Little Earth Model Village
On yer bike!
Little Earth Model Village is New Zealand’s first major model village, OPENED 1ST SEPTEMBER 2005
West Coast identity, Alan Hunt, has spent the last 16 years passionately modelling real West Coast towns, building from England that inspire him and whimsical buildings that amuse him.
Growing all the time, Little Earth contains:
Waiuta 1930’s
Reefton 1960’s (indoor)
Maori Marae
Gnomeland
English Village
WAIUTA
1930’s Waiuta, the South Island’s richest known gold field, the first model village to be placed, has been recreated true-to-scale (1/12) in miniature with approximately 200 buildings on over ¾ acre. Using black and white photographs he painstakenly modelled the public and private buildings that made Waiuta, including figures and accessories to bring the town alive. Landscaping for this village took 12 months to complete before it could be opened.
Waiuta was a booming gold mining town 60km east of Greymouth. It closed overnight with a collapse of one of its mine shafts in 1951, was quickly deserted and is now a ghost town with only a few buildings remaining. The real Ghost Town of Waiuta can be visited today and has interesting walks, relics and interpretation panels to give you a sense of life in the town.
REEFTON
1960’s Reefton is housed indoors on a 4.8m x 2.4m table. It is complete with indoor house and outdoor street lighting.
Reefton, known as the “Town of Light” is famed for being the first town in the Southern Hemisphere to offer a public supply of electricity. In the corner of this model village is another smaller model village of “Beckonscot”, the English Model Village that first inspired Alan to begin his modelling when he visited in 1991.
A miniature English Village and Nursery Rhyme Village is now also underway, and don’t forget to visit the gnomes and fairies abound in the make-believe village of Gnomeland.
More Information
Children are welcome
Children's age is under 15 years old
Infants age is under 5 years old
Family Pass availabe at $28.00, Please contact us to take advantage of this discount.
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