Good museum with free admission. There is an impressive 200 year old Maori War canoe Te Winika and…read moreother carvings, interesting exhibits and information about local white settlers and Maoris, 60 paintings by Melvin Day and historical photographs of the All Blacks. There is modestly priced ($2.50 for two hours) parking adjacent to the museum.

Great theatre, but really this is a review to thank the staff. They got me the movie poster that…read moremeant so much to me and saved it for me despite it being in demand, waited until i madee it back to Hamilton and throughout were friendly and helpful. You have no idea how much that piece of Elvis history means to me so thanks again everyone!!

I think that it's an all round okay theater. Expect all the standard stuff like junk food and…read moredrinks. The theatres aren't as big as other theatres I've visited. It doesnt have anything that truly make it stick out.

Great concert venue in the centre of Hamilton - not as far away as one might think to see…read moreinternational acts that choose to play out of Auckland. Friendly staff and lots of bar and food areas dotted on both floors. The only downside is the field turned into a carpark with no signage and a logjam of traffic preventing escape at the end of the night. Trapped in Hamilton - gulp!

The Riverlea Theatre hosts wonderful events throughout the year with casts comprised of local and…read moreregional adults, adolescents, and children. In 2023, my family and I were lucky enough to find tickets for "Frozen Jr". Because both shows sold out so quickly, we knew it was going to be a great show. And the cast and volunteers did not disappoint. We had an absolutely amazing time! The venue is relatively small, but that makes for a quaint atmosphere. The acoustics are decent. And the offerings at the refreshment stand are quite good. They even have wine or beer! Be sure to donate $5 to the redevelopment fund when you go.

I've only just had my first visit to Huntly Speedway and it was pretty fun, if you're into stock…read morecars and dirt track racing. So, it does have a good feel and atmosphere about it. There are some food stands that serve some usual "event" fare - burgers, fries, hot dogs, etc. You can bring in some of your own stuff as well. We went on New Year's Eve, which was apparently, very busy by usual standards. I was mostly going to hang out with my friend that is really into the racing AND because there was a fireworks show for the holiday. However, I stayed because I really ended up enjoying myself. The food was good (though I had to wait an awfully long time for a burger and fries). The toilets were actually really nice (which was unexpected). And the racing was entertaining. It costs $2 to park and there was plenty of parking available. There are wooden bench seats and also grassy areas. You can bring a cushion or a fold-up, camp-style chair to sit in if you like. There wasn't alcohol being served (which, I found actually refreshing because most everyone had good behaviour and I wasn't embarrassed to have my 5-year-old there with us). The tickets were reasonably priced and they have a family package for pricing (if you have the traditionally 2-adult, 2-kid scenario you can save a bit). I will happily attend the races on another day (fireworks or not) and would recommend this as a family-friendly activity to do while you're in the Waikato.

I suppose it will be helpful to put this review into context by saying I'm American and I've lived…read morein Hamilton for nearly a year. I only just went to see a movie at this cinema for the first time last week. Man, do I wish I had been here sooner! I think it's fair to generalize that most American cinemas are over-priced, over-run by rude patrons (often teenagers) and the experience is somewhat hectic... get there early to get a good seat, feel financially raped by the cost of concessions and the ticket, wait in line to get your tickets torn before you can finally go into the theater. This, my friends, is a totally different way to go to the movies. Now, I don't know if all cinemas in New Zealand are like this, but if so, we're doing it all wrong in the U.S. My husband and I went for a date night. These cinemas are located on the upper level of the Centre Place mall. You go up the escalator into a dimly lit, large lobby area that is reminiscent of a club. In fact, club music is playing, there are video monitors showing dancing shapes and designs and there is a lounge area with couches, lounge chairs and cool little tables. We went up and asked for two tickets (the prices here are comparable to U.S., happened to be $15/adult). We noted that alcohol was available for purchase. We asked if it could be consumed in the theater - sure thing! We ordered a bottle of wine to share since we were seeing a 3 hour movie. We were given glass wine glasses and were told that we could sit in the lounge to start enjoying our wine while the movie showing before ours let out. We also ordered "hot food." I'd say this is a step up from U.S. offerings. We each ordered a meat and cheese pie and kumara fries. We were informed the food would be delivered to our seats. How do they know how to find you? Well, here, you are given assigned seats within the theater. She asked us where we wanted to sit and I wasn't sure how to answer because I've never been to a place where you have an assigned seat. We just said, "the middle," and we were happy with the seats we were given. While we were marveling in the lounge over our wine, a staff member came by to say, "I can tear your tickets and you can go into your movie now." It was so calm and relaxing, no one rushing because your seat is already assigned. The seats are spacious and there is considerable space between the rows, much to the delight of my tall, long-legged husband. We put the wine bottle in our cup holder between us. Our food was delivered to our seat. I'm going with a 4-star rating here because the kumara fries left much to be desired. The pies were warm and good. The only thing I see missing here is a table for eating. I guess I imagined something like an airline tray that folds out of the armrests or something. Balancing the food on our laps was less awesome, but still, overall, we were pretty blown away by the experience.

Love this place. Can watch movies, drink alcohol, and eat hot food all at once. What else could you…read morehope for?

SkyCity is a chain of casinos in New Zealand. Hamilton has one. So does Auckland. Join the Rewards…read moreClub and you see immediate returns, e.g., free parking in their on-site car park. Moreover, you get some deep discounts at the restaurants and bars in the facility, like The Local TapHouse and Eat Burger. The customer service is top-notch for a casino and not comparable with the US where people working in the casino pass by you if you're not a high-roller. (I lived in Las Vegas for two years, so this is coming from someone with experience). The variety of games doesn't parallel that of the US, and table games open after 3pm usually. However, with COVID, they've been catch-as-catch-can. Still, have a good time, loosen up, and good luck!

So we joined SkyCity Auckland and decided to stop here. It wasn't bad…read more Restaurant options for sure. Not many machines, most of the same. I wish there was a little more variety. So if you go to cash out, if you have anything that amounts to less than $5, you might as well play it until you win $5+, but do not even bother with change. We had $26.53, wouldn't give you the $1.63, so we went and gambled it. We checked out the bowling alley, not terrible pricing. The golf simulator was quite expensive. About as expensive as some rounds of golf, and you can play a round of 18 in 3.5+ hours. For only 1/2 hour it was $45. Luckily we only left with losing $4.00.