Coromandel Peninsula

A Forested Peninsula East Of Auckland Where Cathedral Cove'S Rock Archway And Hot Water Beach'S Self Dug Thermal Pools, Uncovered At Low Tide, Are The Two Most Photographed Stops On A Coastline Of Old Gold Mining Towns And Pohutukawa Lined Bays · Whitianga, Waikato

The Coromandel Peninsula reaches north from the Hauraki Plains east of Auckland, a forested spine of old gold-mining hills dropping to a coastline of golden beaches, sheltered bays and pohutukawa trees that flare bright red each December. Cathedral Cove, near the township of Hahei, is the peninsula's single most photographed sight - a tall natural rock archway on a white sand beach, reached by a walking track or by boat. A short drive away, Hot Water Beach lets visitors dig their own pool in the sand and have it fill with genuinely hot mineral water rising from below, but only in a two hour window either side of low tide, and only at the right spot. Whitianga, the peninsula's main town, sits on a sheltered harbour with a car ferry across to Ferry Landing. Coromandel Town, further north, keeps its gold-rush-era main street and runs the quirky Driving Creek Railway through its own potteries and a bush reserve. Both Cathedral Cove and Hot Water Beach draw genuinely large crowds at peak times, and neither is a quiet secret anymore.

East of Auckland across the Firth of Thames, centred on the township of Whitianga, Whitianga, Waikato, New Zealand

Cathedral Cove and its beach have no gate and are open at all hours, but the walking track from the car park has, in the past, been closed for slips after storms - check the Department of Conservation's current track status before driving out, since a closure can last months and there is no guaranteed boat alternative at short notice. Hot Water Beach itself is always open, but the safe digging window is roughly two hours either side of low tide and shifts by about forty minutes each day, so there is no fixed daily time - check a current tide table, not yesterday's. Driving Creek Railway and most cafes and shops in Whitianga and Coromandel Town run standard daytime hours, roughly 9am to 5pm, with reduced winter trading in some smaller operators.

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