Roadside Stories
Roadside Stories is a series of audio guides that follow major road trips in New Zealand. The stories cover the places you’ll pass along the way – their people, their history, their cultural and natural significance.
You can explore Roadside Stories...
...on your device
The Roadside Stories app contains 12 tours of New Zealand, featuring 140 stops, each with a four-minute audio file and photos. You can download the tours before heading out on the road so you don't have to worry about paying for mobile data. Each tour includes a map to help you find the locations.




...on YouTube
You can view all the Roadside Stories, with added photos, on YouTube. Each tour of a New Zealand route is grouped as a playlist, so you can watch the whole tour, one story after another - or just the stories that most interest you.
...on iTunes
Download the Roadside Stories iBook or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, then sync the stories to your mp3 player and take them on the road.
... or by downloading the MP3s
Roadside Stories a la carte. Download every story, a whole tour, or select individual stories.
Archival audio sourced from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives. Sound files may not be reused without permission from Radio New Zealand Sound Archives
Auckland to Taupō
Download all 26 stops (134.8mb)
- 1. Tales of the Auckland waterfront
- 2. Auckland Harbour Bridge
- 3. Reclaiming Bastion Point
- 4. Maungakiekie - One Tree Hill
- 5. Eden Park - from swamp to sports ground
- 6. Bombay to Bombay
- 7. Mercer WW1 memorial
- 8. Rangiriri pā
- 9. Coal and clay from Huntly
Hamilton to New Plymouth
Taupo to Napier
Taupo to Bulls
Napier to Wellington
Wellington to Nelson
Auckland to Kerikeri and back
- 1. Rangitoto, Auckland’s youngest volcano
- 2. Creating a sanctuary – Tiritiri Matangi
- 3. Pūhoi, up the boohai
- 4. Peacocks and zebras on Kawau Island
- 5. Chowing down on the Matakana coast
- 6. Waipū, a Scottish settlement
Nelson to Wānaka via West Coast
Sponsors
Roadside Stories was produced by Manatū Taonga, the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Manatū Taonga works to enrich the lives of all New Zealanders by supporting our dynamic culture and preserving our heritage.