The present site of Wānaka was first surveyed in 1863, and settlement increased in Pembroke (the old name for Wānaka) during the 1870s because of timber milling in the Matukituki and Makarora Valleys and the use of Lake Wānaka for transport.
Wānaka is believed to be named from the word Wānaka which is a South Island form of wānanga, meaning sacred knowledge or a place of learning. Residents changed the named from Pembroke to Wānaka in 1940.
Tourism in the town began in 1867 with the opening of the first hotel, by Theodore Russell and in 1883 the Theodore, a paddle steamer, offered cruises for tourists on the lake.
https://www.lakewanaka.co.nz/plan-your-trip/history-of-the-wanaka-region/