Whakatāne

Whakatāne (/fɑːkɑːˈtɑːnə/ fah-kah-TAH-ne, Māori pronunciation: [fakaˈtaːnɛ]) is a town located in the Bay of Plenty Region in the North Island of New Zealand, 90 kilometres (56 mi) east of Tauranga and 89 kilometres (55 mi) northeast of Rotorua. The town is situated at the mouth of the Whakatāne River. The Whakatāne District is the territorial authority that encompasses the town, covering an area to the south and west of the town, excluding the enclave of Kawerau District.

Whakatāne has an urban population of 16,850, making it New Zealand's 33rd-largest urban area and the Bay of Plenty's third-largest urban area, after Tauranga and Rotorua. Another 21,950 people live in the rest of the Whakatāne District. Around 42% of the population identify as having Māori ancestry, and 66% as having European/Pākehā ancestry, compared with 17% and 72% nationally (some people identify with multiple ethnicities).

Whakatāne is part of the parliamentary electorate of East Coast, currently represented by Dana Kirkpatrick of the New Zealand National Party. The town is the main urban centre of the eastern Bay of Plenty sub-region, which includes Whakatāne, Kawerau, and Ōpōtiki, stretching from Otamarakau in the west to Cape Runaway in the northeast and Whirinaki in the south. Whakatāne is also the seat of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, which was chosen as a compromise between the region's two larger cities, Tauranga and Rotorua.