Akaunui Homestead – A Kiwi Country Welcome
- Last Updated: 11 Nov 2025
- Publish Date:
- Moatrek
- Meet the locals, NZ Food & Wine, NZ Things to do, South Island Tours
As we travel south from Christchurch across the Canterbury Plains, the skies seem to stretch forever. Just past Ashburton we turn off the main road and follow our nose towards the coast, fields give way to a stately red-brick home tucked into emerald lawns and blooming borders — Akaunui Homestead. It’s the kind of place that draws a quiet “wow” before anyone’s even stepped off the coach.
Akaunui isn’t a tourist attraction, it’s a family home on a working farm. We’re guests of Ian and Diana Mackenzie, who welcome us like old friends — often with the dogs trotting over first. There’s birdsong in the trees, the gentle clink of teacups on the verandah, and the warm scent of something tasty from the kitchen. From the moment we arrive, the pace softens; we’re not visiting a venue, we’re visiting friends.
We’ve been bringing travellers on our New Zealand small group tours here for years, and it’s the day everyone talks about. A home-cooked lunch in the garden, stories shared around the table, a wander through the trees and the veggie patch — it all blends into one very Kiwi moment.
Many of our guests have told us this visit is the highlight of their entire New Zealand trip. It’s simple, warm, and genuine — exactly why we travel.
So, welcome to Akaunui Homestead: a real slice of Kiwi country life, where history, hospitality, and home-grown goodness meet. Come on — let’s hop down, stretch our legs, and go say hi to Ian and Di.
Meet the Mackenzie family
When we say Akaunui is a family home, we mean it. Ian and Diana (Di) Mackenzie are true-blue Kiwi farmers and the warmest hosts you’ll meet. Ian’s roots run deep — his family’s been in New Zealand since the 1840s. The red-brick homestead was built in 1905, and the Mackenzies took it on soon after World War II. They raised their three children here, and you feel that history the moment we step inside: family photos on the walls, well-loved furniture, stories in every corner.
Di is a former schoolteacher and the heart of the garden and kitchen — an avid gardener and a brilliant cook who picks veggies in the morning and serves them at lunch. Ian is a lifelong farmer — a classic Kiwi bloke with a hearty laugh — and he’s played leadership roles in grain and seed farming, so there’s always a good yarn if you’re curious about rural life.
What we love most is how Ian and Di greet everyone personally and how quickly names and faces become familiar. Within minutes, we’re chatting like old friends.
We’ve known the Mackenzies and been friends with them for a long time now, this year marked the 25th anniversary of MoaTrek groups visiting Akaunui, that’s right, we’ve been visiting Ian and Di and enjoying their hospitality for 25 years!
What our guests thought of their Akaunui visit
We have never explored an entire country before like this, and it was a trip of a lifetime. We loved our special lunch at Akaunui Farm Homestead with Di and Ian Mackenzie. They were such gracious hosts!
Susan, USA. 21-Day Kakapo Tour, March 2025.
Historic Akaunui Homestead
The first time we turn up the drive, there’s always a ripple through the coach — that red-brick Edwardian beauty suddenly fills the windscreen, and everyone leans in for a better look. Built in the early 1900s, Akaunui has broad verandahs and a wraparound balcony that feel like they were designed for long summer afternoons and good yarns. It’s listed as a historic place by Heritage New Zealand
and lovingly kept, so when we say “classic New Zealand farmhouse,” this is the picture in our heads.
We love that first step onto the veranda: the cool shade, the creak of old timber, sunlight slipping across polished floors inside. Those thick, old walls and delicate fretwork aren’t museum pieces — they’re part of a home that’s still very much lived in. Family photos line the hallway, the kind you pause over and smile at; you can almost chart a century of country life in a few frames.
Every time we arrive, it feels less like visiting a landmark and more like being welcomed into a story that’s still being written.
MoaTrek guest memories of Akaunui
I thoroughly enjoyed this tour. It was well organised with thoughtful choices of venues combined with comfortable accommodation. The visit to Akaunui Homestead was so special and very memorable.
Helen, Australia. Kiwi 12-day tour, December 2024.
Exploring the Gardens of Akaunui with Diana
Outside, the gardens seem to roll on forever — about 12 hectares / 30 acres of lawns, woodland, and water. Originally laid out more than a century ago, they’ve been nurtured with Di’s passion and hard work into a beautiful garden. We wander along easy paths past towering old trees, vibrant borders, and the prettiest pond you’ll ever see. Depending on the season, roses tumble over arches, azaleas and rhododendrons burst into colour, and there’s always birdsong in the trees.
There’s a natural side too — a stretch of wetland where you might spot ducks and herons, and if you’re lucky, a cheeky fantail flitting along beside us. And then there’s Di’s famous veggie patch and orchard: the source of so much of our lunch. If there’s fruit in your dessert, chances are it has come straight from those trees.
We take our time here. Di leads us on a gentle ramble, sharing gardening tips and favourite corners; Ian points out a special tree or two; the dogs trot along happily. Guests are free to wander, sit by the pond for photos, or simply stand and breathe it all in.
On sunny days we’ve even had a few golf shots over the pond or some quick backyard cricket — it feels less like a tour stop and more like visiting friends. (Di jokes the lawns are her weekly workout — the ride-on mower gets quite the workout keeping everything immaculate!)
Akaunui is a working farm – Ian shows us around
And just beyond the garden, we’re reminded this isn’t just for show—it’s a working dairy farm. After exploring the garden, Ian takes us over to the milking shed for a look around and a chat about the farm. He’s here every day, boots on, doing the real work, and it shows. It’s nothing like a staged “farm experience” at a big attraction—this is the genuine article, and that’s exactly why our guests love it.
Visit Akaunui Homestead on our Kakapo 21-day New Zealand tour
Visiting Akaunui and meeting Ian and Di is one of the highlights of our New Zealand tours. So many of our guests say that Akaunui was their favourite stop on the whole trip. With so many special, off the beaten track experiences and unforgettable activities, that’s a big achievement!
Find out more about our Kakapo 21-day New Zealand small group tour here.
Home Cooked Country Lunch
This is the bit everyone talks about. By the time we sit down at Akaunui, the table’s loaded — Di has whipped up a proper country lunch, the way it should be – from the farm to the table. Think ham, lamb, or beef (often their own), carved nice and thick, with big bowls of veggies and salads she has picked that morning from the garden. Nothing out of a packet — it’s all fresh and seasonal, and you can taste it.
Di’s the queen of the little touches: a homemade chutney here, warm bread or a rustic pie there, herbs snipped seconds before they land on the plate. And yes, save room for dessert — a fruit crumble or a classic pavlova piled with whatever’s ripe from the garden. There’s usually a bit of home baking for later too. We’ll raise a glass of New Zealand wine, or keep it cosy with a good coffee or tea — your call.
On a fine day we eat outside under the trees, in the garden with birds chattering away. If it’s cooler, we head into the homestead dining room — polished wood, old family china, lovely and snug. Either way, the vibe’s the same: easy, friendly, plenty of laughs. Ian and Di sit down with us, share a few stories, trade a gardening tip or two, and before you know it, we’re all chatting like mates. It doesn’t feel like a tour stop — more like lunch at friends’ place. And that’s exactly why our guests love it.
How did our guests enjoy the lunch at Akaunui?
We really enjoyed stopping at the farms and having a meal with the locals prepared by the locals. Our favourite was Akaunui Homestead. They were very gracious and made our experience remarkable. We felt like we truly experienced all the regions of New Zealand and tasted a bit of the local culture.
Theresa, USA. Kaka 17-day tour, January 2025.
Akaunui Homestead – A Real Slice of Kiwi Country Life
Akaunui is the kind of place you won’t find in a guidebook. It’s a private family home on a working farm, and the Mackenzies open it just for us — that’s the magic. You’re not visiting a venue; you’re stepping into real Kiwi life.
What stays with people isn’t just the beautiful garden and homestead — it’s the hospitality. Ian chats about the farm and its history; Di points out prize blooms or family photos. Someone pats the farm dog, someone leafs through an old album, and suddenly you’re spending an afternoon with friends, not “on tour.”
Guests often say the hardest part is leaving. Names remembered, easy conversation, warm laughs — no one’s in a hurry. Sometimes Ian will show a paddock or bit of farm kit, and Di might share a veggie tip or preserve recipe — small moments that become special memories.
In the busy world we live in, Akaunui invites you to slow down, share food and stories, and feel at home. It’s the kind of encounter travellers carry with them long after the last photo.
Christmas at Akaunui – a MoaTrek Kiwi Guide memory
A few years ago, I was guiding our Kakapo 21-day tour, and right on Christmas Day we were scheduled to visit Akaunui. Running tours over Christmas sometimes means having to make alternative arrangements, as people are meeting family or closing businesses.
But this was not the case at Akaunui, Ian and Di insisted we drop in, so we did! It was a wonderful experience for everyone, sharing a Christmas afternoon tea on the lawn and meeting all their family! For all our travellers away from their own families at Christmas, it made the day.
Andrew, MoaTrek Kiwi Guide.
Visiting Akaunui Homestead on your MoaTrek Tour
Akaunui Homestead is a special stop on our New Zealand small-group tours, and it’s only possible to visit as part of a tour like ours — the homestead isn’t open to casual visitors. That’s what makes it such a standout: you’re welcomed into a private family home, not a public attraction.
If you’d love to include Akaunui in your New Zealand journey, you’re in luck — we visit the Mackenzies on all our New Zealand tours.
Keen to learn more? Take a look at our New Zealand small-group tours and see which departure suits you, or get in touch to ask a question or download a brochure here.
We’re MoaTrek — New Zealand’s leading small group tour operator — and sharing places like Akaunui Homestead with our guests is exactly what we love to do. Come join us for lunch in the garden; we’d love to have you at the table.
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- Moatrek
- Meet the locals, NZ Food & Wine, NZ Things to do, South Island Tours
