Thousands of people have attended events in Waitangi in northern New Zealand, to celebrate the country's national day.

From the dawn ceremony to the numerous local performances and powerful words, Waitangi Day 2025 was one to remember, but a highlight would have to be the record turn-out of waka.

The Tauranga Moana Waitangi Day Festival commemorates the signing of the Treaty and acknowledges Tauranga’s multicultural, multi-ethnic make-up. Photo / Benjamin Parkinson Tauranga City Council ...

And while tensions between Māori and the Crown had calmed down relative to previous years, there was no shortage of protesters this Waitangi Day, Smith remembers. According to the news reports at ...

Prayers as dawn awakened for Waitangi Day...known as New Zealand's national day, which drew the biggest crowd in three decades. It was an early start at the ...