The finest passenger liner ever to fly the New Zealand flag.
She was built by Vickers Armstrong Ltd, Barrow in Furness in 1936 for service on the Trans-Tasman services of the Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand.
Her lovely Maori name means "Eye of the Dawn". Able to do a fast 23 knots, and as such was one of the fastest liners afloat.
In the late 1930s, the elegant ocean liner was the fastest and most luxurious merchant ship in the Southern Hemisphere.
It was probably the most aesthetically pleasing liner of her era. At over 13,000 tons,
the ship's sleek twin-funnelled profile suggested the lines of an art deco greyhound.

In its day the Awatea was the ultimate in speed and comfort in the Southern Hemisphere.