Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
YHA Opoutere
HOSTEL $
( 0800 278 299, 07-865 9072;
www.yha.co.nz
;
389 Opoutere Rd; dm $30-33, r $80-110)
Housed partly in the historic Opoutere Native School, this wonderful get-away-from-it-
all hostel resounds with birdsong. Kayaks, hot-water bottles, alarm clocks, stilts and hula
hoops can all be borrowed.
Copsefield
B&B $$$
( 07-865 9555;
www.copsefield.co.nz
;
1055 SH25; r $100-200)
On SH25 but closer to Opout-
ere than it is to Whangamata, Copsefield is a peaceful country-style villa set in attractive,
lush gardens with a spa and a riverside swimming hole. The house has three attractive
B&B rooms, while cheaper accommodation is offered in a separate bach-style cottage.
Getting There & Away
stops in Opoutere on request.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Whangamata
POP 3560
When Auckland's socially ambitious flock to Pauanui, the city's young and horny head
to Whangamata to surf, get stoned and hook up. It can be a raucous spot over New Year,
when the population swells to more than 40,000. It's a true summer-holiday town, but in
the off-season there may as well be tumbleweeds rolling down the main street.
Activities
Besides
fishing
(game-fishing runs from January to April),
snorkelling
near Hauturu
(Clarke) Island,
surfing
,
kayaking
,
orienteering
and
mountain biking
, there are excel-
lent walks. A popular destination for kayaking and paddle boarding is Whenuakura
(Donut Island), around 1km from the beach. Note that in an effort to boost the islands'
status as wildlife sanctuaries, it's not permitted to land on them. Boating around the is-
lands is allowed.
The
Wentworth Falls walk
takes 2½ hours (return); it starts 3km south of the town
and 4km down the unsealed Wentworth Valley Rd. A further 3km south of Wentworth
Valley Rd is Parakiwai Quarry Rd, at the end of which is the
Wharekirauponga walk
, a
