Highlights
- Visit Cape Reinga on the top of New Zealand's North Island
- Admire its wild and untouched beauty and learn about its rich Maori culture and traditions
- Immerse yourself in the Puketi Kauri Forest as you walk through 1,000 year old Kauri trees and native bush
- Try the sandboarding experience down the massive sand dunes at Te Paki Stream
- Walk on the vast and stunning Ninety Mile Beach
- Enjoy an exclusive buffet lunch (if option selected!)
- Listen to interesting commentary and Maori legends from your expert guide
Useful Information
Te Paki Quicksand Stream
Start your New Zealand North Island adventure day trip with a stop at the Puketi Forest, home to 1,000-year-old kauri trees, some of the most ancient trees in the world. Walk along a ground-level boardwalk that meanders around the trunks of the trees and learn more about the area from the information panels located throughout the walk.
After you leave the Puketi Forest, you’ll head to Houhora Harbour, where you can enjoy a tea break (not included) and a buffet lunch (if option selected at time of booking) at Houhora Game Fishing Club . Later you will go to Cape Reinga, the northernmost tip of New Zealand. You’ll feel as though you’re standing on the edge of the world as you watch the Pacific Ocean collide with the Tasman Sea.
Maori legend says that Cape Reinga is the departure point for spirits on their way to the Maori homeland in Hawaiki. There are no shops on Cape Reinga, and eating and drinking is frowned upon in order to show respect for this sacred Maori site. For an additional cost, you can aid New Zealand’s conservation program by planting a native tree.
From Cape Reinga, your tour continues down the North Island’s coast. Your first stop is the giant sand dunes at the Te Paki Quicksand Stream, where you can try your hand at sandboarding. Experience an exhilarating ride down the face of a dune on a boogie board!
Finally, get back on the Waverider coach and head south on Ninety Mile Beach. This strikingly beautiful stretch of unpopulated beach, is a marked contrast to the bustle of the island’s East Coast, and you will have plenty of opportunities to stick your toes in the sand and help your guide dig for shellfish.
Your New Zealand North Island adventure ends with your return drive to Paihia.
Reviewed by vicki g, March 2013
A Long day but worth it to be at the very top of NZ The drive through to the sand dunes was terrific. Dont know of many places that can be accessed by 4wd through a water course to massive sand dunes.
Vicki
Reviewed by Stephen S, January 2013
Fantastic day out with a very knowledgeable and friendly driver. Thought that the lunch provided was exceptional. It is a long day but a day that you could not cover if driving your own vehicle, nor as a tourist, find what we were taken to see.
