Chiclanagir

We have eight days out of Auckland to see some of the North Island by car, which would you choose? Don´t want surfing as we have a surfing beach 20 mins from us here in Spain but I would like to snorkel. Advice welcomed please.

whitesand

Personally, I prefer the Coromandel. The trouble with the Bay of Islands is that you can't get to the islands without a boat and it is very touristy around there, whereas I find the Coromandel much more natural and relaxing.

Ash1

Hmm, tough one that.
We loved both. I agree with whitesand in that Bay of Islands is very touristy but this can be a good thing for choice or accommadation as the caromandel is a little lacking. Yes you would need a boat to see the islands but there are 101 excursions on offer from the main wharf.
The Coromandel is stunning with beautiful, tucked away deserted beaches like Cathedral Cove, HaHei etc Its ideal if you enjoy beach life and walking/mountain biking then Coromandel is ideal.
If I was forced to choose, I think that I would go to The Bay of Islands. But both are great.
good luck
Ash

pixi-dust

I'd be a little biased as I live in the Bay of Islands! If you don't live/stay in Paihia it's not touristy ( well Russell too in the summertime, but it's cute as) however like previous poster said there's a lot of accommodation there and also all the boat trips leave from there too. On a good day there is nothing more stunning than getting out on the bay in a boat. You can also hire wee boats with a decent sized engine and head off yourself - there are so many deserted islands, it's stunning. Pretty much every time we go out we see dolphins, right up close. The trips are very good, theres the Hole in the Rock either half or whole day, dolphin watching, and the Excitor. If you're into diving theres a lot of excellent places.
From Auckland its about 3 1/2 hour drive to the BOI, it's an ok drive. Once there you have a base and can do various day trips, 90 mile beach, Cape Reinga, Manganoui for fish and chips, quad biking along the beach, there's this mad hovercraft thing you can do, we did it last summer and it was excellent. Tane Mahuta etc etc

I also love the Coromandel, again previous poster mentioned my favourite place there, Cathedral cove, also Stingray Cove too. There are a lot of small places dotted around which are lovely. It's very beautiful.

Chiclanagir

Is it possible to combine both in eight days? If not and we decide on the BOI where would the best base be?

shirl

Not been to the Coromandel but been to Bay of Islands and I can recommend the Edgewater Palms Apartments on the front at Pahia.

http://www.edgewaterapartments.co.nz/

These are self catering with secure underground parking. We had a ground floor one on the front and it was lovely. Nice walk to local restaurants etc. Ferry over to Russell and lots of lovely things to do as Pixi Dust has said.

pixi-dust

you could, but one whole day would have to be travelling from one to the other, if I remember rightly it's about 7 hours.
You could have three full days in each I reckon. Not really enough time to do them both justice, but it would mean you could see them both.

Best base for BOI I think would be Paihia, you can do all the boat things from there and there's more choice of places to stay, my brother in law stayed at The Beachfront Apartments and really liked them.

I forgot to say theres a trip in the bay on a huge catamaran called The Edge, it stops at Robertson Island and theres a lovely snorkelling bit there. The Fullers one stops at Urupukapuka which is nice but much busier ( well NZ busy!)

Ash1

Yes , would agree Paihia as its central to everything. I`m not sure if its still running but we went on "The Rock" which is basically a converted car ferry which has basic accommadation but the overall experience was fantastic. Midnight kayaking was amazing as any movement in the water sets off the phospheressents (spelt wrong and probably the wrong word) which triggers a light in the water. My explanation will not do it justice si i wont even try !!! But either way , brilliant.
Ash

chocolate cake

Just back from a weekend in Bay of Island and enjoyed it, and regularly in the Coromandel which has super spots including aforementioned Cathedral Cove. I've yet to discover the mountain biking potential though - like much of NZ I've seen lots of no cycling access signs off road.

pixi-dust

it's still running and still brilliant

uk+kiwi

Most definitely. 2-4 days in each would be plenty. They're 'small' places! My personal preference is the Coromandel because it's so beautiful, but you can see opinion is divided. And everyone has mentioned the 'must see' parts of both to assist your planning. Have fun.

Chiclanagir

So any idea of where to start?

mickey_d

[QUOTE=Chiclanagir;6803521]Don´t want surfing as we have a surfing beach 20 mins from us here in Spain but I would like to snorkel.QUOTE]

Goat Island
http://www.discovergoatisland.co.nz/

Chiclanagir

[QUOTE=mickey_d;6805640] So is Goat Island in the BOI or Coromandel?

scrubbedexpat094

[QUOTE=Chiclanagir;6806035] Neither! But it would be on your way up to BOI. Fantastic place & well worth a visit.