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North Island ▷ Auckland Region ▷ Warkworth ▷
Pakiri Beach Holiday Park
There is a lot of old reviews on here!
We stayed for the first time in Jan 2021 and booked a couple of waterfront powered sites.
These sites have a slope on one end, but there is room for a family tent and gazebo on the level since each site is around 8x9m. Sand is also laid to help level rough patches, and the non-powered sites are in spectacular condition considering the time of year. These provide great playing fields.
The staff were great and friendly, so I think the rude staff and management must be long gone. There is a good-sized shop on site (no insect repellent or insecticide but espresso coffee, essentials, ice, treats, tent pegs, etc.) and on Saturdays a food stall from Matakana opens from lunch till dinner time at the main campsite entrance to the beach. It has a limited selection but I really enjoyed the food.
Surfers and fishers can go to the surf. This area is a bit of a lagoon which is just wonderful for kids to swim, very picturesque and safe and there are picnic tables, swings, hammocks and a beach volleyball court, all in a coastal-rustic style which befits the location and amenities.
The facilities are nice and clean, and while there is a ban on loud noise after 10.30am, quiet chatter is fine and this tolerance is appreciated. Also, the showers are accessible any time, which also avoids overcrowding at peak times, unlike Whangateau which has very up-to-date facilities but is run by Auckland Council and much more restricted.
There are two ways to travel between here and Matakana (book the Market Kitchen with a riverside table - there is unlikely to be a spare table for walk-in dining - and enjoy the Saturday markets, cafes, bakeries, chocolatiers, and local brewery and vineyards. The rougher ride goes past Leigh, which you will want to visit at least once, especially the Sawmill Cafe, Sawmill Brewery, Leigh Eats, Matheson Bay, Goat Island and Omaha Cove, but both routes are steep and winding in parts.
We will definitely be back!
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North Island ▷ Coromandel ▷ Whangamata ▷
Opoutere Coastal Camping
Before staying at Opoutere, we had enjoyed another top-rated campsite with very modern facilities and sites right on the water, so I was hoping we had left the best till last rather than the other way
around.
As it turned out, we had. Firstly, the owners were good to deal with, and their shop had lots of basics and a proper espresso service. Secondly, the site we had was a very nice spot. Thirdly, the extended area is naturally awesome and we took advantage of everything except the loan kayaks, about which I wish we had known at the time as the stream is very inviting.
There is a lovely clearing - the “chillout lawn” - with swings and level ground for cricket, kites, and frisbee, all of which would admittedly be at risk of being lost to the surrounding trees. Boules.
The forest and beach are the jewels in the crown, hard to beat anywhere in the world. Watching the super blood wolf moon rising dead ahead from the beach after pondering the heavens and spotting constellations, satellites and shooting stars has, I am sure, given our kids memories they will deeply cherish.
The site appears to be taking some steps to brand itself nicely and promote itself professionally, so I can only hope it does not become too popular! It could really be a world-class facility if the loom and feel were extended to replacing the clean but basic toilets, showers, chillout room and kitchen. The shower heads being too low and the lack o