As part of the Moananuiākea Voyage, the Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS) announces that voyaging canoes Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia will soon depart Rarotonga, Cook Islands, for Aotearoa (New Zealand). This next leg of the voyage marks a historic return to Māori waters and will include six months of educational engagements, crew and leadership training, and canoe maintenance.

The canoes are currently in Rarotonga, where they have been cared for by the Rarotonga community and voyaging ʻohana, and awaiting the arrival of the Leg 15 crew and a favorable weather window for the two to three-week, open-ocean journey to Aotearoa. The first half of the Leg 15 crew departed Honolulu on a flight to Rarotonga yesterday. While the original sail plan included stops in American Samoa, Samoa, and Tonga, forecasted weather and ocean conditions necessitated the decision to sail directly to Aotearoa, which is the same route taken 40 years ago on Hōkūleʻa’s first voyage to Aotearoa. PVS plans to visit those island nations next year in April or May 2026 as the circumnavigation of the Pacific continues.

“Aotearoa, land of the long white cloud, I mean, an extraordinary place. It is a powerful definition of our country, Polynesia,” PVS CEO Nainoa Thompson said. “They reminded us about how much and how connected they are to their earth, to their oceans, to their place, and the things that they fortify in their world that they bring into the 21st century.”

“So we want to use this time very wisely in the time that we are there and see if we can do one thing, bring our Polynesian people together, especially from the voyaging communities, train together, work together and look at the transition of leadership to the next 50 years,“ he added.

Honoring 40 Years Since Hōkūleʻa’s First Landfall in Aotearoa

This visit to Aotearoa carries deep historical and cultural significance. It will commemorate the 40th anniversary of Hōkūleʻa’s first landfall in New Zealand in 1985, when the canoe arrived at Waitangi, giving birth to the Hawaiian tribe Ngāti Ruawāhia and helping spark a Māori voyaging renaissance. The journey stands as a tribute to the Waitangi and greater Te Tai Tokerau communities who have nurtured our relationship for the last 40 years, the people who were part of the first landing, the enduring connections between the Hawaiian and Māori peoples and to the navigators and teachers who had the vision of unifying Polynesia through the revival of voyaging. This upcoming leg will be Hōkūleʻa’s third time sailing to Aotearoa. The canoe’s last visit was during the Worldwide Voyage in 2014.

Weather permitting, Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia are expected to arrive at Te Tii Bay on November 14, 2025, followed by a pōwhiri, a formal, sacred Māori welcoming ceremony at Te Tiriti o Waitangi Marae from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. On November 15, there will be a dawn ceremony to unveil a special carving representing Ngāti Ruawāhia, and a 40th Tribute ceremony is scheduled for 10 a.m. honoring Sir James Henare, Sir Hector Busby and Hawaiian leader Myron Pinky Thompson, Nainoa’s father who served as PVS president for about two decades. The canoes will remain at Te Tii Bay through Sunday, November 16, with a series of events hosted by Te Tiriti o Waitangi Marae, with community support and in collaboration with the Polynesian Voyaging Society and Kamehameha Schools.

On Sunday, November 16, weather permitting, Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia will depart Waitangi for Auckland to participate in the World Indigenous Peoples’ Conference on Education (WIPCE) at which PVS CEO Nainoa Thompson is scheduled to deliver a presentation on Wednesday, November 19 about the 40-year voyaging relationship that has flourished between Hawaiʻi and Aotearoa. Upon arrival in Waitematā Harbor on Tuesday afternoon, November 18, the canoes will be formally welcomed by the Ngāti Whātua Orākei tribe. The following day, they will be docked in the vicinity of the New Zealand Maritime Museum, where public engagements and dockside canoe tours may take place to connect local communities with the voyaging mission.

Later on November 19, weather-permitting, the canoes will north from Auckland for Aurere, the homeland of the late Māori Pwo Navigator and waka builder Sir Hector Busby, where the crew will honor his leadership and role in reviving Māori voyaging.

Extended Stay and Future Ports of Call

The extended six-month stay in Aotearoa will also allow the canoes to wait out the South Pacific hurricane season before continuing the Moananuiākea Voyage. During this time, the canoes will be hauled out for dry dock repairs and maintenance. The current plan is also for Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia to depart Aotearoa in April or May 2026, sailing on to Tonga, Samoa, and American Samoa, followed by Melanesia and Micronesia in the latter part of the year.

Air travel for the crew at the start and completion of each leg is made possible by the support of Hawaiian Airlines, a lead sponsor and long-time supporter of the Polynesian Voyaging Society and its Moananuiākea Voyage.

Further details about the canoes’ schedule and community engagements in Aotearoa will be announced as they are confirmed. For the latest updates on the Polynesian Voyaging Society and the Moananuiākea Voyage, follow PVS’s social media: @hokuleacrew on Facebook and Instagram. The live voyaging tracking map and updates can also be found at www.hokulea.com.