New Zealand Charter Itinerary

New Zealand Itinerary

New Zealand Yacht Charter
New Zealand’s north-east coast is a cruising ground of drowned river valleys, offshore islands and marine reserves, all within a day of one another. Cousteau rated the Poor Knights among the best dives in the world, and the reserve status since 1981 has only improved it.





The week works south from Whangaroa to the Coromandel, mixing serious diving with the sort of anchorages where nobody else appears all day. It ends, appropriately, at a hot spring on a beach and a vineyard on an island.





Every route we shape is a starting point, not a fixed schedule. Stay a second day where the light is right, move with the weather, or follow a captain who knows the cove worth the detour. That freedom is the point of chartering. What follows is one considered way to read New Zealand; the rest we tailor to you.
Day 1

Whangaroa Harbour

Whangaroa is a near-enclosed harbour ringed by volcanic domes, entered through a gap in the cliffs barely wide enough to notice from seaward. Inland lies the Waipoua forest and Tāne Mahuta, a kauri tree that has been standing for perhaps two thousand years. Helicopter to Cape Reinga if you want the geography whole.
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Day 2

Cavalli Islands & Bay of Islands

Cruise through the Cavallis, where the Rainbow Warrior lies in twenty-six metres, sunk in Auckland by French agents in 1985 and scuttled here as a reef. It is a moving dive. Continue into the Bay of Islands ’ a hundred and forty-four islands, and fishing that has drawn people from the other side of the world for a century.
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Day 3

Bay of Islands

Russell was once called the hellhole of the Pacific, a whaling port of grog shops and worse. It is now extremely pretty and slightly embarrassed about its past. Cruise to Cape Brett and take the tender through the Hole in the Rock, a passage straight through the headland. Anchor overnight in a bay of your own choosing.
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Day 4

Poor Knights Islands

The Poor Knights are the remains of a volcano, riddled with caves and arches, and warmed by a subtropical current that brings species no one expects this far south. Rikoriko is among the largest sea caves in the world; you can take a tender inside it. Nobody may land on the islands. Everything happens in the water.
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Day 5

Great Barrier Island

Great Barrier has no mains electricity, no supermarket chain and no paved road to speak of. It has a dark sky sanctuary, forest, hot springs and beaches that require a walk. Fish, snorkel, hike, or visit the galleries of residents who chose this deliberately. The island runs on its own terms entirely.
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Day 6

Mercury Islands

South to the Mercury Islands off the Coromandel, where the scallop diving is excellent and the spearfishing better. Great Mercury is privately held; ashore visits are possible with permission and repay the arrangement. Anchor in a bay with white sand and pohutukawa hanging over the water, and cook what you caught.
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Day 7

Coromandel Peninsula

Finish on the Coromandel. Dig a hole at Hot Water Beach two hours either side of low tide and the geothermal spring fills it. Take the tender into Cathedral Cove, an arch through the headland with beaches on both sides. Then Waiheke, a vineyard, and a last glass looking back across the gulf towards Auckland.
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New Zealand Yacht Charter Enquire

Enquire about chartering in New Zealand to receive current yacht availability, seasonal guidance and expert insight into the cruising areas, anchorages and experiences that best fit your preferred style of charter, creating a clearer route to the right itinerary.