Arts Centre

Christchurch

Dating from 1877, this enclave of Gothic Revival buildings was originally Canterbury College, the forerunner of Canterbury University. The buildings are now reopening to the public after extensive restoration work due to quake damage. Inside you'll find the visitor information centre i-SITE, and shops, cafes, museums and galleries. Exhibition spaces play host to regular concerts, rehearsals, markets and events. Of the centre's 23 buildings, 21 are listed by Heritage New Zealand as category 1 Historic Place structures.

If there's nothing on during your visit, you can still wander in and check out the North Quad and Great Hall in all their restored heritage splendour.

Contact

Address

2 Worcester Blvd

Get In Touch

https://www.artscentre.org.nz/

Suggest an edit to this attraction

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Botanic Gardens
0.16 MILES
Strolling through these 30 blissful riverside hectares of arboreal and floral splendour is a consummate Christchurch experience. Gorgeous at any time of…
Christchurch Art Gallery
0.16 MILES
Damaged in the earthquakes, Christchurch's fantastic art gallery has reopened brighter and bolder, presenting a stimulating mix of local and international…
Quake City
0.32 MILES
A must-visit for anyone interested in understanding the impact of the Canterbury earthquakes, this compact museum tells stories through photography, video…
Giant’s House
25.74 MILES
An ongoing labour of love by local artist Josie Martin, this whimsical garden is really one giant artwork, a combination of sculpture and mosaics that…
Akaroa Museum
25.4 MILES
An arduous post-quake revamp has rewarded Akaroa with a smart, contemporary regional museum. Learn about the various phases of the peninsula's settlement,…
Canterbury Museum
0.07 MILES
Yes, there's a mummy and dinosaur bones, but the highlights of this museum are more local and more recent. The Māori galleries contain some beautiful…
Cathedral Square
0.4 MILES
Christchurch's city square stands at the heart of the rebuilding efforts, with the remains of ChristChurch Cathedral emblematic of what has been lost. The…
Okains Bay Māori & Colonial Museum
24.2 MILES
Northeast of Akaroa, this museum has a respectable array of European pioneer artefacts, but it is the nationally significant Māori collection, featuring a…

View more attractions

Nearby Christchurch attractions

1. Central Art Gallery

0.01 MILES

Housed in the Arts Centre's beautifully restored 1916 Library building, the Central Art Gallery exhibits contemporary works by established and emerging NZ…

2. Teece Museum of Classical Antiquities

0.02 MILES

Part of the University of Canterbury, this petite, well-designed museum has an interesting collection of Greek, Roman and Egyptian antiquities.

3. Rutherford's Den

0.02 MILES

Canterbury College's most famous alumnus was the father of nuclear physics, Lord Ernest Rutherford, the NZ physicist who first split the atom in 1917 …

4. Canterbury Museum

0.07 MILES

Yes, there's a mummy and dinosaur bones, but the highlights of this museum are more local and more recent. The Māori galleries contain some beautiful…

5. Christchurch Art Gallery

0.16 MILES

Damaged in the earthquakes, Christchurch's fantastic art gallery has reopened brighter and bolder, presenting a stimulating mix of local and international…

6. Botanic Gardens

0.16 MILES

Strolling through these 30 blissful riverside hectares of arboreal and floral splendour is a consummate Christchurch experience. Gorgeous at any time of…

7. Te Papa Ōtākaro/Avon River Precinct

0.27 MILES

One of the city's key post-earthquake redevelopment projects is reinvigorating the area around the Avon (Ōtākaro) River. Running along the river as a self…

8. Bridge of Remembrance

0.27 MILES

This majestic bridge and archway spanning the Avon River is a memorial to those who lost their lives in two world wars and conflicts in Vietnam, Borneo,…

View more attractions

placement: superzone
path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],

targeting:

{
  "url": "new-zealand/christchurch-and-canterbury/christchurch/attractions/arts-centre/a/poi-sig/426714/362659",
  "destination": "Christchurch",
  "continent": "Australia-&-Pacific",
  "country": "New-Zealand",
  "city": "Christchurch",
  "position": "superzone"
}