- Where
- South Pacific, about 800 km east
of New Zealand’s South Island - Coordinates
- 43.9500° S
176.5600° W - Time
- 45 minutes ahead
of mainland New Zealand - People
- 612 (2023 census)
on Chatham and Pitt islands - First people
- Moriori
(Hokotehi Moriori Trust) - Getting there
- Air Chathams, about 2 hours
from Auckland, Wellington or Christchurch - Best visited
- Year-round; summer is mildest
- Advisory
- New Zealand Level 1
The clock on the airport wall disagreed with mine by an untidy amount, and nobody seemed to find that odd. Outside, the trees grew sideways, combed flat by a wind that did not let up, and the road ran past grey lagoons to a long beach with black rocks and white surf and nobody else on it. I walked the whole of it and back, and it was still empty.
The short answer
The Chatham Islands (Moriori: Rēkohu, “Misty Sun”; Māori: Wharekauri) are an archipelago of about ten islands in the Pacific about 800 kilometres east of New Zealand’s South Island, administered as part of New Zealand. Wikipedia describes the two largest, Chatham Island and Pitt Island, as the only inhabited ones; the 2023 census counted 612 people, most of them on Chatham Island, where Waitangi is the main settlement and port. The islands include New Zealand’s easternmost point, the Forty-Fours, and sit on the Chatham Rise, a submerged plateau of the largely sunken continent of Zealandia; Wikipedia records that they rose above the sea only within the last four million years. The Chatham Islands Council, set up in 1995, runs them with powers much like a unitary authority’s.
Why it's worth knowing
Forty-five minutes. The Chathams keep their own time zone, 45 minutes ahead of mainland New Zealand, including during daylight saving. Wikipedia notes that it is one of very few time zones anywhere that differs from its neighbours by something other than a whole or a half hour; the islands’ visitor site adds that the International Date Line was moved so that they share New Zealand’s day.
The Moriori. The first people of the islands are the Moriori. Wikipedia describes them as Polynesians who came from the New Zealand mainland, probably in the fifteenth century; the Hokotehi Moriori Trust, which represents them, records the tradition that their earliest ancestors, led by Rongomaiwhenua and Rongomaitere, came directly from the eastern and central Pacific. About two thousand people lived here as fishers and hunter-gatherers, under a law, attributed to their ancestor Nunuku-whenua, that outlawed bloodshed. In November and December 1835 about nine hundred Māori of Ngāti Mutunga and Ngāti Tama arrived from Wellington on the brig Lord Rodney. The Moriori met and kept to their law of peace. Wikipedia records that more than 260 of them were killed and the survivors enslaved until 1863; by then about 160 Moriori remained. In 2021 New Zealand passed the Moriori Claims Settlement Act, giving effect to a settlement that included a Crown apology and NZ$18 million in redress, Wikipedia reports. At Kōpinga Marae, opened in January 2005, the central pillar Rangitokona carries the names of the Moriori alive in 1835, the Trust records.
The field notes
Old Blue
In 1980, Wikipedia records, the black robin, a small bird found only on these islands, was down to five birds on Little Mangere Island, with a single breeding female, known as Old Blue. The New Zealand Wildlife Service team led by Don Merton moved them to Mangere Island and increased each year’s breeding by moving the first clutch of eggs to the nests of Chatham Island tomtits, which raised the chicks while the robins laid again. Every black robin alive is descended from Old Blue. Wikipedia’s article gives about 390 birds in 2026 in one place and about 300 in another.
Wind and stone
The climate is cool, wet and windy: Wikipedia gives summer highs of 16 to 20 °C and a record high at Waitangi of just 23.8 °C, and describes the akeake trees with branches trailing almost flat in the lee of the wind. Much of the land was cleared for farming and is now fern or pasture. On the north-west coast of Chatham Island, at Ohira Bay, an outcrop of basalt stands in tall, close-packed columns; the islands’ visitor site says the lava came from eruptions about 80 million years ago, and that the columns are on private land.
Carved trees
Without greenstone or plentiful timber to carve, Wikipedia records, Moriori cut figures into the trunks of trees, rākau momori, most of them human forms, some of fish and birds. Some survive in the Hāpūpū / J M Barker Historic Reserve, one of only two national historic reserves in New Zealand, and the Hokotehi Moriori Trust works to preserve them.
Waitangi, the islands' main settlement, on its bay, February 2023.
Photograph: Kristina D.C. Hoeppner · Waitangi, Rēkohu (52784323692) · CC BY-SA 2.0
A Chatham Island oystercatcher on the tideline, February 2023.
Photograph: Kristina D.C. Hoeppner · Chatham Island Oyster Catchers (52785332728) · CC BY-SA 2.0
Schist at Kaingaroa Beach, September 2018.
Basalt columns on the shore, March 2023.
Photograph: Kristina D.C. Hoeppner · The Basalt Columns (52784893746) · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Book your bed and a way of getting about before you fly, then put your clock forward on landing and smile at how far.
- Walk one beach its whole length. I listed it as a single item, and the beach turned out long enough to need three.
- The fields here are farms, and the gates are the farmers’. Ask before you open one, and close each behind you.
- If you are welcomed onto the marae, go gently, listen properly, and let your hosts tell you what they wish to tell.
- Eat whatever the sea gave up that morning, and ask who brought it in.
The basalt columns at Ohira Bay. An outcrop of olivine basalt on the north-west coast of Chatham Island, cooled from lava into tall, close-packed columns standing at the edge of the sea, their tops worn by the water. The islands’ visitor site dates the lava flows to about 80 million years ago. They are on private land, and a visit is arranged in advance.
Tally, in the marginGrey stone posts packed close along the tideline, their tops worn smooth. Half my lunch was gone before I saw how carefully I had chosen which one to sit on, like a seat at a crowded table.
Getting there
How to get there. By air. Air Chathams flies to the islands’ Tuuta Airport from Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, about two hours each way, on regular weekday flights, according to the islands’ visitor site; Wikipedia notes that the timetable varies with the season. Freight comes by ship, about two days’ sailing, which Wikipedia says is too long for most passengers and not always available.
When to go. Year-round; summer is mildest. Expect wind and rain in any month.
What to arrange ahead. Everything, before you fly. The islands’ visitor site says there are no camping grounds and that accommodation must be booked before arrival; there are no taxis or airport bus, so arrange transport with your hosts or hire a vehicle; and most attractions, including the basalt columns, are on private land and need to be arranged in advance. The Hokotehi Moriori Trust welcomes visitors to Kōpinga Marae, where first-time visitors are greeted with a hokomaurahiri, a ceremony of welcome; contact the Trust before you go.
Safety. The State Department has New Zealand at Level 1, exercise normal precautions, its lowest level (29 April 2026). The hazards are the place’s own: weather, the sea, and distance. Waitangi has a hospital with a resident doctor, Wikipedia records.
Mark this place
Common questions
Where are the Chatham Islands?
The Chatham Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific about 800 kilometres east of New Zealand’s South Island, administered as part of New Zealand. Chatham Island and Pitt Island are the only inhabited islands, and the 2023 census counted 612 people there.
What time zone do the Chatham Islands use?
The Chatham Islands keep their own time, 45 minutes ahead of mainland New Zealand all year, including during daylight saving. Wikipedia notes that it is one of very few time zones offset by something other than a whole or a half hour.
How do you get to the Chatham Islands?
By air with Air Chathams, which flies to Tuuta Airport on Chatham Island from Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, about two hours each way. The islands’ visitor site advises booking accommodation and transport before arrival, as there are no camping grounds or taxis.
Who are the Moriori?
The Moriori are the first people of the Chatham Islands, which they call Rēkohu. They are Polynesians whose ancestors settled the islands, probably by the fifteenth century, and lived under a law of peace attributed to Nunuku-whenua. The Hokotehi Moriori Trust represents them today.
What happened to the Moriori in 1835?
In late 1835 about nine hundred Māori of Ngāti Mutunga and Ngāti Tama arrived in the Chatham Islands from Wellington. Wikipedia records that more than 260 Moriori were killed and the survivors enslaved until 1863. In 2021 New Zealand passed the Moriori Claims Settlement Act, giving effect to a settlement that included a Crown apology.
What does Rēkohu mean?
Rēkohu, the Moriori name for the Chatham Islands, means “Misty Sun”, according to Wikipedia. The Māori name is Wharekauri. The English name comes from HMS Chatham, whose crew landed on 29 November 1791.
Can visitors go to Kōpinga Marae?
Yes. The Hokotehi Moriori Trust describes Kōpinga Marae on Chatham Island, opened in January 2005, as a welcoming place for visitors, who are greeted on their first visit with a hokomaurahiri, a ceremony of welcome. Contact the Trust before visiting.
How was the black robin saved?
In 1980 the Chatham Islands black robin was down to five birds, with one breeding female, Old Blue. Don Merton’s Wildlife Service team moved the robins’ first clutches each year to the nests of Chatham Island tomtits, so the robins laid again, and every black robin alive descends from Old Blue.