Whitianga to Whangamatā: Ultimate Hauraki Coromandel wellness weekend

Inside the studio, it’s bach-chic, with warm timber floors and ceilings, a plush white bed and a stainless steel kitchenette where a 1kg bag of Riley’s Coffee waits as a welcome gift. The hotel’s namesake sits at the property’s entrance, a Methodist church built in 1916, now a beautiful location for an elevated bistro run by a Brazilian father-and-son duo who know their way around a kitchen. The menu showcases local produce, including a perfectly tender Angus steak and fluffy tiramisu. Rather than wolfing it down, candlelight and silverware have us slowing to savour each dish at dinner, noticing the flavours and swapping bites. The walk “home” is 45 seconds under a magnificent sky bright with stars rather than streetlamps, and we’re asleep just an hour later.

The warm reception continues the next night at The Pour House. A watering hole for visitors and locals, we wind through outside tables buzzing with young families and old friends, past the hearty fire pit to a quiet spot. Once the table is covered with the best cider I’ve ever tasted, a flight of beer from the on-site brewery, and one of a dozen gourmet pizzas on offer, the head brewer and owner Neil wanders past for a chat. We talk about golf courses and cider brewing, garden landscaping and why his family moved here from the UK in 2004. Eventually, his wife Karen draws him away so we can “enjoy the meal in peace”, yet an hour later, having moved onto a gin flight brewed by their son, she stops for a chat about the tight-knit and active local community.

That’s the thing about wellness. It can look like sumptuous massages and soothing hot springs, but it also involves connection and community, something Hauraki Coromandel excels at. Connection can mean simply slowing down to share small delights with a loved one: a twinkling constellation or bite of dessert, a line from the books you read side by side before bed, or a perfect pink seashell from a morning beach walk. Wellness can also mean savouring a botanical cider while trading life stories with the friendly Brit who brewed it, or sharing a sauna with a DoC worker and his Irish girlfriend and hearing how they met.

The latter happens at The Sauna Project in Whangamatā, a portable sauna parked on the grass before the beach with a large privacy-glass window to the postcard view. While I’ve visited many saunas, this was the real deal with 15-minute sessions at a sweltering 90-95 degrees followed by a rejuvenating dunk in the crisp ocean.

Then there’s the well-being that comes from nature, something the coastline isn’t lacking. If you’re in Whangamatā, a tour with Whangamatā Island Tours is a must. Only a few months old, the new company is run by Hadley Dryden, a salt-of-the-earth Kiwi who left his office job at Hauraki Coromandel Tourism to show people just how beautiful Whangamatā is. With help from his young son Toby, six of us hop aboard a boat for the three-hour morning tour. Idling in the bay, Hadley recites a Tiaki karakia, which speaks to caring for the land we live on. Watching the sun glint across the turquoise depths and verdant coastline, it feels like a gift worth preserving.

The experience is far more than a boat tour. Pulling into Caretaker Bay beside Hauturu Island, we learn that the stingrays gliding past indicate a healthy marine ecosystem, and hear both the Te Ao Māori and scientific stories of Earth’s creation. Clambering up the island using sturdy guide ropes, we learn the island is Māori reservation land (a koha is given for each visitor via the tour) and Carbon dating puts their arrival at around 12450, while eruptions formed the basin of Whangamatā 20 million years ago.

Pausing to catch our breath, Hadley points through a hole in the dense native bush to the beach, originally called Oneakeake. “One” for the beach, “akeake” for the hardwood tree prized for weapon-making. From 80m high, the water is transparent until it rolls to the beach in perfect waves. Around us, birdlife is loud and curious, and pīwakawaka follow close like little Disney guides, their confidence owing to the island’s pest-free status. At the top, we complete a slow circle, and Hadley invites us to close our mouths, breathe through our noses, and walk in silence for a moment of mindfulness. I feel the brakes ease on my nervous system as I appreciate how sacred it is to be one of only six people on a pristine island overrun by nature.

Meanwhile, Hadley humbly demonstrates encyclopaedic knowledge of history and geography, ancient medicine and poetry. Against the backdrop of birdsong and branches, through stories and anecdotes, I learn rewarewa wood is no good for wakas because it splits, and kawakawa leaves with holes are best for medicinal use. The spongy feeling underfoot can signal a grey petrel burrow stretching metres underground, and pōhutukawa roots are “adventitious” for the way they seek grip. The most phenomenal part of the trip, however, was to come. Climbing back down, we board the boat and zip 500m to Donut Island. Dropping anchor, Hadley points out a small opening on the side of the island, and we grab flippers and a boogie board, hop into the bracing water and kick towards it. Through a short tunnel, we discover the island is true to its name and has large circular hole within it. It is, quite simply, magical; shafts of sunlight stream down from rocky walls recessed in lush flora into the clear water below, which laps against a tiny beach. In any other country, the stunning spot would heave with tourists and boats, but here, we share the breathtaking experience with only one another.

While Donut Island is the definition of a hidden gem, one can’t visit Coromandel without stopping by Cathedral Cove. Having seen it from the track many times in my childhood, we decided to check it out from another perspective. Blue skies, blue ocean and bright yellow kayaks await us on Hahei beach the next morning, where we meet our enthusiastic guide, Georgia. After a quick orientation, we hop into the two-person kayak and (with a shove from Georgia) glide past the nonexistent waves, onto the glassy ocean. Our group of eight move smoothly and surprisingly fast as we enter Coromandel’s first Marine Reserve (Te Whanganui-o-Hei Marine Reserve), which doesn’t feel that exciting at first. Then, we float beside one of the bays and watch as a crowd of huge, brightly coloured snapper gather around us. Thanks to the area’s protection, fish like snapper, blue maomao and red moki can grow to full size and don’t fear humans, Georgia explains as we gasp and laugh at the fish splashing about. In another nearby spot, a pair of eagle rays skate alongside, and I marvel at how close they come.

If you’re tight on time or prefer a more luxurious sightseeing option, the Hahei Explorer takes small groups on a thrilling boat ride past Cathedral Cove, around hidden caves and along breathtaking coastline. It’s extremely popular and, much like everything around Coromandel, for good reason.

The Lost Spring | thelostspring.co.nz

Whangamatā Island Tours | islandtours.nz

The Church Hahei | thechurchhahei.co.nz

The Church Bistro | thechurchbistro.co.nz

Cathedral Cove Kayak Tours | kayaktours.co.nz

The Sauna Project | thesaunaproject.co.nz/whangamata

The Pour House | thepourhouse.co.nz

Hahei Explorer | haheiexplorer.co.nz

Hauraki Coromandel | thecoromandel.nz

New Zealand Herald Travel visited courtesy of Hauraki Coromandel.