Take a break in the Coromandel
The Coromandel is the perfect place to get away for a quick break, or the ideal place to spend your Summer holiday. Home to pristine coastline, lush forest and geothermal hot springs, your time in Coromandel Peninsula will be well spent. Enjoy water sports, fishing, bush walks and exploring the many wonders of the region.
Driving from Auckland to Thames is mainly state highway and there is not really much to see along the way but cows and farmland. Once you hit Thames (the gateway to the peninsula) the history of the region becomes clear.
Thames is a small town with a big history. It is one of the main shopping towns in the Coromandel. The main street is lined with historic shops, boutiques, pubs & cafes. Here we stopped at the Brian Boru Hotel on the main street which is an old goldmining pub dating back to the mid 1800’s. We grabbed a quick bite; in true Kiwi style it had to be a delicious meat pie and a beer both at a great price.
Onward to our first overnight stop in Coromandel Town. Once you have visited a few towns in the area you will begin to see a pattern of old buildings, arts & crafts studios and cafes (some true to the style of 1980’s tea rooms). This place is a bustling little town where you can walk from shop to shop and pick up some cute nick-knacks and souvenirs. My favourite place was the Coromandel Smoking Co which is a smokehouse selling locally grown smoked mussels, fish, prawns and condiments which we had for lunch that day.
Cruising our way to Whitianga we tackled the small and sometimes extremely steep State Highway 25 through the Coromandel Forest Park. In between towns there is nothing but stunning pine forest and native trees as far as you can see. Now and again we stumbled upon a coastal town; most of which had a campground on the beach, or a shoreline you could stop at for a rest.
Once over the hill and down the other side of the peninsula to the east coast the scenery changes quite a bit. Everything becomes more touristy and the towns become larger with more people about.
Whitianga is one of the more popular towns in Mercury Bay. It appears more modern compared to the others. Visitors can take a 5-minute ferry ride across the marina to Hahei where you can follow the walking track to the famous Cathedral Cove. You can go fishing or lay on Buffalo Beach with a picnic. By night Whitianga comes alive with it’s bar and restaurant culture which is busy most of the year.
The town of Whangamata borders the Coromandel Forest Park and Tairua Forest and offers heaps of outdoor experiences, including short walks, mountain bike trails and old gold mining sites. The town also has one of the best shopping centres in the region, a unique café culture and a range of sporting facilities.
Heading back home we passed through Waihi which is another goldmining town. Here you can visit an open pit gold mine and learn about it’s past and present operations.
Another place definitely worth stopping at is the Karangahake Gorge. After crossing over a swing foot bridge we took a short walk around the sites of old gold mining batteries and read about the history. For the more energetic there are also longer walking tracks which include passing through an historic railway tunnel.
This trip took us 3 days staying in a different place each night. I would suggest spending longer in the area as we did not do half of the activities that were on offer.
