EASTERN NORTH ISLAND
Eastern North Island is an area of lush agricultural lands, kiwi fruit orchards, vineyards, and rugged coastline. It includes the Pacific Coast Highway area, the forests and beaches of the Coromandel Peninsula, many Maori villages, the surfing beaches and farms around the Bay of Plenty and the Art Deco architecture of Hawkes Bay. The main tourist centers are Thames, Tauranga, Gisborne, Napier and Hastings.
Te Puke (near Tauranga) lies in the heart of a kiwi-fruit-producing region. The very first kiwi fruit orchard was started here and tours of the orchards can be done in kiwi-fruit shaped tour-mobiles. Accommodation: Te Puke is a fairly small place with a couple of hotels and guest houses. How to Get There: a short drive or bus ride from Tauranga.
Coromandel Peninsula
Coromandel Peninsula (50 miles east of Auckland) is a long finger of land with the Coromandel Mountain range running down its spine. The center of a gold rush in the 1850s and later the center of the logging and tree-resin extraction industries, it is now famous for its east side golden sand beaches, west side harbors, sport fishing, waterfalls, lush gorges, volcanic peaks, and forest-covered mountains which are laced with hiking trails.
The famous Tahitian navigator, Kupe, arrived in New Zealand at present-day Te Whiti-anga-a-Kupe (meaning "Crossing Place of Kupe") in Coromandel Peninsula the 10th century, 400 years before the Maoris and 800 years before Captain Cook, who arrived her in 1769, claimed it for King George III and named it the "River Thames" area. Website http://tour.thepeninsula.co.nz
Cathedral Cove (near the small town of Hahei on the Coromandel Peninsula) lies at the center of a marine reserve that can be reached only by foot and boat. The zodiac tours of the cove wind through rock arches and caves streaked with bands of pink and red algae. Also worth checking out are Back Bay and Dolly Parton Island (you can guess why it is so named). Swimming is possible in the calm sheltered waters and showers are possible underneath crashing waterfalls.
Thames
Thames (on the southwest side of the Coromandel Peninsula) is the main gateway to the Coromandel Peninsula. Its attractions include the famous Golden Crown Shaft Mine and restored working battery, a historical museum and a mineralogical museum. It is mainly a jumping off point for adventures on the peninsula.
Places of interest accessible from Thames include the Driving Creek Railway, a narrow gauge railway that traverses viaducts and passes through a kauri forest; the Square Kauri, a very large 2500-year-old-kauri tree with an unusual shape; and Hot Water Beach, a magnificent surfing beach where you can dig your own hot pool.
Thames Tourist Office: Thames Information & Public Relations Centre, 405 Queen Street, ☎ (07)-868-7284, Fax: (07)-868-7584. E-mail: twmzvin@nzhost.co.nz. Website http://tour.thepeninsula.co.nz Accommodation: Paihia is a medium size town with a fair choice of accommodation options. It has 6 ★★★★ hotels; 5 ★★★ hotels and motels; 4 ★★ hotels and motels; several ★ hotels and guest houses; 2 backpacker hotels and hostels; and 10 motor camps and campgrounds. How to Get There: 1½ hour drive southwest of Auckland. It can be reached by bus from Auckland and several other towns. There is a small airport nearby.
Whitianga
Whitianga(east side of Coromandel Peninsula) is the main town on the Coromandel Peninsula. A favorite day trip destination for Aucklanders, it is a sports fishing and sailing center with a population of about 2,000 people. It is located on the Mercury Bay, which squeezes through a narrows into a mangrove-filled harbor. There is a ferry that transport travelers from Whitianga to the opposite side of the narrows, which features some of New Zealand's most stunning scenery.
Whitianga Tourist Office: Whitianga Information Center, Albert Street, ☎ (07)-866-5555, Fax: (07)-866-2205, E-mail: wtzvin@nzhost.co.nz. Website http://tour.thepeninsula.co.nz Accommodation: Whitianga is a medium town with a wide choice of accommodation options. It has 4 ★★★★ hotels; 11 ★★★ hotels and motels; 5 ★★ hotels and motels; several ★ hotels and guest houses; 2 backpacker hotels and hostels; and 9 motor camps and campgrounds. How to Get There: 3 hours drive from Auckland and 1½ hours from Thames. It can also be reached by bus from Auckland and several other towns. There is a small airport nearby.
Bay of Plenty
Bay of Plenty (east of the Coromandel Peninsula) is a broad crescent-shaped body of water named by Captain Cook because it contained plentiful supplies food and water that he desperately needed. Today, the rich volcanic soil produces kiwi fruit and citrus orchards. The Bay of Plenty is also know for its beaches. Website www.visitplenty.co.nz.
Tauranga (on the Bay of Plenty) is a major transportation hub and a gateway for the Bay of Plenty area. It is a large town whose Maori name means "Resting Place for Canoes" (nine of the original 22 canoes that brought the Maori from their homeland of Hawaika are believed to have landed here). At the attractive Strand Gardens you can see the Te Awanui Maori war canoe. Otherwise, there isn't much to see or do in Tauranga itself. It is accessible to Rotorua.
Tauranga Tourist Office: Tauranga Information & Visitors Centre, The Strand, ☎ (07)-578-8103, Fax: (07)-577-6235. E-mail: trgvin@nzhost.co.nz. Website www.visitplenty.co.nz. Accommodation: Tauranga is a fairly large town with a wide choice of accommodation options. It has one ★★★★★ hotel; 5 ★★★★ hotels; 20 ★★★ hotels and motels; 6 ★★ hotels and motels; several ★ hotels and guest houses; 2 backpacker hotels and hostels; and 7 motor camps and campgrounds. How to Get There: Tauranga is 130 miles from Auckland and 20 miles Rotorua. It can be reached train and bus from Auckland and several other towns. There is a small airport nearby.
White Island
White Island (in the Bay of Plenty) is the top of a very active volcano that penetrates the surface of the Pacific. Inside the crater are mud pots, geysers, bubbling hot springs and fissures that emit gases and steam. The largest of these fissures is known as "Roaring Jimmy," so named because it releases steam with a deafening sound.
Named by Captain Cook, probable after the large amounts of white guano found on its slopes, White Island erupts violently from time to time, often when Roaring Jimmy gets clogged with debris and explodes. In 1914, this happened, causing a huge landslide, which drove an entire sulfur-mining camp into the sea. White Island is 1,075 feet high and covers 800 acres. Helicopter and flightseeing tours of White Island are run by several companies in Rotorua and Whakatane.
Gisborne
Gisborne (180 miles southeast of Taurnaga) is a town known for its warm, sunny climate, grapes and beaches. Some of the country's finest surviving woodcarved Maori meeting houses and churches are found here. South of Gisborne along the fairly rugged coastline, the sun is so bright that the burnt grass hills are almost white.
Attractions in the Gisborne area include 1) the Eastwoodhill Arboretum (with over 2,600 species of plants) near Ngatapa, 2) the Cook Landing Site (with a monument that marks the spot where Captain Cook first came ashore in 1769) at Kaita Beach, 3) Maori Meeting house (one of the oldest and finest “marae” in New Zealand) in Manutuke, and 4) Rongopai Marae (with a richly decorated interior depicting local events) in Waituhi.
Gisborne Tourist Office: Eastland and Gisborne District Information Centre, 209 Grey Street, ☎ (06)-868-6139, Fax: (09)-(06)-868-6138, E-mail: info@eastland.tourism.co.nz. Website www.eastland.tourism.co.nz. Accommodation: Gisborne is a medium-size with a fairly good choice of accommodation options. It has 5 ★★★★ hotels; 13 ★★★ hotels and motels; 4 ★★ hotels and motels; several ★ hotels and guest houses; 1 backpacker hotel and hostel; and 2 motor camps and campgrounds. How to Get There: Gisborne 310 miles and 7 hour drive east of Auckland and 180 miles and 3½ hour drive from Tauranga and 4 hours from Rotorua. It can also be reached by bus from Auckland and several other towns. There is a small airport nearby.
East Cape
East Cape (west of the Bay of Plenty on the far eastern point of the North Island) is one of the first places on earth to witness the sunrise each day. Located just east of the International dateline, it was the site of a huge year-2000 welcome-the-new-millennium-party that featured David Bowie.
Along the scenic 200 mile stretch of coast that wraps around the mostly uninhabited cape are sandy beaches and numerous rocky out cropping. On the road from Rotorua to East Cape there is thermal area called Hell's Gate. Near Tikitere and two beautiful lakes: Rotoiti and Rotoma. Accommodation: A few small hotels, guest houses, backpacker hostels and campgrounds are found in the towns near East Cape: Hicks Bay, Te Araroa, Tikitiki, Ruatoria. How to Get There: two hour drive or bus ride from Gisborne and a three hour drive from Taurnaga.
Napier
Napier (150 miles southwest of Gisborne) is considered to be one of the most beautiful cities on the North Island. The small city's commercial center, waterfront and many of its beautiful gardens were rebuilt after a devastating 7.9 Richter-scale earthquake that occurred at 10:47am on February 3, 1931 and leveled the city and killed more than 250 people. It also caused the earth to rise seven feet and create almost two square miles of new land.
Located at the southwest mouth of Hawke Bay, Napier has only 53,000 people and is described in tourist brochures as the "Art Deco Capital of the World." This may be overstating the its case but it does have a high concentration of 1930s-style Art Deco buildings for such a small town.
Visitors to Napier can shop at a woollen factory, visit gardens, see Marineland and an oceanarium, go on winery tours, visit a kiwi house, see an audio-visual presentation on the earthquake, and hang out in cafes and art galleries made from old sailor and whaler homes. Outside of Napier several wine tasting tours are offered in the Hawkes Bay wine-growing area.
Napier Tourist Office: Napier Visitors Information Centre, Marine Parade, ☎ (06)-835-7579, Fax: (06)-835-7219, E-mail: npvin@nzhost.co.nz. Website www.hawkesbaytourism.co.nz. Accommodation: Napier has a wide choice of accommodation options. It has 1 ★★★★★ hotel; 13 ★★★★ hotels; 10 ★★★ hotels and motels; 8 ★★ hotels and motels; several ★ hotels and guest houses; two backpacker hotels and hostels; and 4 motor camps and campgrounds. There is also some accommodation nearby in Hastings, Napier's twin town.How to Get There: Napier is 260 miles from Auckland and 150 miles from Rotorua. It can also be reached by bus from Auckland and several other towns. There is a small airport nearby.
Kidnappers Cape and Its Large Gannet Rookery
Kidnappers Cape (15 miles southeast of Napier) is the home of the largest mainland gannet rookery in the world. From October to May, more than 5,200 breeding pairs of these impressive yellow-headed birds and their young can be seen here. Gannets are huge birds. They have eight-foot wingspans and usually nest offshore, but for some unexplained reason they began nesting at Kidnappers Cove 130 years ago.
Gannets are fiercely territorial nesters. They fortify their nests with seaweed and bird droppings and squawk and scream loudly whenever other birds approach too close. The chicks are usually born in October and fed regurgitated squid and mullet by their parents over the next six months. In April and May, the young gannets learn to fly and fly off to 1,500 miles across the Tasman Sea to Australia (many die in the process). After three years the survivors return to give birth to their own young and spend the rest of their life in New Zealand.
Trips to Kidnappers Cape are organized in Hastings and Napier. Most tours are conducted in beach-going trucks, with oversized tires and plastic windows, that often veer into the ocean to avoid hitting boulders and logs lying on the beach. At a small colony visitors are able to approach with in five feet of the gannets. At the largest colony, near a group of islands underneath a 400-foot-high cliff, visitors stand behind and rope but still see plenty.
The alternative to the monster truck tour is a 10-mile round-trip hike along a beach that is only walkable for a few hours during low tide, which severely limits the amount of times spent with the birds. Independent walking is permitted from the end of October to July. The hike is two hours each way. Check the tides.
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