A region
The Coromandel
An hour and a half from Auckland, and most visitors never go.
The peninsula is a spine of bush with beaches down both sides and a gold-mining history nobody expects. It is the closest thing to the far north you can reach in a morning.
Cathedral Cove runs on the tide rather than the clock. Hot Water Beach is only worth doing two hours either side of low water, with a spade.
The Karangahake Gorge on the way home is a railway tunnel, a river and an old battery, and it is the part people write to me about afterwards.
When to come
- December to February
- Hot, busy at the Cove, and the water is worth it
- March to May
- The sweet spot. Warm sea, empty beaches
- June to August
- The gorge and the bush at their best
- September to November
- Quiet, green, and the coast road to yourself
Where we stop
- Thames
- Cathedral Cove
- Hot Water Beach
- Hahei
- Coromandel Town
- Waihi
- Karangahake Gorge
Getting around
The Karangahake tunnel and the Thames waterfront are flat. Cathedral Cove is a 45 minute return walk with a climb.
Want to see it?
Tell me roughly when and how you like to move, and I will put a route together.
Start the conversation