the main entrance, a wooden and stable bridge over a river. It was nice and a tad of a thrill as it was a little rough to go over.

The service was friendly and we were briefly told about the actual village, but overall it was only okay. Interestingly, we were told that there was a wheelchair on site for use.

The pathways were very spacious and were levelled so it was easy to manoeuvre around. Indoor was also accessible – the indoor displays being especially spacious as well as the gift store.

The village was very scenic – which I was not expecting. There was a little waterfall that flowed into a river that contained rainbow trout. But as it was rather hard work to get to, I didn’t get to see it and stopped half way. However, as the paths were peppered with plaques containing information of the buried village, which were easy to read due to the height, I was able to entertain myself.

The overall atmosphere of the village was nice and somewhat powerful as it offered a lot of insight on Maori living and showed how the thoughts and views on how the destruction of the eruption of Mt. Tarawera affected them.

Unfortunately, I didn’t need to go to the bathroom (didn’t actually see them apart from the public ones in front of the village) so didn’t check how accessible they were but was told when paying admission that there was wheelchair access.

THE LOWDOWN:

• Service was okay and villagers offered smiles and offered support when needed.
• Both indoor and outdoor access as was full of easy paths that were very accessible as well as the indoor displays were and spacious.
• Visit was full of information to read and full of insight of Maori culture and scenic views but for me, personally, it was a bit too much reading and a bit boring.
• And finally – you must check out the gift store!
• Overall accessibility rating: 3.6/5

Check their website out at buriedvillage.co.nz for virtual tours, admission prices, directions/locations etc…