I want to be upfront about something. Before I came to Tauranga I had the kind of vague impression that a lot of people have about it — New Zealand’s fifth largest city, Bay of Plenty, probably nice. What I did not expect was how quickly it would get under my skin.
It is also one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing cities. The suburbs of Papamoa and Mount Maunganui have developed into their own destinations with excellent restaurants, boutique shops, and a lifestyle that attracts people from Auckland and beyond. International tourists are catching on too, and for good reason.
This guide covers everything worth doing in and around Tauranga — the natural highlights, the beaches, the day trips, the food, and a few things that do not make every list but absolutely should.
McLaren Falls Park
The park is named after its central waterfall, which greets you near the entrance. From there it opens up into a vast landscape of both native and exotic trees — one of the best botanical collections in New Zealand — with a long, peaceful lake running through the middle of it all. The lakeshore path is one of those walks where you genuinely lose track of time. The water is still, the trees hang over the edges, and it is quiet in a way that is hard to find close to any city.
What makes McLaren Falls more than just a pretty walk is everything else it offers. You can fish or kayak on the lake. There are picnic spots along the shore that are genuinely excellent — bring food, set up, and stay a while. There is also overnight camping if you want to make a full experience of it.
The reason I keep recommending this park to people specifically is the glowworms. At dusk, as the light fades, the glowworms come out along the banks and in the darker sections of the park. It is the kind of thing that sounds like a novelty until you actually see it, and then it is one of the most beautiful natural things you will witness in New Zealand.
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Mount Maunganui Summit Track
Mount Maunganui — locals just call it the Mount — is the landmark of Tauranga. You can see it from almost everywhere in the city: that distinctive lava dome rising above the beach and the bay, looking completely out of place and entirely magnificent.
The Summit Track takes you from the base to the top and it is shorter than you expect. In less than an hour of walking you are standing at the summit with 360-degree panoramas over the Bay of Plenty on one side and the Tauranga Harbour on the other. The views are genuinely extraordinary. On a clear day the scale of what you can see — ocean, coastline, farmland, the city below — stops you in your tracks.
The track is steep in places. It is not difficult but it does require some effort, especially in the heat of summer. Wear proper shoes, bring water, and do not try to rush it. There are multiple tracks of varying difficulty winding up the sides of the mount so you can choose your route based on your fitness level.
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Mount Maunganui Beach
Mount Maunganui Beach regularly appears on lists of the best beaches in New Zealand and having spent time there I understand exactly why.
It is one of the most popular surf beaches in New Zealand. National surfing competitions take place here every year and on any given day you will see surfers of every level in the water. If you surf, this is not optional — you have to get in. If you do not surf, the beach is still excellent for swimming, volleyball, and the kind of long aimless walk where you just breathe and let the sea do its thing.
The beach suburb itself — also called Mount Maunganui — is now connected to the Tauranga CBD by a bridge and has its own strong identity. Along the shore and in the streets nearby you will find excellent cafes, restaurants, bars, and boutique shops. It has a holiday town energy that somehow does not feel forced. People are genuinely relaxed here in a way that is contagious.
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Kaiate Falls
Kaiate Falls — also known by their Māori names Te Rerekawau and Maui — are a multi-tiered series of waterfalls tumbling down three separate cliff faces into a series of pools below. They are not as well-known as they should be, which means you often have them nearly to yourself even on a weekend.
The falls drop a total of around 25 meters across the tiers. The surrounding vegetation is dense and lush — native bush that closes in around the trail and makes the whole walk feel like you are going deeper into something wild. There are tracks that take you up alongside the falls and above them, giving you different perspectives on the water as it moves down the cliff faces.
The thing most people come for, and the thing I would come back for specifically, is the swimming hole at the base of the falls. A deep, cold, clear pool sits at the bottom where the water lands. Jumping in after the walk is one of those simple pleasures that you will not forget quickly.
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Papamoa Beach
Papamoa is one of Tauranga’s fastest-growing suburbs and once you spend time there you understand why people keep moving here.
Above the beach, Papamoa Hills Regional Park offers some of the best views over the Bay of Plenty from its summit. The walk up is not long and the panorama from the top — ocean, coastline, farmland, and the Mount in the distance — is one of the better views available without climbing anything too demanding.
In the hills you can also spot the remains of old Māori pā sites — fortified villages that give you a sense of how long this landscape has been home to people.
Back near the beach, Papamoa’s suburban strip has quietly become one of the better places to eat and drink in the Tauranga area. Good coffee shops, brunch spots, and a handful of genuinely excellent restaurants have built up here over the past decade. It feels more local and less tourist-facing than the Mount Maunganui strip, which I personally find appealing.
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Waihi Beach
Waihi Beach is about an hour’s drive north up the coast from Tauranga. That is far enough that some people skip it. That would be a mistake.
What I like about Waihi Beach that I do not always find at the more popular spots is the pace of it. It is a small coastal town that has not been overdeveloped. There is a sheltered bay on one side for calmer swimming and the main beach on the other for surf and long walks. The local shops and restaurants are small and genuine. It feels like New Zealand before things got busy.
If you are staying in Tauranga for more than three or four days, make the drive north. Go on a weekday, spend the morning on the beach, have lunch in town, and come back along the coast road in the afternoon.
White Island (Whakaari)
White Island is unlike anything else on this list — or on most lists anywhere.
It sits about 50 kilometers off the Bay of Plenty coastline and it is New Zealand’s most active marine volcano. The island smokes constantly. The crater is full of steaming vents, boiling mud pits, and sulfur-crusted terrain that looks like something from another planet. The landscape is barren, dramatic, and unlike anything you will find on the mainland.
Access is by aerial tour only — helicopter flights that take you above and onto the island with knowledgeable guides who explain the geology, the volcanic activity, and the history of the place. These tours are not cheap. But the experience of standing on an active volcano in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by boiling mud and hissing steam, is one that is impossible to replicate anywhere else in New Zealand.
Important note: White Island has a complicated recent history. The volcanic eruption in December 2019 was a tragedy that resulted in significant loss of life. Tours to the island have since resumed with updated safety protocols and monitoring. Before visiting, check the current status of tours and volcanic alert levels. Go with a reputable operator who takes the safety briefing seriously.
On the approach to the island, dolphins, flying fish, seals, and seabirds are commonly spotted alongside the boat or helicopter. The trip out there is an experience in itself.
Te Puke
It sits about 20 minutes east of Tauranga, inland from the Bay of Plenty, and the volcanic soils and warm climate here have made it the heart of New Zealand’s kiwifruit industry. The orchards spread out across the surrounding countryside in every direction and during harvest season — late winter into spring — the activity in the area is something to see.
But Te Puke is more than just a fruit label on a supermarket shelf. The town itself is a genuine slice of rural New Zealand life — unhurried, unpretentious, and worth a few hours of exploration. The cafes and restaurants serve fresh local produce including the honey kiwis and avocados the region is known for. Some of the surrounding farms offer tours or farm gate experiences where you can see how the fruit is grown and buy it directly.
Beyond the horticulture, the area around Te Puke has bush walks, beaches within short driving distance, and countryside roads that are enjoyable to drive through even with no particular destination in mind.
Go on a weekday, have lunch at one of the local cafes, and drive back through the orchards on the way home.
Tauranga Art Gallery
Back in the city center is the Tauranga Art Gallery, and this one is worth more of your time than people typically give it.
The gallery is housed in the former Bank of New Zealand building — a beautiful historic structure that has been thoughtfully converted into light and airy exhibition spaces. The building itself is worth seeing before you even look at the art.
Inside, the collection spans both local and international artists across two levels. There are around 500 works on display including paintings, photographs, sculptures, and contemporary video installations. The permanent collection is strong on New Zealand landscapes and portraits, and the rotating exhibitions bring in thoughtful contemporary work that keeps the experience fresh no matter when you visit.
It first opened to the public in 2007 and has become Tauranga’s preeminent cultural institution. Admission is free for the permanent collection. Check what is showing in the temporary galleries before you go because special exhibitions often have a small entry fee.
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Te Puna Quarry Park
Te Puna Quarry Park is one of those places that starts as a story — an abandoned quarry that a group of volunteers decided to transform — and ends as one of the most genuinely charming parks you will find anywhere in New Zealand.
Over several decades, a dedicated team of volunteers planted groves of trees, established colorful flower beds, installed old mining equipment as historical artifacts, and commissioned extraordinary public artworks throughout the grounds. The result is a park that is part botanical garden, part sculpture trail, part community art project, and entirely unlike anything else in the region.
The planting covers an extraordinary range — irises, cacti, succulents, native species, and a dedicated bonsai corner alongside a butterfly garden. The sculptures are dotted throughout, appearing around corners and at the ends of paths in ways that keep you engaged.
Tauranga Historic Village
It is a living museum of New Zealand’s colonial and early settler history, with a collection of original and relocated historic buildings set across a large outdoor site. The buildings include Victorian-era homes, shops, a church, a schoolhouse, and various commercial premises — all furnished and presented as they would have appeared in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
What makes it more than just a collection of old buildings is the activity that happens within it. The village hosts markets, craft fairs, artisan demonstrations, and events throughout the year that bring the space to life in ways that a static museum cannot. Local craftspeople work in some of the buildings, and if you time your visit right you can watch traditional skills being practiced.
The grounds are also genuinely lovely for a walk even if you are not particularly interested in history. Admission is affordable and the time spent here gives you a much richer sense of what Tauranga was before it became the city it is today.
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The Elms Mission House
The Elms is one of the most significant historic sites in the Bay of Plenty and one of the oldest European buildings in New Zealand still standing on its original site.
The mission house was built in 1847 by the Brown family — Anglican missionaries who arrived in the Bay of Plenty in the 1830s and spent decades here. The house and its surrounding gardens have been preserved largely as they were during the family’s occupancy, and the result is an extraordinary window into early colonial New Zealand life.
The gardens are exceptional. Mature trees planted by the Brown family in the 19th century now tower over the grounds, and the layout of the garden — formal in some sections, wild in others — has a timeless quality that makes it one of the more peaceful places to spend an hour in the city.
Guided tours are available and genuinely informative. The guides bring real knowledge about the missionary period, the relationship between early settlers and the local Māori, and the history of Tauranga as a whole. It is the kind of place that rewards proper attention rather than a quick walk through.
Tauranga Harbour and Wharves
The Tauranga waterfront and historic wharves along The Strand are the kind of thing you want to walk without a particular plan.
The city’s waterfront faces the inner harbour with views across to Mount Maunganui and the surrounding hills. The Strand — the main waterfront street — has restaurants, cafes, and bars facing the water, and on a warm evening it is one of the nicest places in the city to be.
The historic wharf area has been thoughtfully developed without losing its working character. Tauranga is a genuinely busy port — one of the largest container ports in New Zealand — and there is something interesting about watching commercial shipping activity from a cafe table while you eat breakfast.
The area also has direct ferry connections to Mount Maunganui if you want to cross the harbour without driving. It is a short and pleasant ride.
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Surfing and Water Sports
The surf at Mount Maunganui is legendary in New Zealand terms — national competitions, consistent swells, and a culture of surfing that goes back generations. If you surf, the Mount is where you go. If you want to learn, there are surf schools operating on the beach that can have a beginner standing up in a few hours on the right day.
Beyond surfing, the harbour is calm enough for kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding. The lake at McLaren Falls Park is good for kayaking in a completely different environment. Swimming is excellent at multiple beaches depending on the conditions. Kitesurfing and windsurfing are popular in the bay when the wind is right.
The water is warm by New Zealand standards — especially in summer — and the Bay of Plenty lives up to its name when it comes to what the ocean offers.
Exploring the Food and Coffee Scene
The Mount Maunganui strip has the highest concentration of good cafes and restaurants, particularly along Pacific Avenue and the streets nearest the beach. Brunch culture here is serious — New Zealand in general takes brunch seriously, and Mount Maunganui specifically has several spots that are worth queuing for on a weekend morning.
The Tauranga CBD has its own collection of good restaurants along The Strand and in the surrounding streets, with a focus on fresh local seafood and Bay of Plenty produce. The proximity to Te Puke means avocados, kiwifruit, and other local fruit appear on menus in ways that feel natural rather than novelty.
