Dreaming of an unforgettable New Zealand adventure? An Auckland to Coromandel road trip is the perfect way to explore rugged coastlines, golden beaches, and charming small towns – all just a few hours from the city.
Whether you’re craving scenic hikes, hot water beaches, or beautiful scenic lookouts, this journey has it all.
In this guide, we’ll share the must-visit stops, hidden gems, and essential tips to help you plan the perfect Coromandel road trip. So, pack your bags, fuel up, and let’s hit the road!
Auckland To Coromandel Road Trip
There are two ways of tackling a Coromandel road trip, going up the East or West coast first.
While we cut across the bottom to do the West coast first, before heading South, I’ve laid out this itinerary going clockwise around the peninsular because it’s what makes sense to most people.
We recommend 3-5 nights for this Coromandel Peninsula road trip, but of course if you have less time you can pick which highlights you’d prefer to do and create your own itinerary to suit.
Hunua Falls
Distance From Auckland: 50 km, roughly 45 minutes on SH1 leaving the city
We’re kicking off this itinerary with a stop only 45 minutes away from Auckland; Hunua Falls.
Possibly one of the best waterfalls near Auckland, and popular with locals, Hunua Falls is a great way to start your road trip.
From the carapark there are a couple of tracks to choose from.
The Hunua Falls Lookout Walk is an easy 15 minute return track that follows the river and gives visitors the chance to view the waterfall from up close and personal!
The second walk is the Falls Upper Lookout Walk, which is an easy 30 minute loop track that gives you a birdseye view of the waterfall.
Paeroa
Distance from Hunua Falls: 86 km, roughly 1 hour on State Highway 2
You might not have heard of this New Zealand town before but I can guarantee you’ve heard of its iconic product; L+P Drink.
This is where the kiwi pop originates from and in true Oceana style they’ve celebrated it with a giant bottle statue.
This town is also steeped in gold mining history, is the self proclaimed ‘Antiques Capital of New Zealand’ and a starting point for the rail trail and walking tracks through Karangahake Gorge.
If you want to explore more of the culture in this unique town, grab tickets to Bullswool Heritage Farm for an authentic hands on NZ farming experience.
Thames
Distance from Paeroa: 33 km, 25 minutes North
I’m gutted to say we didn’t actually get any photos of the absolutely stunning scenery from this area, and the coastline from Thames was a real highlight of our Coromandel Peninsula road trip.
There are very few pull-in points along this road and with a 7m motorhome, a ‘quick stop’ just wasn’t safe. When we did see a place to stop, it was usually too late and we’d already passed it – an epic failure on our part!
That said, Thames continues the gold mining theme that you’ll find in this part of New Zealand. If you’re travelling through on a weekend, checkout the Thames Goldmine Experience which is an interactive park and museum.
Other things to do here include sampling some of the local gin, soaking up the sun at the beach, browsing local offerings at Thames Market and exploring the boutique shops of Grahamstown which is full of heritage buildings.
If you have more time here and fancy doing a long hike, you might want to check out a hike to The Pinnacles. Offering 360’ views of the area, it’s a 6 hour return trip or you can book the hut and stay overnight and watch the sunset from the top!
Wilsons Bay
Distance from Thames: 32 km, about 40 minutes drive time.
This is a nice quick and easy beach stop with the chance of seeing whales and dolphins close to shore.
Parking is extremely limited here, and only suitable if you’re travelling in a small camper or car. Anyone in a large van or motorhome will not get parked but don’t worry, the next stop will make up for it!
Manaia Road Saddle and Lookout
Distance from Wilsons Bay: 4km, no more than 5 minutes drive time.
Put this in your Sat Nav so you don’t drive past it, there’s no turn around points until the next town so it makes driving back to it tricky!
Manaia Road Saddle and Lookout is the perfect place for looking out over the ocean and soaking in the views of the nearby islands,
We drove past here at sunset and it was just beautiful!
Parking is still limited, but there’s enough space for bigger vehicles.
Town of Coromandel
Distance from Manaia Road Saddle and Lookout: 17 km, 20 minutes drive time.
Coromandel town is a great little down for stocking up on groceries and pottering around.
The town itself has a relaxed vibe, with most of the things to do happening just outside of town.
If you turn onto Road 309, shortly before reaching Coromandel, you’ll find a couple of really nice short walks.
Waiau Falls is only 5 minutes from the small car park and gives you a nice relief from the summer sun. It’s popular with tourists and locals who like to come for a dip under the single drop waterfall.
Then a little further along Road 309 there’s the short walk through the Waiau Kauri Grove to see some of the oldest, and biggest, trees in New Zealand.
If you still have time in Coromandel, take a tour on Driving Creek Railway which takes you through old gold mining tunnels, rejuvenated forest and over old bridges before opening up to stunning views of the Hauraki Gulf.
If you’re curious about why most Auckland to Coromandel road trip itineraries don’t cover the more northern parts of the peninsula, it’s because most rental companies do not allow you to drive on the Port Jackson road which is unsealed and looks pretty dangerous from the Google maps photos we’ve seen.
Photo by Birger Hope
Whangapoua
Distance from Coromandel: 19 km, 25 minutes drive time.
This is an area that we wish we had included on our Coromandel Itinerary but we were short for time and chose to skip it.
Whangapoua beach is a long sweeping beach that is part dog friendly and part nature reserve. I imagine it’s one of the quieter beaches on the Coromandel Peninsula, with most people favouring the famous beach that we’ll talk about soon.
Once you’ve finished lounging on the beach, take a 30 minute walk up to New Chums Lookout. This is best done at low tide, unless you’re happy to wade through a river when the beach isn’t accessible, and the track is steep but the views from the top are amazing.
There’s free camping near Whangapoua which makes it a good option for an overnight stop away from the crowds.
Shakespeare Cliff Lookout
Distance from Whangapoua: 72 km, 1 hour drive time.
Whizzing around to Cooks Bay you’ll find another beach that’s on the quieter side and just a stone’s throw away from the most popular things to do on the Coromandel Peninsula.
Here you can relax on the beach, enjoy a nice coastal stroll at the Purangi Regional Reserve or, as the title would suggest, take a walk to Shakespeare Cliff Lookout.
This walk takes only 20 minutes from Cooks Bay, or you can drive and park at the carpark just a couple of minutes from the main lookout.
Hahei
Distance from Shakespeare Cliff Lookout: 12 km, roughly 15 minutes drive time.
Hahei is the main hub of the Peninsular, and a place where most people fast track to when doing an Auckland to Coromandel road trip.
In the summer, you can expect Hahei to be a hive of activity thanks to its two most popular activities: Cathedral Cove, and Hot Water Beach.
Unless you’ve been under a rock forever, you will have already heard about these two destinations and more than likely wondering when on your Coromandel itinerary they might pop up!
They’re the North Island’s most iconic Beaches and rightly so.
They’ll be the busiest stop on this Coromandel road trip, especially if you’re here in summer, but that doesn’t mean you should skip them.
Just be prepared to spend a little longer here if you want to get ‘that shot’ at Cathedral Cover (the one we didn’t get in the end haha)
Hot Water Beach
We’ll start with Hot Water Beach.
Firstly, how it got its name; You see, it lies above two volcanic hot water springs, meaning just below the surface lies boiling water.
OK not quite, but 60’c+ in some spots is still pretty hot! – making it the perfect beach for you to create your very own beach spa.
During summer it’s heaving, to the point where unless you get there early you’re unlikely to find a space on the beach for you to dig your hole.
Make sure you go during low tide (you can check tide times here) because otherwise, you’ll find this little spa beach under the sea.
Cathedral Cove
Just up the road from Hot Water Beach is Cathedral Cove.
This will without a doubt be the busiest spot on your Coromandel Peninsula itinerary, whatever the season.
Cathedral Cove is essentially a big natural archway that leads to another secluded beach.
We didn’t love it for that though, we loved it for the unique rock formations that stick out of the shallows, they made us question what this area must have been like thousands of years ago.
There are two parking options for Cathedral Cove; One right at the start of the walking track that costs $15 and is only open throughout winter.
The other is at Hahei Beach, it’s a 45-minute walk from the start of the track but it’s free in winter, in summer there’s a cost BUT they provide a shuttle bus to the start of the track for those who don’t want to walk.
The Cathedral Cove scenic walk will take you roughly 45-minutes each way but be prepared for a couple of steep inclines and a few sets of stairs.
This is the Coromandel Peninsula, after all, it wouldn’t be the same without its volcano peeks.
There are two additional coves along the way for you to explore too, Gemstone Bay and Stingray Bay.
These will add a further 10-15 minutes onto your walk but they’re worth the detour as not many people seem to bother.
From each one, you get an alternative view out to the little islands just off the shore.
Like I said previously, this will be the busiest stop on this Coromandel road trip but we were pleasantly surprised by how small the crowd was in winter.
There were just a handful of us who stuck around for the start of sunset, which made it even more special for us.
Cathedral Cove Tours
There are lots of ways to experience Cathedral Cove, especially over the summer when more tour operators are open.
Some of the most popular tours include:
Tairua
Distance from Hahei: 25 km, 30 minutes drive time.
We’re nearing the end of this Auckland to Coromandel road trip itinerary, but because we did this route backwards this was actually one of our first stops along the peninsula.
We hadn’t heard many people talk about Tairua, and in fact we rarely see it featured on Coromandel road trip itineraries, so we thought we’d add it to ours because the place is beautiful.
We only stumbled upon this coastal town because we were looking for a free place to camp, and the reviews for the spot near town were really good.
Imagine this, you’re looking for a nice place to camp for your first night on the road. You wind through the hills which eventually open up to a small harbour town, a town with one dominant feature; A dormant volcano that towers 179 m above sea level. That town is Tairua, the volcano is Mount Paku.
There’s a really nice walk up Mount Paku that, just like all the other walks on the Coromandel Peninsula, gives really good panoramic views of the area.
The Mount Paku walk starts off following the road as it winds up the side of the volcano. It then takes a steep incline through the trees, and turns into more of a woodland walk.
It takes a mere 30-40 minutes to get to the top but as it’s 179m high, it gets steep in places and there’s a lot of steps.
It’s worth it though when you’re greeted with views like this.
It’s also worth noting that part of the track goes through private property, there were a couple of times where we almost retraced our steps thinking we’d misread the signs but no, keep going through the garden and you’ll get to where you’re going.
We fully recommend doing the walk during high tide so you can see all the little fishing boats heading out for the day.
At low tide, most of the harbour empties out and turns into mud-flats.
Also if you’re here in winter, like us, it’s likely you’ll have the whole view to yourself… bonus!
There’s a small car park on the far side of Mount Paku but if you’re in anything bigger than a small converted campervan, you’ll struggle to get around some of the corners or turn around if the car park is full.
It’s best to park down by the water instead (here).
Whangamatā
Distance from Tairua: 35 km, around 30 minutes drive time.
Like donuts? Like kayaking tours? Then you might like Whangamatā and taking a day trip to Donut Island (Whenuakura Island)
Whenuakura Wildlife Sanctuary was once a local-only secret, but of course as word spreads things become popular and it’s now a must-do for any Coromandel road trip.
Kayaking trips to Donut Island are the most popular as they’re able to get you to the centre of the ‘donut’ fairly easily,
Please remember you can only visit the island with a certified guide, and must stay on the water at all times. The sanctuary doesn’t allow people to visit on foot.
Other things to do around Whangamatā include learning to surf, chartering a fishing trip, exploring local art galleries and relaxing on the huge beach.
Just south of Whangamatā is the Wentworth Valley & Falls. The walk to the 40m double drop waterfall is roughly an hour each way and is a great way to break up your day by the beach.
Waihi
Distance from Whangamatā: 30km, 30 minutes drive time.
With a mix of old and new buildings, the town of Waihi is very much like many other mining towns around the country.
However, it’s home to what used to be one of the most important gold mines in the whole world, and you’re able to walk around the pit-rim for a closer look at a working mine!
Dec used to work on quarries in the UK, so for him this was probably a bit of a busman’s holiday, but for me it was really interesting! Especially since Dec was able to point out machinery and tell me things about the working mine that wasn’t included on the information boards.
You start the walk at the Cornish Pumphouse, and gradually climb until you find yourself standing at the edge of the open pit, staring down into the gold mine.
The gravel track continues around the pit, creating a 4km loop that’s easy enough to complete. Or, you can walk part of it and return the way you came.
Waihi is considered ‘The Heart Of Gold’, and I think it offers a really impressive look into the culture and history of the region, and country as a whole.
Once you’ve finished soaking in the views of the mighty Martha Mine, head to Waihi beach for a chance to see an incredible sunset!
From iconic spots like Cathedral Cove to off-the-beaten-path gems, the Auckland to Coromandel road trip offers an epic mix of adventure and relaxation.
Now, it’s time to map out your journey!
🚗 Which stop are you most excited about? Join our Facebook page and let us know! Or, if you’ve already taken this road trip, share your favourite hidden spots – we’d love to hear them!
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