Waitomo is a
district-typeTerritorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. There are 73 territorial authorities: 16 city councils, 56 district councils, and the Chatham Islands Council...
municipalityA municipality is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a city, town, or village, or a small grouping of them. A municipality is typically governed by a mayor and a city council or municipal council.The notion of municipality...
in the north of the
King CountryThe King Country is a region of the western North Island of New Zealand. It extends approximately from the Kawhia Harbour and the town of Otorohanga in the north to the upper reaches of the Whanganui River in the south, and from the Hauhungaroa and Rangitoto Ranges in the east to near the Tasman...
region in the
North IslandThe North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
of
New ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous smaller islands, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands. The indigenous Māori named New Zealand Aotearoa, commonly translated as The Land of the Long White Cloud...
. A small part of the district, the town of Tiroa, however, lies in the
Manawatu-WanganuiManawatu-Wanganui is a region in the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand, around the city of Palmerston North and the town of Wanganui.-Administration:...
Region.
The district is a
ruralRural areas are large and isolated areas of a country, often with low population density.About 91 percent of the rural population now earn salaried incomes, often in urban areas...
, predominantly
dairyA dairy is a facility for the extraction and processing of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. Typically it is a farm or section of a farm that is concerned with the production of milk, butter and...
farming, region. The seat of the
Waitomo District Council is at
Te KuitiTe Kuiti is a small town in the south of the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand. It lies at the junction of State Highways 3 and 30 and on the North Island Main Trunk Railway, 80 km south of Hamilton....
, which has a population of 4,419. No other village in the district has a population of over 500.
Waitomo is a
district-typeTerritorial authorities are the second tier of local government in New Zealand, below regional councils. There are 73 territorial authorities: 16 city councils, 56 district councils, and the Chatham Islands Council...
municipalityA municipality is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a city, town, or village, or a small grouping of them. A municipality is typically governed by a mayor and a city council or municipal council.The notion of municipality...
in the north of the
King CountryThe King Country is a region of the western North Island of New Zealand. It extends approximately from the Kawhia Harbour and the town of Otorohanga in the north to the upper reaches of the Whanganui River in the south, and from the Hauhungaroa and Rangitoto Ranges in the east to near the Tasman...
region in the
North IslandThe North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
of
New ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses , and numerous smaller islands, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands. The indigenous Māori named New Zealand Aotearoa, commonly translated as The Land of the Long White Cloud...
. A small part of the district, the town of Tiroa, however, lies in the
Manawatu-WanganuiManawatu-Wanganui is a region in the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand, around the city of Palmerston North and the town of Wanganui.-Administration:...
Region.
The district is a
ruralRural areas are large and isolated areas of a country, often with low population density.About 91 percent of the rural population now earn salaried incomes, often in urban areas...
, predominantly
dairyA dairy is a facility for the extraction and processing of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. Typically it is a farm or section of a farm that is concerned with the production of milk, butter and...
farming, region. The seat of the
Waitomo District Council is at
Te KuitiTe Kuiti is a small town in the south of the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand. It lies at the junction of State Highways 3 and 30 and on the North Island Main Trunk Railway, 80 km south of Hamilton....
, which has a population of 4,419. No other village in the district has a population of over 500. The district's total population at the 2006 census was 9,441, of whom 39% were
MāoriThe Māori are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand . The group probably arrived in southwestern Polynesia in several waves at some time before 1300...
. The district has a land area of , 94.87% of which lies in the Waikato Region and only 5.13% in the Manawatu-Wanganui Region. The Waitomo district was declared in 1976.
The area's main industries include sheep farming,
forestryForestry is the art and science of managing forests, tree plantations, and related natural resources. The main goal of forestry is to create and implement systems that allow forests to continue a sustainable continuation of environmental supplies and services...
, and
limestoneLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geologic record...
quarrying.
The area is known for the popular
KarstKilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after a Yugoslavian geologist Karst. It will consist of about 30 individual...
Waitomo CavesThe Waitomo Caves are a village and cave system forming a major tourist attraction in the southern Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand, 12 kilometres northwest of Te Kuiti. The community of Waitomo Caves itself is very small, though the village has many temporary service workers...
, 12 kilometres northwest of Te Kuiti. Numerous other
caveA cave or cavern is a natural underground void large enough for a human to enter. Some people suggest that the term cave should only apply to cavities that have some part that does not receive daylight; however, in popular usage, the term includes smaller spaces like sea caves, rock shelters, and...
s are found in the
limestoneLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geologic record...
rock of the Waitomo district.
Waitomo also has an old style hotel first built in 1908 and added onto in the 1930's. Waitomo Caves Hotel overlooks Waitomo Village.
External links