Waikawau Bay Campsite

Waikawau Bay Campsite - Northern Coromandel

Waikawau Bay Campsite

Northern Coromandel

17 Rankers Reviews

1 Face-to-Face

10 Coromandel Town

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Waikawau Bay Recreation Reserve

Information

Waikawau Bay Campsite

This spacious, family friendly campsite is nestled beside a stunning white sand beach. The untouched Waikawau Bay is a fabulous place to relax on the beach, fish, swim, kayak or explore.

Camp next to a huge sweeping beach. This is a great place for fishing, diving and swimming. Bookings are essential during the peak season.

DOC Campsite Pricing

Waikawau Bay Campsite is categorised as a DOC Standard Campsite. The following pricing indicates usual pricing. Prices vary for some campsites and may include seasonal pricing. Visit the DOC website for exact pricing.

DOC Standard Campsite

Standard campsites have a more limited range of facilities and services than Serviced campsites. These campsites have toilets, a water supply that could be treated or untreated tap water, or from a stream or lake, and vehicle or boat access. Bring your own soap for washing hands. Untreated water should be boiled before use to ensure it's safe. Wood BBQs and fireplaces, cold showers, picnic tables, a cooking shelter and rubbish bins may be provided; this will vary from site to site.

Feature Value Value
Unpowered Site Adult $10.00 to $15.00 per night
Unpowered Site Child $5.00 to $7.50 per night
Unpowered Site Infant $0.00 per night
Powered Site Adult $13.00 to $18.00 per night
Powered Site Child $6.50 to $9.00 per night
Powered Site Infant $0.00 per night

Adults are 18+ years, children are 5-17 years, infants are 0-4 years.

Details

Feature Value Info

Organisation

DOC Coromandel

Central government organisation

Location

North IslandCoromandelCoromandel Town

Categories

  • Activity__basic_facility_campingBasic Camping

Directions

To Coordinates

Coordinates

-36.6061165

175.538218

Latitude
-36.6061165
Longitude
175.538218

Websites

Reviews

    ✓ Beautiful sandy beach

    ✓ Quiet and spacious

    ✓ Good for swimming and surfing

    ✓ Clean facilities

    ✓ Helpful DOC staff

    𐄂 Long, bumpy access road

    𐄂 Cold showers

    • Lovely campsite by the beach.
    • Been there twice!
    • Stayed 4 nights in early December.
    • Our favourite campground in NZ
    • This place is huge!
    Rating Count Percentage
    10/10 9
    53%
    9/10 2
    12%
    8/10 2
    12%
    7/10 1
    6%
    6/10 1
    6%
    5/10 2
    12%
    4/10 0
    0%
    3/10 0
    0%
    2/10 0
    0%
    1/10 0
    0%
  • 2.5/5

    Be warned our Hired Campervan wasn't insured if we drove along this road!!!

    (We didn't realise at the time!) lovely campsite with loads of room and beautiful beach but the track was very very long and bumpy in the camper van!

    Reviewed 7 months ago

  • 5.0/5

    Stayed 4 nights in early December.

    Excellent ablution blocks withlong drops and cold showers or bring your own solar shower. Plenty of fresh water although signs warn to boil it first. Powered sites are at the Eastern- most area. Wonderful ambience, lots of shelter trees and a stunning beach. Some low-lying sites are subject to flooding from the small streams within the campground. Ranger on site plus a small shop (but open only during summer peak season so range on sale unknown). Best access is via Colville settlement ( about 7km of gravel road that had been recently graded Dec/23). Would certainly revisit.

    Reviewed 11 months ago

  • 3.5/5

    Great place to stay, would thoroughly recommend it.

    What I did find disappointing though, was the number of pests, particularly possums.

    Reviewed over 2 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    This place is huge!

    Nearly empty when we were there as well. Great sandy beach, fall asleep to the waves. Cold showers but powerful. Plenty of shade and helpful DOC staff that stay on site

    Reviewed over 2 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Been there twice!

    Nice and clean facilities. Beach is good for swimming, surfing and also fishing. Theres also a cute little shop there with the necessities.

    Reviewed almost 3 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    7km of gravel from turn off, Stay on powered site in Caravan plenty of large sites that you can erect awning.

    Clean new long drop toilets and private cold shower cubicle. Shop on camp grounds that has basics. 2 minute walk to beach, has safe tidal lagoon that is cut off at low tide safe swimming for children. Wifi limited random spots on beach or unless climb to top of hill where water tanks are. Beautiful campsite and beach would highly recommend.

    Reviewed almost 3 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Lovely campsite by the beach.

    Clean toilets and showers. Doc office on site.

    Reviewed over 3 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Our favourite campground in NZ

    Reviewed over 3 years ago

  • 4.5/5

    Such a beautiful spot.

    Loads of sites, toilets were clean and there's a cold shower by the beach.

    Reviewed over 4 years ago and experienced in January 2020

  • 5.0/5

    Very nice campsite with one of the most beautiful beaches we have ever seen.

    Well maintained campsite with friendly staff.

    Reviewed over 5 years ago and experienced in December 2018

  • 5.0/5

    I went there in the early February with my boyfriend.

    The streets to arrive there are not the best but it is definitely worth it. We had a lot of space. I guess because we came there as the locals had to attend school and were working again.

    The beach was absolutely stunning and we had it nearly for our selves.

    They have no flushed as well as flushed toilets. If you want to have a relaxing camping trip with beautiful scenery I would definitely recommend this camping ground!

    Reviewed over 7 years ago

  • 4.5/5

    Very busy.

    Showers are cold but refreshing. Toilets don't have lights at night but are flushable. Short walk way to a beautiful beach. Extremely windy the 2 nights we stayed. Nice shop selling the usual things, ice blocks, bread, frozen ice etc... Nice rope swing for kids. All in all it was nice, entertaining and functional!

    Reviewed almost 8 years ago

  • 2.5/5

    Be warned our Hired Campervan wasn't insured if we drove along this road!!!

    (We didn't realise at the time!) lovely campsite with loads of room and beautiful beach but the track was very very long and bumpy in the camper van!

    Reviewed 7 months ago

  • 5.0/5

    Stayed 4 nights in early December.

    Excellent ablution blocks withlong drops and cold showers or bring your own solar shower. Plenty of fresh water although signs warn to boil it first. Powered sites are at the Eastern- most area. Wonderful ambience, lots of shelter trees and a stunning beach. Some low-lying sites are subject to flooding from the small streams within the campground. Ranger on site plus a small shop (but open only during summer peak season so range on sale unknown). Best access is via Colville settlement ( about 7km of gravel road that had been recently graded Dec/23). Would certainly revisit.

    Reviewed 11 months ago

  • 3.5/5

    Great place to stay, would thoroughly recommend it.

    What I did find disappointing though, was the number of pests, particularly possums.

    Reviewed over 2 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    This place is huge!

    Nearly empty when we were there as well. Great sandy beach, fall asleep to the waves. Cold showers but powerful. Plenty of shade and helpful DOC staff that stay on site

    Reviewed over 2 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Been there twice!

    Nice and clean facilities. Beach is good for swimming, surfing and also fishing. Theres also a cute little shop there with the necessities.

    Reviewed almost 3 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    7km of gravel from turn off, Stay on powered site in Caravan plenty of large sites that you can erect awning.

    Clean new long drop toilets and private cold shower cubicle. Shop on camp grounds that has basics. 2 minute walk to beach, has safe tidal lagoon that is cut off at low tide safe swimming for children. Wifi limited random spots on beach or unless climb to top of hill where water tanks are. Beautiful campsite and beach would highly recommend.

    Reviewed almost 3 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Lovely campsite by the beach.

    Clean toilets and showers. Doc office on site.

    Reviewed over 3 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Our favourite campground in NZ

    Reviewed over 3 years ago

  • 4.5/5

    Such a beautiful spot.

    Loads of sites, toilets were clean and there's a cold shower by the beach.

    Reviewed over 4 years ago and experienced in January 2020

  • 5.0/5

    Very nice campsite with one of the most beautiful beaches we have ever seen.

    Well maintained campsite with friendly staff.

    Reviewed over 5 years ago and experienced in December 2018

  • 2.5/5

    We have stayed for just one night (but booked for two, since there is a minimum stay of two nights) because of bad weather conditions and nothing to do for us and the kids (the walk we wanted to do wasn

    ´t possible either, because they announced some heavy rain for the day). If you want to have a quiet stay with a lot of birds singing and nesting and if you just want to surf, relax and take a cold shower afterwards, then it is the perfect spot for you. With little kids and bad weather we definitely wouldn´t recommend it, also we´ve seen a lot of people leaving as well. Already the road to get there is so curvy and dangerous, since locals are driving quiet fast and impatiently. Also I don´t understand what we actually paid for since there aren´t any facilities to use (no kitchen, no laundry, no warm/hot water, no wifi) and you pay $3 for an additional waste bag, since there aren´t any waste bins on the site. After four weeks of traveling around in NZ and having seen a lot of campsites, I´m sorry to say that we were a bit surprised that no one mentioned the "real" conditions of Waikawau Bay Camping Ground.

    Reviewed almost 7 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    I went there in the early February with my boyfriend.

    The streets to arrive there are not the best but it is definitely worth it. We had a lot of space. I guess because we came there as the locals had to attend school and were working again.

    The beach was absolutely stunning and we had it nearly for our selves.

    They have no flushed as well as flushed toilets. If you want to have a relaxing camping trip with beautiful scenery I would definitely recommend this camping ground!

    Reviewed over 7 years ago

  • 4.5/5

    Very busy.

    Showers are cold but refreshing. Toilets don't have lights at night but are flushable. Short walk way to a beautiful beach. Extremely windy the 2 nights we stayed. Nice shop selling the usual things, ice blocks, bread, frozen ice etc... Nice rope swing for kids. All in all it was nice, entertaining and functional!

    Reviewed almost 8 years ago

  • 5.0/5

    Big camping ground near a marvelous beach.

    Nice and helpful personnel, basic facilities with cold shower, toilets and sinks. Start and finish of a nice 3hour walk along a river and up a mountain with a good lookout through native and not so native forests.

    Reviewed almost 9 years ago

  • 3.0/5

    Hard stand camping ground next to ovals with toilet facilities.

    Quiet but very windy the night we stayed. The ladies at the local i-site were very helpful with freedom camping locations and also manage the local museum which is worth a look

    Reviewed about 11 years ago

  • 4.0/5

    Great location, spectacular beach - best one we saw, huge site with lots of outdoor possibilities, road to it is a bit dodgy.

    Reviewed over 12 years ago and experienced in February 2012

  • 4.0/5

    Large camping area with lots of shelter and private spots, clean longdrops with hand sanitiser.

    Also have a few flush toilets for the faint hearted :) Beach fairly safe, with a bit of surf. Small stream flowing out to the the beach with thermal hot water spots here and there. Heaps of neat bird life. Colville Store about 20 minutes drive has all you really need, worth a stop just to have a look. There is also a small shop at the camp for ice, bread, milk and iceblocks! etc etc.

    Reviewed almost 13 years ago and experienced in February 2010