Five days looping the top of the country, starting with a warm-up at Te Arai where the Aotearoa Surf team can set you up with lessons and rental gear for the week (drop it back on the way home). Then the Tutukaka coast's sandy coves, Matauri and Taupo Bay's point setups, the empty east beaches of the Far North, over to Ahipara where Shipwreck Bay peels along the bottom of Ninety Mile Beach, and home down the wild Hokianga side. Two coasts with opposite swell windows, so something is almost always working.
Day 1 is today. Forecast refreshes every 3 hours.
Auckland / Rodney · 2hr session
First stop, barely an hour up SH1 and minutes off the route north. Call in on the Aotearoa Surf team at the home base: grab a quick lesson or a warm-up surf, and sort rental boards and wetsuits for the week, you can drop them back on the way home. Mangawhai and Waipu Cove are just up the road too, so if either is doing its thing, get in the water.
Northland East · 3hr session
First surf on the Tutukaka coast, two and a half hours from Auckland. Friendly sand-bottom bay that holds a clean NE swell well.
Northland East · 3hr session
Postcard bay below the Rainbow Warrior memorial hill. Needs a decent NE pulse, and when it gets one the right off the point is worth the whole trip.
Northland East · 2hr session
Forty minutes on. More exposed than Matauri, so it is the call when the swell is smaller. Camp here for the night.
Northland East · 3hr session
Deep Far North, past Houhora. Empty white-sand beach that picks up any east swell going. You will likely surf alone, so keep your wits about you.
Northland West · 4hr session
Over to Ahipara at the foot of Ninety Mile Beach. On a SW swell with an E wind, Shippies reels along the boulder shelf for hundreds of metres. 4WD access along the rocks or a long walk.
Northland West · 3hr session
The Hokianga side on the way home. Heavy, beautiful west coast beach surrounded by giant dunes. Surf the morning glass then point the car south.
Aotearoa Surf can help with lessons, board hire and accommodation across most North Island routes. Get in touch for a guided run of any of these trips.
Plan a guided trip