5 Best Sights in Upper South Island and the West Coast, New Zealand

War stories are brought to life with actual historic planes placed in settings dramatized by New Zealand's Oscar-winning special-effects teams Weta Digital and Wingnut Films. The planes are from famed director Sir Peter Jackson's collection. World War I–era planes, and the stories of their pilots, are showcased in the Knights of the Sky exhibition. Dangerous Skies focuses on aviation development during World War II. There's also a café and shop.

Westport is a town based around coal, and the stories, challenges, and hardships of mining on (and under) the high plateau behind the town are related in this interactive museum. Hogging the limelight is the 8-ton coal wagon, perched on the 45-degree angle just as it would have been when descending the famous incline, off the Denniston Plateau. Museum entry is through the Westport i-SITE Visitor Centre.

For a small-town operation this local, community-run museum has a lot to look at. The rustic little building features an exhibit and memorial for the 1929 earthquake here, in which 17 locals died and many more were made homeless. There's also a good collection of farming and agricultural machinery from the town's colonial era, plus displays on the region's gold and coal mining history. The museum is run by a few volunteers who make a valiant attempt to open regularly.

On the site of New Zealand's first museum, the city’s provincial museum explores the first Māori residents and early European settlements, the city's development as a port, and general events that shaped the region. Exhibits include a rare collection of Māori musical instruments. There are heritage pieces donated from private collections and regular visiting exhibitions.

Picton's seafaring history is captured with a wealth of memorabilia showcased in this quaint and worthy museum. The area was first a key Māori settlement called Waitohi, then an important whaling and sealing location for European immigrants in the early 19th century. Until 1860, all trade and travel was done by sea.