Ninety Mile Beach, New Zealand
A popular beach destination for holiday makers, the long and beautiful Ninety Mile Beach, New Zealand offers visitors the opportunity for fishing, surfing and shellfish gathering, as well as relaxing on the white sand or simply taking in the views over the Tasman Sea.
Ninety Mile Beach is on the western coast of the North Auckland Peninsula approximately 245kn (152 miles) from Auckland.
Snapper Fishing
It is the perfect place to fish for snapper, with anglers from all over the world converging on the beach for the Annual Red Snapper Classic fishing competition, which is held for five days every February. The prize pool is in excess of $250,000.
Shellfish Gathering
The beach is also famous for its shellfish, especially toheroas, which were once scarce, but have now come back to the sands.
Beach Driving
At low tide, and if driven with care, the beach can be used as a road. The surface is quite solid and safe as long as drivers stay clear of the waves and travel slowly through the streams, which cross the sand.
Surfing
Surfing conditions vary and should be checked with local authorities.
The Beach
The beautiful white sand of the Ninety Mile beach faces the Tasman Sea and extends for 88.5km (55 miles) between two volcanic rocky headlands; Scott Point in the north and Reef Point in the south. The name “Ninety Mile Beach” is an oddity as the beach is only 55 miles long, but the name has endured despite this discrepancy.
Along the landward side beautiful sand dunes flank the beach. They extend up to 6.5km inland and some are as high as 143 metres (469ft) at the northern end of the beach. The size and width of the dunes decreases as you travel south.
Beach Access
The most popular beach access is from “The Ramp” a short drive from the inland village of Waipapakauri.
Philippa Rowlands - Philippa Rowlands, writer for the Australia, New Zealand and Oceania travel section of Suite 101 is a professional freelance writer, ...
