The Acoustical Society of New Zealand holds its 2026 biennial conference, Acoustics 2026, at Trinity Wharf in Tauranga from 2 to 4 November 2026 — the first time the event has been hosted outside a main centre. Under the theme '… And now for something completely different!', it gathers acousticians, researchers and students for keynotes, concurrent technical sessions, a trade show and social functions.
Acoustics 2026 is the biennial conference of the Acoustical Society of New Zealand (ASNZ), running from 2 to 4 November 2026 at Trinity Wharf in Tauranga. According to the official conference site (asnz2026.co.nz), the 2026 edition carries the deliberately light-hearted theme "… And now for something completely different!" — a nod to the fact that, as ASNZ notes on acoustics.org.nz, this is the first time the society's conference has been hosted in a city outside one of New Zealand's main centres. The programme opens with registration and the trade show at 9:00am on Monday 2 November and closes on Wednesday 4 November with student prize awards.
The conference is organised by the Acoustical Society of New Zealand, with event management handled by OnCue Conferences. ASNZ describes itself on its own site as the home of New Zealand acoustics and is an Incorporated Society whose membership spans acoustics professionals, academics and other interested parties. The society publishes the journal New Zealand Acoustics, runs branch meetings in major centres across Aotearoa New Zealand, and participates in international standards work including ISO committee reviews. The biennial conference is an established fixture, with recent editions held in 2018, 2022 and 2024 before the 2026 Tauranga event.
The conference is aimed at acousticians, consultants, researchers and students working across New Zealand's acoustics community. Per the organiser, the three-day programme pairs keynote presentations with concurrent technical sessions and a trade show. Social and networking elements include a Welcome Function at the Tauranga Club on the Monday evening and the Hushtec Gala Dinner at Classic Flyers on the Tuesday, with a choice of a GIB factory tour or a city tour offered during the event. A separate NZTA Waka Kotahi road-traffic-noise workshop is listed as an add-on on Thursday 5 November.
The conference is held at Trinity Wharf Tauranga, a waterfront hotel built over Tauranga harbour in the city's central business district. As neutral logistical context, regional tourism body Bay of Plenty NZ lists the property with a theatre capacity of 325, a banquet capacity of 250 and 122 on-site guest rooms across seven flexible meeting spaces — a scale consistent with a national association conference and its trade show, and one that lets many delegates stay on site. ASNZ advises on its conference page that Tauranga is reachable by road in roughly 2.5 hours from Auckland or by a domestic flight of about 45 minutes, with the venue itself sitting within the Tauranga CBD. This information is provided as reporting on delegate movement and accommodation.
Acoustics 2026 is a recurring, nationally significant association conference, and its move to Tauranga is itself the story: ASNZ states this is the first time its biennial gathering has been staged outside a main centre, signalling the growing capacity of regional Bay of Plenty to host professional and scientific meetings that have traditionally gone to Auckland, Wellington or Christchurch. For the New Zealand business-events sector it is a clear example of association conference activity — complete with a trade show, technical programme and multi-day social calendar — dispersing to secondary cities, bringing specialist delegates and spend into the Tauranga visitor economy.
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