Shannon (New Zealand)
Shannon is a small town in the Manawatu region of the lower North Island of New Zealand. It is on SH 57 between Levin and Palmerston North.
Get in
By car
Shannon is 110km north of Wellington. Follow SH1 to Levin and the take SH57 to Shannon.
By bus
Intercity buses call at Shannon from Auckland, Wellington, Napier, Gisborne, Tauranga and New Plymouth. The bus stop for north bound buses is the bus shelter at 6 Ballance Street, and for south bound buses it is outside toilets at 7 Ballance Street.
By train
Kiwirail runs a train once per day Monday to Friday (not holidays) from Wellington departing at 5:15pm, calling at Paraparaumu and Levin, arriving at Shannon at 6:57pm, and continuing to Palmerston North. The morning service to Wellington leaves Shannon at 6:38am.
Get around
By car or on foot
See
- 🌍 Owlcatraz Native Bird and Wildlife Park, 44 Margaret St (SH 57). Thu-Mon 10am - 3pm. See Big Snow, the giant white steer. See the New Zealand owl, the morepork, or ruru. Meet Owlie Macpherson, Owl Capone and Owlvis Presley.
- 🌍 Mangahao Hydroelectric Power Station and dams. An operational power station, built between 1919 and 1924.
- Poutu Marae.
- 🌍 Shannon Railway Station. The station was built in 1893, with extension in 1902, 1910 and 1936. For the expert it is a Modified Vogel class 4 station.
Do
- Go kayaking at the Mangahao White Water Park 300m slalom course.
- Visit the Mangahao dams by trail bike.
- 🌍 Buckley Golf Club.
Buy
- 🌍 Four Square Supermarket, Plimmer Terrace. Sun - Thu: 7:00am – 7:00pm, Fri & Sat: 7:00am – 9:00pm.
Eat
- Take a break from driving and have lunch or a snack at the local cafe or tea rooms.
Drink
- Club Hotel, Ballance St.
Sleep
- 🌍 Club Hotel, 2 Ballance St, ☎ +64 6 362-7800. Budget accommodation.