Last updated October 2026
Westmere is a rural suburb on the northern side of Whanganui, set among lifestyle properties and farmland rather than city streets. It takes in the country along Rapanui Road, including the bush reserve around Westmere Lake, known in Māori as Roto Mokoia. Local families pushed for a school here in the 1890s, and that school is still the main community anchor.
The same road continues to Bason Botanic Gardens, while the district’s main treated-water reservoirs sit in the wider Westmere area. For visitors it is an easy country detour. For residents it is open land with a primary school and a short run back into town.
Official Suburb Facts
- Population (2023 Census)
- About 1,470, up 7% since 2018
- Land area
- 39.85 km²
- Location
- 7.6 km north-west of central Whanganui
- Council
- Whanganui District Council
- Neighbouring suburbs
- Kai Iwi, Brunswick, Castlecliff, Otamatea, Springvale, Tawhero
- Ward or local board
- Whanganui Rural Community Board. A General Ward and a Māori Ward each cover the whole Whanganui District.
- Getting there
- Rapanui Road from Whanganui. State Highway 3 also serves the wider Westmere area, including the Westmere water facility.
- Schools
- Westmere School, a state co-educational primary for Years 1 to 8, on the corner of Francis Road and Rapanui Road.
- Nearby landmarks
- Westmere Lake / Roto Mokoia; Bason Botanic Gardens; Westmere School.
Who Lives in Westmere
About 1,470 residents in 570 households. From the 2023 Census, with the New Zealand figure alongside for comparison.
In Westmere
Places and businesses inside the official Westmere boundary.
Places
About Westmere
Westmere sits beyond the built-up edge of Whanganui, on land long valued for its high-class soils. Council planning studies have treated this northern hinterland as a place where lifestyle sections and smallholdings have steadily replaced larger farm blocks, especially near the main roads.
The result is a mixed rural landscape: working farms, larger residential lots, shelter belts and open paddocks, with the city still close enough for work, sport and weekly shopping.
The name on the map is shared with the lake. Whanganui District Council describes Westmere Lake / Roto Mokoia as a designated wildlife refuge at 98 Rapanui Road: a nine-hectare lake inside about 20 hectares of bush and tracks, with a mix of native and exotic plants and birds.
Dogs are not allowed. The reserve is on the way to the botanic gardens, so many people pair a short stop at the lake with a longer visit further along the road.
Westmere School is the suburb’s clearest community landmark. It is a state primary for Years 1 to 8 on the corner of Francis Road and Rapanui Road. The push for a school began with a petition in 1890.
In 1892 the Education Board took a one-acre site on the corner of Tayforth and Kai Iwi Roads, settlers put up a shed, and in 1894 a proper classroom was built.
Miss Emma P. Laird was the first teacher. The school history records that local families supplied the labour, and that the Laird family remained tied to the school across generations.
Further out on Rapanui Road, Bason Botanic Gardens gives its address as 552 Rapanui Road, Westmere. Stanley and Blanche Bason gifted their 25-hectare farm and homestead garden to the city in 1966 so it could become a botanic reserve rather than a conventional park.
The homestead garden remains, conservatories were added later, and the gardens site lists opening from 8am to dusk, with conservatories from 9am to 4.30pm. Dogs are not allowed there either.
Westmere also has a quiet role in the district’s water supply. Council says an auxiliary bore sits at the Westmere water facility on State Highway 3, chlorine is added at the Westmere reservoirs, and three reservoirs there each hold 23,000 cubic metres.
A rural water scheme for Westmere is fed from those reservoirs, while the same storage helps supply the city. Day-to-day shops and most services are back in Whanganui, which is part of the trade-off for living on the rural edge.
Getting Around
Rapanui Road is the practical spine of Westmere. It runs out from the city past the lake and on toward the botanic gardens and the coast. State Highway 3 is the other main route associated with the area, including the Westmere water facility.
Side roads such as Francis Road and Tayforth Road matter locally, especially around the school, but this is not a suburb of footpaths and frequent buses. Most trips are by car. Allow a little extra time at school drop-off and pick-up, when Rapanui Road and Francis Road are busy.
Getting Outdoors
Outdoor time in Westmere is rural rather than urban-park style. The standout public spots are the wildlife refuge at Roto Mokoia and Bason Botanic Gardens further along Rapanui Road. The lake reserve has unpaved walking trails through bush, with water, birds and a mix of native and exotic planting.
The gardens add homestead plantings, conservatories and a much larger planted landscape on former farmland. Both are dog-free. Beyond those reserves, the suburb is mostly private farmland and lifestyle properties, so stick to public roads and marked public areas.
History and Heritage
Westmere’s recorded Pākehā settlement is tied to late nineteenth-century farming and the school. Settlers had to fund half the cost of the first school site, build the early rooms, and keep the roll high enough for the Education Board to support a teacher. That pattern, of a small rural district organising its own amenities, still shows in the way the school functions as a local focus.
The Bason gift is the other defining story. John and Mary Bason bought land at Rapanui in 1900, and Stanley grew up on the farm. After years of debt he and Blanche built an exceptional homestead garden, then offered the debt-free property to the council in 1966 for a botanic reserve.
Farming groups at the time argued it was a waste of good land. The council accepted the gift, and the reserve has been developed since, including conservatories completed in 1980.
Planning history tells a third strand. Council case studies of the Westmere block, north of the urban boundary, found ongoing demand for lifestyle properties on Class 1 and Class 2 land from the 1990s into the 2010s. That is why the suburb reads as country living close to town, not as a conventional residential grid.
Near Westmere
Just outside Westmere, within 10 km of its centre, nearest first.
Places
Businesses
Where to Learn More
Whanganui District Council: Westmere Lake / Roto Mokoia: Official reserve page with location, wildlife-refuge status and the no-dogs rule.
Westmere School: History: The school’s own account of the 1890s petition, first site and first teacher.
Bason Botanic Gardens: Stanley Bason story: How the 25-hectare farm was gifted in 1966, plus visitor hours and the Westmere address.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Westmere part of Whanganui?
Yes. It is a suburb in the Whanganui District, on the rural edge north of the city, reached mainly by Rapanui Road.
What is Roto Mokoia?
It is the Māori name for Westmere Lake, a designated wildlife refuge at 98 Rapanui Road. Council describes a nine-hectare lake within about 20 hectares of bush and tracks.
Can I bring a dog to Westmere Lake?
No. Whanganui District Council states that dogs are not allowed at Westmere Lake / Roto Mokoia. Dogs are also not allowed at Bason Botanic Gardens.
Is there a school in Westmere?
Yes. Westmere School is a state co-educational primary for Years 1 to 8, on the corner of Francis Road and Rapanui Road.
Where do people in Westmere shop?
There is no large shopping centre in the suburb. Most day-to-day shopping and services are in Whanganui.
How do I get to Westmere?
Drive out of Whanganui on Rapanui Road. State Highway 3 also serves the wider Westmere area, including the Westmere water facility.
Who represents Westmere at the council?
A General Ward and a Māori Ward each cover the whole district. Rural issues are also taken up by the Whanganui Rural Community Board.
When is Bason Botanic Gardens open?
The gardens site lists the grounds from 8am to dusk and the conservatories from 9am to 4.30pm. Check the gardens website before you travel, because hours can change.
Spotted something incorrect on this page? Let us know.
Explore Whanganui only lists suburbs officially recognised by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), and Westmere is one of them. Suburb boundary: LINZ, CC BY 4.0.