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Kiwi towns

What’s so great about Coromandel Town

  • 2 minutes

Coromandel, North Island

Best things to do and where to go

Catch the ferry from downtown Auckland to Coromandel Town for the weekend. Get around on a hired bike from Hike & Bike Coromandel or drive from Thames along the stunning coastal route (SH25) past small settlements, pohutukawa trees and sandy coves to the Victorian era Coromandel Town. An artistic hub showcased by Driving Creek Pottery and the late Barry Brickell, the town offers seafood treats, bush walks, heritage trails and beaches to laze away the day on. Coromandel Town is a gem worth the detour.

COROMANDEL TOWN LOCATION

55km winding coastal State Highway 25 from Thames

WHAT TO DO IN COROMANDEL TOWN, HIGHLIGHTS

  • Driving Creek Railway and Potteries. The creek takes its name from the driving of kauri logs using released dam water thereby floating logs to the harbour for shipping.
  • The School of Mines Museum is a cute Victoriana chocablock with heritage photographs and intriguing memorabilia. Check opening hours to avoid disappointment as it is managed by volunteers.
  • Gravel road experience the locally famous 309 ROAD is a journey through time with the winding narrow gravel road hugging the bushline and river. There are well signposted lookout points and sights along the route.
  • Coromandel Gold Stamper Battery and Goldfields Centre
  • For panoramic views Castle Rock climb

WALKS IN COROMANDEL TOWN

  • Long Bay, a loop track past an old kauri grove, along the beach and beneath cliffs. The trail is steep in parts.
  • Coromandel Coastal Walkway is a shared walking, cycle trial from Fletcher Bay to Stony Bay For walking buffs Success Mine Track starting at the former hospital building and along the old Colville Rd follows mining paths in the hills behind town

VIEWS IN COROMANDEL TOWN

  • State Highway 25 route between Coromandel Town and Whitianga has a number of lookout points with views of Long, Oamaru Bay and the
Coromandel coast is well known for its pohutukawa trees, beautiful year round and majestic in bloom, New Zealand
Coromandel coast
Whangapoua, Coromandel, New Zealand, December 15 2015. New Chums Beach and Whangapoua including the bush walk to the secluded beach
New Chums Beach and Whangapoua

GOLD STAMPER BATTERY IN COROMANDEL TOWN

  • Coromandel Goldfield Centre & Stamper Battery is a 112 year old fully operational water powered plant for processing gold from rock. If you would like to see inside the Stamper Battery, trained geologist Ashley Franklyn shares his passion for Coromandel’s history and gold mining past in his famous one hour fully guided tour, described as “one of the most informative and interesting hours you can spend in Coromandel.” Tours summer only or by appointment.

WHAT TO DO NEARBY COROMANDEL TOWN

  • Visit Whangapoua and New Chums beach
  • Carry on down the road to Colville to the end of the peninsula just because you can

COROMANDEL TOWN FAME

  • Barry Brickell 1935 – 2016 potter, rail enthusiast, writer, conservationist and creator of Driving Creek. Barry designed and built the kilns at Driving Creek using clay sourced from the property.

COROMANDEL TOWN NOTORIETY

  • Murder of Urban Höglin and Heidi Paakkonen in 1989 resulted in police, residents, and military personnel conducting the largest land-based search undertaken in New Zealand, attempting to find the couple. The case continues to court debate Murder of Urban Höglin and Heidi Paakkonen.

WHAT TO DO WITH THE KIDS IN COROMANDEL TOWN

  • Driving Creek railway with its hairpin bends and quirky pottery nestled in the bush
  • The Waterworks
  • Stamp Battery walk to a lookout point. Track Description: 410 Buffalo Rd, Coromandel; 2 km northeast of town (dogs okay) – 15-min return. Behind the historic Stamper Battery on Buffalo Rd, this short walk at Drinkwater Reserve crosses a bridge and goes up steps through the bush to a spot overlooking the hills and cemetery.
@TheWaterworksCoromandel
@TheWaterworksCoromandel
@Driving Creek Railway & Pottery
@Driving Creek Railway & Pottery

WHERE TO TAKE THE BEST SELFIES IN COROMANDEL TOWN

COROMANDEL TOWN SLOGAN

  • Coromandel, capital of the peninsula

FESTIVALS IN COROMANDEL TOWN

  • The Keltic Fair on January 2 each year is a festival, art space and foodie heaven all rolled into an enormous fun-filled weekend
  • Arts Tour or Open Studio for the next 32km is superb
  • K2 is a road cycle classic event
  • The Great Kauri Run – The Great Kauri Run every competitor has a kauri (tree) planted. The Spirit of Coromandel Trust vision is to plant 10,000 trees over the next ten years and to create an avenue of Kauri all the way from Waikawau to Coromandel.

COROMANDEL TOWN SOCIAL MEDIA

@K2 Cycle Race
@K2 Cycle Race

WHO TURNED UP AND NAMED COROMANDEL TOWN?

  • The peninsula was named for HMS Coromandel, a British Navy ship that put in at Coromandel Harbour in the 1820s to buy kauri spars for the British navy. The ship is named after an Indian coastal area.
Coromandel town, New Zealand
Coromandel town

WHAT KEEPS COROMANDEL TOWN TICKING?

  • Mussel farming; oysters. Tourism with a focus on art, craft and local seafood delicacies

COROMANDEL TOWN POPULATION

  • 1,760 (2020)

WEATHER IN COROMANDEL TOWN

JUDGMENT ON COROMANDEL TOWN

  • Your weekend is sorted. Or consider a summer holiday destination with the family

Every town adds to the richness of things to do and see. For more details about the region check Thames & Coromandel Peninsula nearby attractions and events.

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