NORTHLAND
NORTHLAND(north of Auckland) is a region of lush forests, sparkling bays, wild sweeping surf beaches, and expansive and rugged country side. There are many cultural and historic sights. The main tourist centers are Whangarei, Paihia and Russell. The climate is briskly sub-tropical. Be prepared for rain. Website www.northland.org.nz.
Cape Reinga is the northernmost piece of land on North Island. A lone pohutukawa tree and lighthouse marks lands end. The cape is sacred to the Maori who believe that the spirits of the dead stop here before they ascend to heaven. Accommodation: Cape Reinga has a couple of campgrounds. How to Get There: you pretty much need your own vehicle or need to be part of a tour.
Ninety Mile Beach (on the western side of Cape Reinga) is an unbroken stretch of white sand and one of the most bracing and secluded places on North Island. The only things that disturbs the sound of the pounding surf are the bus-size dune buggies which occasionally take tourists up and down the beach.
Sullivan (south of Ninety Mile Beach) boasts a glowworm grotto, where thousands of mucous-coated gnats create an eery light inside cave. The more spectacular place to see these worms is Waitomo Caves. Kiwis are also sometimes spotted around here.
Bay of Islands
Bay of Islands (160 miles north of Auckland) is a ten-mile-wide bay with between 60 and 150 islands, depending on who is doing the counting. Located near the northern tip of New Zealand, it is one of the country's premier sailing areas. Several companies offer skippered and bareboat charters to the bay's islands.
The Bay of Islands area contains brilliant blue waters, sub-tropical forests, island beaches, giant kauri trees, green hillsides, tidal estuaries, mangroves, bays, rolling hills, and rugged countryside with grazing sheep. A couple of tour companies sponsor swim with dolphins tours. There is also good swimming, snorkeling, diving and fishing here. Website www.northland.org.nz.
Robertson Island (in the Bay of Islands) is one of the most beautiful sights on the Bay of Island boat tours. On one particularly picturesque section of this island there are two hills—one covered with trees and one covered with fields—that are connected by a narrow isthmus. On one side of the isthmus are sandy beaches and turquoise blue water. On the other side are two rocky coves that come with in a few yards of breaking through to beaches on the other side.
Paihia
Paihia(on the Bay of Islands) is the main gateway for the Bay of Islands and is a good starting point for cruises and sightseeing tours. Popular boats cruises include the 1) Fuller's Cream Trip, a 5½-hour tour which takes visitors to several islands, each one different from the other; and 2) the Great Northern Ferry cruise which passes through Hole in the Rock (the hollowed out center of Piercy Island).
Paihia Tourist Office: Information Bay of Islands, Marsden Road, ☎ (09)-402-7426, Fax: (09)-402-7314, E-mail: paivin@nzhost.co.nz. Website www.northland.org.nz. Accommodation: Paihia is a fairly large town with a wide choice of accommodation. It has three ★★★★★ hotels and resorts; 12 ★★★★ hotels; 15 ★★★ hotels and motels; 6 ★★ hotels and motels; several ★ hotels and guest houses; three backpacker hotels and hostels; and 10 motor camps and campgrounds. How to Get There: Three hours drive north of Auckland. It can also be reached by bus Auckland and from several other towns. There is a small airport nearby.
Sights Near Paihia
Russell (a short distance across a bay from Paihia) is a charming town with many 19th century buildings, including Pompallier House, the country's oldest surviving church (built in 1834). It still contains musket and cannonball holes from the days when it was a wild whaling town. Accommodation: Russell is a small but fairly developed for tourism. It has one luxury lodge, 2 ★★★★ hotels; 6 ★★★ hotels and motels; some ★★ and ★ hotels and guest houses; one backpacker hotel and hostel; and 3 motor camps and campgrounds. How to Get There: a short ferry ride away from Paihia.
Waitangi (near Paihia) is where the infamous Waitangi Treaty was signed in 1840. The agreement allowed the British to gain Maori land in return for promises that were not kept. The treaty was signed in front of the Treaty House, which visitors can be visited today.
Waitangi also features a Maori meeting house and displays of Maori carvings, some of which are reminiscent of totem poles. The hand carved 120-foot Maori war canoe seen here can hold 150 men and is launched annually on February 6th. Accommodation: see Paihia. How to Get There: a short bus ride from Paihia.
Waitangi Forest (near Paihia) is a good place to see kiwis. Many scientist study the flightless birds here.
Kerikeri (10 miles northwest of Paihia) is a scenic town surrounded by citrus and kiwifruit orchards and full of craft shops, art galleries and studios. On one of Kerikeri's inlets is New Zealand's oldest European building, Kemp House. Nearby is the Stone Store, completed in 1835. Accommodation: Kerikeri is a fairly small town with 4 ★★★★ hotels; 4 ★★★ hotels and motels; some ★★ and ★ hotels and guest houses; one backpacker hotel and hostel; and 3 motor camps and campgrounds. How to Get There: a short drive or bus ride from Paihia.
Popular Dive Spots in Northern New Zealand
Rainbow Warrior (90 miles south of the Bay of Islands) is the 400-ton Greenpeace ship sunk by French saboteurs on July 10, 1985 in Auckland's Waitemata Harbor. The French government, reportedly acting with the approval of French President Françious Mitterand, ordered the sinking of the ship to prevent it from interfering with nuclear tests in the French Pacific. One person, Greenpeace photographer Fernando Periera, was killed.
Two years after the incident the wreck was towed out of busy Auckland Harbor to its present site near the uninhabited Cavalli Islands. Today the ship can be visited by scuba divers in cold 80-foot deep water with visibility of only 20 to 40 feet. Pink, green, orange and yellow jewel anemones cover almost the entire hull of the ship. The inside of the ship is filled with thousands of Big Eyes, bizarre fish who swim upside down and have eyes that take up about a third of their bodies.
Several dive companies operating out of Whangaria and Paihia run trips to the Rainbow Warrior, which is marked by a single buoy. The dive usually entails a descent down the anchor line, a trip around the hull, a look inside the ship with a spotlight to see the Big Eyes, and an accent back up the anchor line.
The one-day trip to the site cost US$150 and includes an additional dive at a nearby reef. Snorkelers can go along for US$60 but they are unlikely to see the ship from shallow depths. The mast of the Rainbow Warrior is displayed at the Harding Park and relics from the Greenpeace ship and other shipwrecks are displayed at the Maritime Museum in Dargaville.
Poor Knights (in the open about 50 miles southeast of Paihia) is a small group of islands known for their excellent scuba diving. Among the spectacular eroded volcanic tubes found here, colorful fish and coral. Rikoriko Cave, where the dive boats sometimes anchor, is large enough to enclose a cruise ship.
Kauri Trees and Northland Forest Park
Northland Forest Park (south of Rawene about 70 miles southwest of Paihia and 35 miles north of Dargaville) is where some of the largest trees in the world are found. The most massive kauri trees have trunks with diameters over 20 feet and are just a tad smaller than the largest redwoods and sequoias. In some ways, though, kauris are more interesting because they look like something out of the dinosaur era. The giant punga ferns and vines that surround the trees adds to the effect.
Most of New Zealand's kauri trees were cut down for the shipping and gum industries. The largest one left (the largest tree in New Zealand) is found in Northland Forest Park. Known as “Tane Mahuta” (Lord of the Forest), it is over 150 feet tall and more than 1,200 years old. A grove of Kauri trees can also be seen near Mangamuka Bridge.
Northland Forest covers 200,000 acres. It has many short nature trails and several long tracks. Forest nightwalks are organized at the Kauri Coast Motor Camp. People who go on these walks often see huge weta insects, kiwis, large kauri snails, owls and glow worms. Accommodation: Northland Park has motor camps and campgrounds. Dargaville has some hotels, guest houses, backpacker hostels and campgrounds. How to Get There: you pretty much need your own vehicle or need to be part of a tour.
Image Sources: Wikimedia Commons
Text Sources: New Zealand Tourism Board, National Geographic, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian magazine, Discover magazine, The Conversation, The New Yorker, Time, BBC, CNN, Reuters, Associated Press, AFP, Lonely Planet Guides, Wikipedia, The Guardian, and various books and other publications.
Last updated September 2025