Hahei

Hahei is a small settlement with one very good beach and two famous neighbours. The sand has a pink cast to it from crushed shell, the swimming is safe and sheltered, and most people who stay here are using it as the base for Cathedral Cove — the rock archway that appears on every Coromandel postcard.

Getting to the cove takes a walk of about forty-five minutes each way from the car park above the village, or a short boat trip from the beach. Check before you go: access has been closed at times after storm damage and slips, and the situation changes. The boat operators will know the current position.

Hot Water Beach is twenty minutes south, where a thermal spring runs under the sand. Two hours either side of low tide you can dig your own hot pool. Bring a spade, check the tide times before you drive over, and expect company — this is not a secret.