Bream Head

Whangarei Heads

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Photo By:

Ben Nakagawa

When you book a New Zealand tour of Northland, chances are you’ll leave from Auckland and head for Paihia in the Bay of Islands with a short stop at Whangarei Falls. By day three, you’ll be in Opononi on the west coast for a day in the sand dunes or another bus trip into Waipoua Forest and the giant Kauri trees, then back to Auckland. You’ll see a little of Nortland. But, there’s a better, cheaper way to see more and pay less– rent or buy an auto or RV. Either way, you can wander off the main road and find beautiful country any place you wander.

If you spend the night in Whangarei– which I think is one of the best towns in New Zealand-- you might as well pack up a lunch and drive the short distance around the north side of Whangarei Harbour, past the airport, to Bream Head, a high bluff at the end of a peninsula that juts out into the Pacific Ocean. To the north, you’ll find Ocean Beach with its pounding surf and miles of isolated beach. We won’t be passing nearby Whangarei Falls yet. We’ll find them on our way to Tutukaka.

View From

Parua Bay Tavern

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Photo By:

sammijk

Riverside Drive takes you back over the Hatea River. Beyond the airport, you’ll find the Waimahanga Walkway, an easy 45 minute walk near the mangroves– remember nothing will bite you, so don’t worry about a snake with a bad disposition or an alligator hoping lunch will pass by. If you want to get wet then enjoy your lunch, Tamaterau is a good place to swim or windsurf. The Pines Golf Course, an 18 hole course with views of the harbour is also nearby. There’s a boat launch a little farther up Whangarei Heads Road at Parua Bay. With the airlines as fussy as they are now, you probably won’t bring your own boat, but you can have a beer in the Parua Bay Tavern on the water’s edge and watch the boats. Parua Bay is a small community about 2 kms from the boat launch. McLeod Bay, another swimming/picnic area is just across from Marsden Point, that spot where we checked out the harbour on our way into Whangarei. A small wooden church built in 1858 is still used for Sunday worship.

Bream Head

tramp

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Photo By:

svmarcy

Taurikura is easy to spot. It’s a natural volcanic rock causeway that disappears into the sea. Woolshed Bay is a popular anchorage for sailboats waiting for a daylight passage into Whangarei, a weather break, or just hanging out enjoying the scenery. From the car park in Woolshed Bay, you’ll find several walkways crisscrossing the Bream Bay Scenic Reserve. You’ll be glad you packed a lunch– or two– if you decide to explore. The entrance to these walks are at Urquharts Bay back a short way (see map), or Ocean Beach– where we’re headed. Like most New Zealand walkways, they’re well signposted. If you’re in really good shape, have the time, and brought a lunch or two, take the six hour (one way) walk and enjoy the view of the offshore islands and harbour views. There’s also a shorter 3 hour hike to Peach Cove and return. This is a kiwi sanctuary, so no dogs are allowed. You can find more information on hiking trails in this area at the Department of Conservation, DOC.

Ocean Beach

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Photo By:

svetlai

Only 35 kms from Whangarei, Ocean Beach is a nice day trip along the largest enclosed harbour in New Zealand. Along the way, you’ll have a chance to enjoy the water, do some beachcombing or maybe watch dolphin and orca glide in and out of the water. At Ocean Beach, you can beachcomb for miles to the north or poke around in the rock tide pools to the south.

However you spend your day, whether working up a blister on one of those long hikes, swimming and snoozing on the beach, or settling back in the pub with a few brews, remind yourself how glad you are you took the time to rent or buy a vehicle so you could spend a day in part of New Zealand the tour guide forgot to mention as the bus zipped past on the way to the Bay of Islands.

If you’re all worn out from all that hiking, swimming or snoozing and have a self-contained RV, there’s overnight parking at Whangarei Heads at Ocean Beach. You can also find a place to park the night at Parua Bay opposite the hotel or at Pataua South past the public toilet.

Next, we’ll be headed up the road to Tutukaka, but we’ll have to get back to Whangarei so we can get around the Parahaki Reserve.

Lyn Harris

RV in NZ: How to Spend Your Winters South in New Zealand

There's a Cheaper Way

Whangarei Falls

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Photo By:

Stephen Gould

We probaby picked one of the cheapest ways to travel New Zealand for an extended period. We bought our RV, traveled five months a year in New Zealand, freedom camping part of the time, then stored it on a kiwi farm for $16 per month and flew home to another summer in the states. If you don’t plan to return each year but want to spend several months poking around, really getting to meet the people and finding places off the tourist track, there are cheaper ways.


Hostels are scattered throughout New Zealand– and they are not cheap, smelly, out of the way accommodations for hitch-hiking hippies. Seven YHA Hostels are located north of Auckland. In a converted villa, Whangarei YHA, a ten minute walk to the center of town, overlooks Whangarei Harbour. There’s no age limit. Double and family rooms are available at most hostels and bed linen is supplied. Most have internet access, many have ensuite rooms (attached private bathrooms), some have facilities for people with mobility problems, and all have community kitchens and lounge area to relax or watch TV.


New Zealand hostels are busy from Christmas until about the third week of January when New Zealand schools are on their holiday break. Don’t show up without a reservation during that time. YHA New Zealand is part of the international YHA. Though privately owned, they adhere to the international standards of the YHA network. Rooms are available to YHA members and nonmembers– at an additional charge. If you join Hostelling International, Guest Cards can be purchased and are valid worldwide. Membership prices are inexpensive and can be purchased on the installment plan for about $4 per night. These cards also give you discounts on transportation and activities including a discount of 50% on Air New Zealand domestic flights if you fly standby. Room reservations can be made in advance and are recommended for Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. A free phone is available next to the information desk at the Auckland airport to check room vacancies and make transportation arrangements– that discount card covers the airport shuttle.


For another way to travel New Zealand ans spend less on a room, try a

BBH Hostel. Independently owned and operated, there are over 350 independently owned and operated BBH Hostels in New Zealand. These are smaller hostels with a variety of room sizes including ensuite. Bedding is available, but you’ll save if you bring your own. Like YHA hostels, there are no age requirements. With this unique system, you book and pay on arrival. As their purpose is to provide rooms at the lowest cost, they suggest you don’t "pre-book hundreds of dollars of transport, activities or accommodation before you arrive."

Our Whangarei Hostel

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Photo By:

minikin_hvh's

You’ll find 35 BBH Hostels in Northland alone– four in Whangarei. Independent ratings and rates are posted on BBH. You don’t have to be a member to stay, but they offer a membership card with savings on rooms and travel, free on-line registration, and a $20 pre-paid phone card to help you book ahead. Have questions? Check into their forum and chat with someone who’s used this unique New Zealand plan.


Hostels are an inexpensive way to travel in New Zealand and meet interesting people from all over the world.


Lyn Harris


RV in NZ: How to Spend Your Winters South in New Zealand