Christmas in Northland
4 Nights/5 Days: Auckland – Waitangi & Russell in the Bay of Islands – Kerikeri – Mangonui – Matauri Bay – Omapere – Waipoua Forest – Auckland
Christmas in Northland
Three nights in the Bay of Islands with water view rooms at the Copthorne Waitangi. Lunch at the famous fish and chip shop in Mangonui. Beautiful Omapere on the edge of the Hokianga Harbour is a fitting finale.experiences included in your tour price
- All transport by comfortable, air conditioned coach (maximum of 16 travellers).
- Services of your experienced MoaTrek driver/guide.
- Quality, en suite accommodation.
- All breakfasts, lunches and dinners.
- All sightseeing and exploring in the regions.
- Christmas dinner at the Copthorne Hotel and Resort, Waitangi.
- Visit Pompallier House and Waimate Mission House.
- Sightseeing Mangonui, Matauri Bay and Kerikeri.
- See Tane Mahuta, New Zealand's biggest Kauri tree.
- Visit the Matakohe Kauri Museum.
experiences not included in your tour cost
Dolphin watching 3-hour cruise on Bay of Islands to Cape Brett: $89 pp.Tour dates
- December 24 - December 28, 2012
Tour Price
$NZD2390 per person twin or double share accommodation$NZD2790 per person single room accommodation
Our travellers say...
This tour was most enjoyable throughout with excellent accommodation, delightful lunch stops and a comfortable coach with pleasant company. Each day we visited interesting historic places. There were numerous highlights such as the Bird Recovery Centre and a lunch of fish and chips as you have never before tasted!
Dawn Tilly - New Zealand, Christmas in Northland - December 2010
Tour dates
- December 24 - December 28, 2012
Day 1: Auckland - Whangarei - Bay of Islands (L, D)
Your driver/guide meets you before heading across the Harbour Bridge and along the
northern motorway stopping at the Honey Centre for morning tea. We lunch beside the picturesque Whangarei Town Basin. At the Bird Recovery centre, we meet the quirky talking tui and see kiwis close-up. Then we continue north to Kawakawa to check out the famous Hundertwasser toilet block and on to our hotel at Waitangi in the Bay of Islands. The sparkling blue waters of this maritime park are dotted with islands - it’s paradise for beach lovers and sailors. This evening we dine in at the hotel. Perhaps enjoy a dip in the pool before dinner.
Day 2: Christmas Day - Bay of Islands sightseeing - Russell (B, L, D)
We visit the Waitangi Treaty House and grounds then board the coach to drive to Opua to catch the vehicular ferry to the Russell side. (There’s the option to take a scenic dolphin-watching cruise on the Bay this morning. Step on board at Paihia to cruise out to Cape Brett and the famous Hole in the Rock and Otehei Bay on Urupukapuka Island, $89 per person. The cruise departs Paihia at 9am.) There’s time to take a stroll along Russell’s waterfront to Pompallier House and other historic buildings. This town comes alive at holidaytime. We drive over to Long Bay for a glimpse of the beautiful outer Bay of Islands.Then we drive back to catch the vehicular ferry to Opua and return to Waitangi. Our Christmas dinner is at the Copthorne Hotel.
Day 3: Bay of Islands - Mangonui - Bay of Islands (B, L, D)
From Kerikeri we continue north to Mangonui, a pretty harbourside village in time for lunch at the famous fish and chip shop. In the afternoon we return on the scenic coastal road to Matauri Bay following the picturesque coastline with views to the Cavalli Islands. On our return to the Bay of Islands we stop for afternoon tea and sightseeing in Kerikeri, a thriving town known for its orchards, arts and crafts and the boutique chocolate factory.
Day 4: Bay of Islands - Omapere (B, L, D)
We visit the historic mission station at Waimate North then drive along the northern side of the Hokianga to Kohukohu where we lunch at the charming Waterline Café before catching the vehicular ferry to Rawene. Continuing around the southern shores of the Hokianga to the small villages of Opononi and Omapere. Our hotel is right on the water’s edge, there’s time for a walk on the beach before we dine in at the hotel this evening.
Day 5: Omapere - Waipoua Forest - Auckland (B, L)
Driving on to the Waipoua Forest, Tane Mahuta, the largest kauri tree is just a short, flat walk through beautiful native bush. We continue on to Matakohe to visit the amazing collection of local memorabilia at the Matakohe Kauri Museum and lunch at Matakohe House. We stop near Warkworth in time for afternoon tea and return to Auckland in the late afternoon.
Copthorne Hotel Resort Bay of Islands
This four star hotel offers uninterrupted Bay views surrounded by 60 acres of subtropical gardens and the historic Waitangi Treaty Grounds. It features a spectacular, lagoon style swimming pool.
Copthorne Hotel Resort Hokianga
Waterfront hotel accommodation at lovely Omapere on the Hokianga Harbour with stunning views to huge sand dunes across the bay.
Booking enquiries
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Contact details
Booking conditions
- A payment of 10% of your tour cost to your travel agent or MoaTrek New Zealand Ltd (MoaTrek) confirms your booking and acknowledges your agreement to our terms and conditions.
- The balance of your fare is due 40 days before your tour departs.
- Tour reservations can of course, be made within 40 days provided full payment is made at time of booking.
- All prices are in $NZ and include New Zealand Goods & Services tax (GST) of 12.5%.
Cancellations and amendments
Cancellation fees depend on when we receive written notification of a cancellation.
- Bookings cancelled more than 40 days before departure incur loss of deposit.
- Between 40 days & 14 days 25% of tour cost.
- Within 14 days of departure 50% of tour cost.
- Bookings cancelled within seven days of the departure date are subject to 100% of tour cost.
- No refunds will be made after travel has commenced.
Booking Conditions, the fine print.
The Whangarei Native Bird Recovery Centre provides help, treatment and rehabilitation for injured and ill native birds so that they can be returned to the wild. Founded in 1992 by Robert and Robyn Webb, the centre is run with the help of a small and dedicated band of volunteers. You may meet Woof Woof, the talking tui as well as the many other chirpy characters which find a haven here.
Tufts of native grass adorn the roof, a tree is incorporated into the structure, and mosaic tiling, copper handwork, sculptures and cobblestone flooring abound.
A prominent building in the historic precinct is the Whare Runanga, a Maori meeting house standing as a monument to the nation, its people, and its ancestors.
You will visit the world famous ‘Hole in the Rock’, see an abundance of marine mammals and wildlife and learn of the rich history and culture whilst cruising amongst the 144 stunning islands. 
On the east coast of Northland a length of sand and rock coastline circles a sea pierced by 150 islands. Discovered by legendary Maori navigator Kupe, visited by Captain Cook in 1769, home to the Nga Puhi tribe (iwi) of Maori, the Bay of Islands is a truly remarkable area.
Te Waimate Mission House, built in 1832, is the second oldest standing building in New Zealand, and is the only survivor of three mission houses founded in 1830 on behalf of the Church Missionary Society by the Reverend Samuel Marsden with the agreement of local Nga Puhi. Enjoy the simple beauty of this Georgian building which was the heart of the Church Missionary Society's model farm - the forerunner of modern agriculture in New Zealand. The Mission House is furnished with missionary period furniture, and set in beautiful pastoral surroundings.
Hokianga Harbours untamed beaches, offer contrasting landscapes. The northern shores are made up of giant golden sand dunes, heaped up to 170 metres high by the westerly winds. While the southern side is green consisting of farmland forest, bush and scrub.
Reached by a short level track, Tane Mahuta (Lord of the Forest) is the largest kauri tree with a height of 51.2 metres and a girth of 13.77 metres. It is thought this tree was discovered and identified in the 1920s when contracted surveyors surveyed the present road through the forest. When you catch your first view of this magnificent tree, you feel compelled to pause for a while, you can almost feel Tane Mahuta’s strength and ancient presence.
This award-winning museum tells a fascinating story of the pioneering days through the use of kauri timber and kauri gum. Settlers first came to Matakohe in 1862. There is a magnificent collection of antique kauri furniture, restored machinery including New Zealand's earliest tractor, and a turning Steam Sawmill. The museum also has the largest collection of kauri gum in the world. 
Lunch at Whangarei Basin 
Stay at Copthorne Waitangi 
Take an optional dolphin cruise 
Visit lovely Matauri Bay 
Relax at Copthorne Omapere