Akaroa & The Bays

Autumn is here & we have two specials running:!

* School Holiday Deal: one child travels free per paying adult

(Book with the Akaroa iSite or directly with us: easternbaysscenicmailrun@gmail.com)

* April/May Deal: Buy 3 adult tickets & get the 4th free (same day)

(This deal is only available directly with us: easternbaysscenicmailrun@gmail.com)

Check out the Mail Run Trip details on our Facebook page, here.

We look forward to taking you out with us!

This package includes a night accommodation in one of our family units at the Akaroa Waterfront Motels and one tour with Pohatu Penguin for 2 adults and 2 kids (under 14yo).

Pohatu is the largest Australasian Little Penguin colony on mainland New Zealand and conservation based tours allow you to participate and support 30+ years of conservation effort.

Tour options are: Guided Sea Kayaking tour (3.5 hours) OR Evening Penguin tour (3 hours) (departure time changes through the year).

Sea Kayaking Safari

Explore the outer coast of Pohatu Marine Reserve by kayak and marvel at its spectacular towering cliffs, rock stacks, reefs, and deep sea caves.
Flea Bay Island and the impressive island arch make an added exciting attraction in settled sea conditions. Observe the diverse wildlife and marine species such as penguins, seals, various sea birds and possibly the world's smallest dolphin!
Best of all, no kayaking experience necessary! Trips are only run in settled, safe conditions by experienced and knowledgeable guides. Your safety is our top priority.

Tour includes:

• Scenic drive by 4WD mini vans from Akaroa
• Photo-stops along the way with commentary about the area
• Fully guided by experienced staff
• All kayaking gear (life jackets, dry jackets, spray deck, dry bags for cameras...)

Evening Tour

First, you will set off with a walk around the colony to monitor nesting sites and make sure that our Little Penguins are doing well. Then, you will have the opportunity to spot the penguins undisturbed from our hides, socializing on the water with our binoculars and our telescope. At dusk we have a high likelihood to see some penguins returning to shore and relaxing on the rocks before heading to their nests.

Tour includes:

• Scenic drive by 4WD mini vans from Akaroa
• Photo-stops along the way with commentary about the area
• Fully guided by experienced staff

For more information and bookings, call us on 03 304 7484 or email us at info@akaroawaterfront.co.nz

Comte de Paris 180, an exhibition open now at Akaroa Museum

From April to June, Akaroa Museum remembers the French and German settlers who arrived in Akaroa on the Comte de Paris in 1840.

A new exhibition at Akaroa Museum, Comte de Paris 180, includes photographs and stories of some of the 58 Comte de Paris settlers, pictures of the houses they lived in and details of their land holdings.

Descendants of the de Malmanche, Lelievre, Libeau and Breitmeyer families provide their thoughts on what it means to be part of those families.

Landing re-enactments, now a highlight of French Fest, started in 1940 and are now an important demonstration of descendants’ pride in their heritage.

Photograph caption:  Settlers landing re-enactment as Akaroa participated in New Zealand’s centennial celebrations, 1940, Akaroa Museum Photo:149

Life al-Fresco is definitely over for the summer! The chill weather sends us inside for 15 and 16 May - 10 to 4pm at the Presbyterian Hall in Akaroa. $80 for both days, $50 for one. 

General Information.
Dates: 15 and 16 May 2021
Start time: 10am to 4pm each day, 1-hour lunchbreak
Venue: Presbyterian church hall, rue Lavaud, Akaroa
Course Cost: $80 for both days or $50 for one day

Contact: art@akaroaarts.co.nz

Winter is here and do not fear we have some quizzes lined up to keep you entertained and laughing! Anddddd we have a super duper special for anyone doing the quiz - $29 for a Pasta and house wine or beer! what a great winter warmer! 

Teams of 4 fit perfectly around our tables and bookings essential as we have limited capacity! email amy@mamaison.co.nz to book or go online to www.mamasion.co.nz/reservations and select the Quiz Night option!

The Gaiety Trust and Arts on Tour Presents

Brave Caitlin Smith’s Imaginary band

(Sonic Soul Food)

Sunday 23 May 2021

$25 Ticket, Cash Bar Available

Tickets available at the Akaroa Museum 

The Gaiety

Doors Open at 6.30pm, Show starts at 7.30pm.

More Info:

Caitlin Smith is a mesmerising performer, song-poet and story singer. Legally blind since birth, she is a tireless advocate for accessibility issues and the healing and transformative power of creativity.

A vocal and song-writing coach to many of our best known artists, Caitlin Smith combines poetry and music in unforgettable performances that include her original compositions as well as covers penned by her musical heroes.

“…a voice that imagination created” – Mike Alexander

Brave Caitlin Smith’s Imaginary Band:

Caitlin Smith (piano and vocals), Mark Laurent (guitar) and Steve Cournane (percussion and cymbals). A dream team performing jazz and folk music.

Caitlin Smith's latest album ‘You Have Reached Your Destination’ creates a multisensory universe unto itself - Braille and a tactile labyrinth within the cover art, poetry and footsteps recorded between 14 originals.  A mesmerizing, prolific and passionate performer, originals are sandwiched between the tastiest overs, especially the repertoire of her spiritual parents Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen.

The Caitlin Smith Trio (and earlier incarnation The Fondue Set) have held down well-loved residencies in Auckland for over two decades.  2021 marks the release of a collaboration/CD with the Auckland Jazz Orchestra ‘East of the Sun’. Caitlin Smith’s tour in 2020 with ARO was Covid interrupted so Caitlin Smith is delighted to be able to return. 

The Band:

Mark Laurent has been a professional musician for over 40 years. He plays rock, blues, reggae, alt.country, folk, soul/jazz/gospel, working solo, in bands and duos. He’s recorded many albums, written 200 songs, and worked as producer/session musician on numerous projects. He’s also an author, with 4 books of poetry published, and an illustrated children’s book.

Steve Cournane is a drummer and composer who began playing with the Alpaca Brothers in Dunedin, in 1984.  Steve won a Tui for NZ Jazz album of the year in 2002 for the album Stereoscope by CLBob. This group released three albums and performed relentlessly around the country over a ten-year period.  In 2007 he moved to Lima, Peru, where he survived as a musician while studying the coastal Afro-Criolla music for another seven years. He moved to Auckland in 2017 and currently plays cajón with Isla Flamenca (with Ian Sinclair) and drum-kit with BOAT and Bill Direen.

See you at The Gaiety!

No strangers to Akaroa, wannabe-locals Jed Parsons (CHCH) and Gareth Thomas (AKL, of 'Goodshirt') are teaming up to play a very special show in their family and ancestors' hometown of Akaroa.

Parsons' appearance is one of 19 on his album release tour across New Zealand. The album, 'Brunch', has been a hit with listeners, critics and many publications including Rolling Stone Magazine. RNZ calls the closing track Breathe one of the best songs of the year while claiming nobody is writing catchier choruses in Aotearoa right now in another review. His set will feature songs from both his recently released collection of songs and his 2018 IMNZ Debut Album of the Year finalist 'Midnight Feast'.

Gareth Thomas (who will be accompanied by Fazerdaze's Amelia Murray) is a master architect of indie pop simplicity. Whether it’s delivering the iconic singles Sophie and Buck It Up as part of legendary local act Goodshirt, or crafting clever computer-driven tunes under his own name, Gareth’s left of centre approach to a catchy hook has continued to evolve alongside his legacy as one of Aotearoa’s most innovative artists. Over his career he has released two critically acclaimed solo albums (with a third on its way), and performed alongside The Dandy Warhols, The Flaming Lips, Hall & Oates, Dave Dobbyn and The Mockers.

This show will be as special for both performers as it will be intimate and entertaining for the audience; they both have a strong sentimental connection with the town. Gareth achieved local-legend status when he helped to revive The Gaiety Hall with his mother Dale Thomas, and Jed's Armstrong ancestry runs particularly deep.

Come and enjoy Ma Maison's incredible hospitality and food, and a wonderful evening of entertainment. Ticket + Pasta ticket available, for the deal of the century.

Purchase your tickets via www.undertheradar.co.nz/gig/75073/Jed-Parsons-And-Gareth-Thomas.utr

Ma Maison will be doing a pasta special $30 without a gig ticket / $25 with a gig ticket

Fraser Ross & Amiria Grenell are embarking on a South Island tour this winter. Both of these folksingers are working on new albums and have decided to hit the road to share their songs, old and new.

FRASER ROSS
‘New Zealand’s best kept musical secret’
—Capital Times

‘His music, which has traditional folk roots, has a wonderful way of breaking free from genre’
—The Wireless

‘Like a Kiwi Billy Connolly’
—The View, Scotland

Eccentric-folk musician Fraser Ross returned to New Zealand in 2020 after living in Scotland was cut short. He has supported bands such as Phoenix Foundation, French for Rabbits, The Nudge, and Nadia Reid.

His first two EPs, And Birds Do Sing (2009) and To Places (2012) established him as a serious talent and a brilliant, loud-shirted presence within the New Zealand underground. His two LPs, Mongrels (2015), and Life is Magic, Where is My Rabbit? (2018) confirmed this.

Ross has played at numerous arts festivals, including the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, LitCrawl Wellington, the Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival, Wellington City Summer Sounds, and the Christchurch Nostalgia Festival.

AMIRIA GRENELL
'You cannot pigeonhole an artist like this regardless of influence. One thing is certain, Amiria is, & her music is, simply wonderful. A musical tapestry so rich. '
- J. Hassles

Daughter of legendary Country musician John Grenell, Amiria grew up on a farm in Whitecliffs, Canterbury where her family hosted decades of music festivals in the back paddocks.
She has followed her heritage into a colourful and long standing career as a touring artist and respected songwriter.
Her crystalline voice finely balances between gentle restraint and emotive strength, with instrumentation that is equally impressive.
Winner of a Tui NZ Music Award for her album 'Three Feathers' & a finalist for the same award for her album 'Autumn', this songwriter is currently recording a whole new set of songs set to be released this spring.
Her style is New Folk & country. Her songwriting is honest, delicate and filled with a love of nature and adventures.

Purchase your tickets via: https://www.undertheradar.co.nz/gig/75019/Fraser-Ross-And-Amiria-Grenell---Winter-Tour.utr

Ma Maison will be doing a pasta special $30 without a gig ticket / $25 with a gig ticket 

Two of your comdey faves are coming to Akaroa... Ben Hurley & Justine Smith! 

You'll know both of them from TV's 7 Days, The Project, numerous Comedy Gala AotearoHA's and heaps more! 

To purchase tickets visit: https://app.kiwiticket.co.nz/#/events/iyc0yDNF0qfRGG6TfPZo

Escape to picturesque Akaroa and immerse yourself in French culture, entertainment and romance as we celebrate Banks Peninsula's unique history at the biennial Akaroa French Festival. 15th Oct 2021 through to 17th Oct 2021. www.akaroafrenchfest.co.nz