New Zealand’s Coromandel Peninsula Well Worth a Visit

“Bake in the sands of Hot Water beach, then take in the art, stunning views and craft beer of the Coromandel peninsula” says Will Macpherson in The Guardian’s Travel Guide.

The Coromandel’s charms are no secret, yet it remains distant from any major crowds.

“A mix of pony-tailed painters, affluent Aucklanders and laid-back locals use it as their hideaway and, as a result, the pace of life needn’t rise above a trot.”

“The peninsula is full of diddy towns, but you can add an extra zero to the populations of many during high summer. Between these townships, there’s white, craggy coastline, green, velvety conifers and creamy, dreamy sands.”

One of the must see places of the Coromandel is the stunning Cathedral Cove.

A long walk down through the Kauri Gum is worth it for the view of Mercury Bay from Shakespeare’s Cliff as well as the Cathedral Cove beach.

“No trip to the Coromandel peninsula would be complete without stopping off at Hot Water Beach. Herein lies the problem, as the only attraction in the area that everyone does, it can be a scrum in summertime.”

It’s popularity is not unwarranted, with people able to hire a shovel and dig a pool that is warmed by the natural hot springs below the sand.

“It’s like a bath that never gets cold, until the incoming tide breaks its barriers.”

If the novelty of Hot Water beach isn’t your thing, there are plenty of stunning, more conventional sands about.

A left-hand break gives Whangamata super surf, while nearby Opoutere is great for twitchers, and Onemana for those looking for total calm.

For those who want to relax even more, Whitianga’s the Lost Spring is the “ultimate hiding place.”

Throughout the trip, keep an eye out for Lala Coffee, “roasted in Coromandel town and delicious all over the peninsula.”

Read the full list of places to explore in the Coromandel on The Guardian.

Photograph: Murdo Macleod.