Last updated November 2026
New Zealand’s naval history is kept in a set of old harbour-defence buildings on King Edward Parade in Devonport. The Torpedo Bay Navy Museum is the National Museum of the Royal New Zealand Navy, and it describes itself as the kaitiaki, or guardian, of the Navy’s memory. Its galleries tell the story of the men and women who have served at sea, through ships’ items, clothing, medals, photographs, art and recorded memories.
The museum is open every day of the week except three public holidays, and New Zealand residents get in free. A café with a children’s playground sits on the site, looking out over the Waitematā Harbour.
Practical Information
- Address
- 64 King Edward Parade, Torpedo Bay, Devonport, Auckland
- Opening hours
- 10am to 5pm, seven days a week; closed Good Friday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day
- Entry
- Free for New Zealand residents; charged for international visitors aged 18 and over; see the museum’s visit page for prices
- Café
- Torpedo Bay Café, with harbour views and a Navy-themed children’s playground
- Phone
- 09 445 5186
- Museum of
- The Royal New Zealand Navy (its national museum)
- Status
- Check the Navy Museum’s website before you go.
About Torpedo Bay Navy Museum
The museum’s home has a long military past. Kōtuia, the national museums directory, notes that New Zealand military forces have occupied the Torpedo Bay site continuously since 1880. From the mid 1880s it was developed as a submarine mining station, the base for harbour mines that formed a key part of Auckland’s early defence system.
The museum says the Torpedo Bay site is among the most intact nineteenth-century mining establishments left in New Zealand, and Kōtuia calls it the most substantial and intact 19th-century mining base to survive in the country. The original buildings were redeveloped to house the museum’s galleries.
The site uses the name Te Hau Kapua alongside Torpedo Bay. The museum’s full name in te reo Māori is Te Waka Huia o Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa, and it keeps a reference library, a medal collection and an oral history archive whose recorded interviews include veterans’ memories going back to the First World War.
The Galleries
The permanent displays look at what the Navy has given to New Zealand’s identity, and the museum arranges them around four values: courage, commitment, comradeship and integrity. Across the exhibition halls you can follow the Navy’s story through the First and Second World Wars, later conflicts in Asia, the nuclear age and the Navy’s work in peacetime.
The collection takes in ships and ship items, artefacts, clothing, photographs, medals, art and ephemera. The museum also has a shop.
Like Auckland’s outdoors?
Explore Auckland Weekly has a walk or park idea every week, plus local news and weekend picks. Free every Thursday.
Free. One email a week. Unsubscribe any time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Torpedo Bay Navy Museum?
At 64 King Edward Parade, Torpedo Bay, Devonport, on Auckland’s North Shore.
What are the opening hours?
10am to 5pm every day, except Good Friday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
Do you have to pay to get in?
New Zealand residents get in free. International visitors aged 18 and over pay an entry charge, listed on the museum’s visit page.
Is it the official Navy museum?
Yes. It is the National Museum of the Royal New Zealand Navy.
What was the site used for before the museum?
It was a submarine mining station, part of Auckland’s early harbour defences, and military forces have used the site since 1880.
What do the galleries cover?
The Navy’s story from the First World War through the Second World War and later conflicts to its peacetime work, told through objects, photographs, medals, art and veterans’ memories.
Is there somewhere to eat?
Yes. Torpedo Bay Café is on site, with harbour views and a children’s playground.
Spotted something incorrect on this page? Let us know.
Related links 3
- Navy Museum: Visit: opening hours, entry, the café and the shop.
- Navy Museum: Torpedo Bay Timeline: the history of the site from the mining station to the museum.
- Kōtuia: Royal New Zealand Navy Museum: the national museums directory entry, with facilities and collection strengths.