Waiuku is a charming little rural town that sits at the southern end of the Āwhitu Peninsula. The town has several pleasant waterfront parks and recreation areas overlooking the shores of the tidal Waiuku river, which is an estuary that flows out of the Manukau Harbour. Waiuku is just under an hour’s drive from Auckland. I had the opportunity to visit this beautiful little town in July. Being winter, it was cold and wet but I still managed to see some highlights in between the rain showers.
The town and nearby attractions.
Queen Street, Waiuku
The Manukau Heads Lighthouse
Our present-day lighthouse is a replica of the original one designed by John Blackett and built in 1874. The lighthouse sits at the very Northern end of the Āwhitu Peninsula, about a 40-minute drive from Waiuku. The drive takes you through winding country roads with gorgeous vistas along the way.
When you get to the lighthouse parking lot, you then need to take a fairly steep climb up to the top of the cliff to access the lighthouse.
Unfortunately, when I reached the top, the lighthouse had been taped off with red tape saying “Danger – Keep Out”.
I wasn’t really keen to see if that meant that the lighthouse would fall off the cliff into the harbour upon me setting foot in it, so I stayed out. This was much to my disappointment because it was advertised as offering fabulous views from the top platform of the lighthouse.
I discovered that there is a viewing platform a short distance from the lighthouse, and you can see a little bit out over the harbour from there. However, there are a lot of plants growing around the platform, which obscures the view somewhat. Overall, it was a bit of a let-down as far as seeing the view was concerned, and I’ll have to wait for another time to see the inside of a lighthouse.
Karioitahi Beach
This beach is a windswept black sand beach on the west coast, roughly a 9-minute drive from Waiuku. There is very little phone reception out there, and the beach wears the full force of the wild west coast winds. Karioitahi Beach is a popular place for off-road motorbiking, 4WD vehicles, horse riding, surfing and fishing.
The black sand is striking, and it never gets old for me to see it. Such a contrast to the white sand beaches we have in Australia.
The Kentish Hotel – Waiuku
Built in 1851, the Kentish Hotel was first granted a liquor licence in 1853, and the same licence still continues today. This is why the hotel lays claim to having the longest continuous liquor licence in New Zealand. Proud of its historical role, the hotel displays over 450 photographs throughout the premises that celebrate the personalities that have contributed to New Zealand and Waiuku history.
The hotel is located across from the waterfront Tamakae Reserve and Waiuku Museum and has added a popular Portside Bar area for dining and functions.
The place is a popular destination on Saturday nights with DJ’s or live bands featuring until midnight.
I stayed in one of the rooms upstairs and it all went fairly smoothly, including an enjoyable meal in the Portside Bar area.
A few things to note here:
• The Saturday night music is very loud, and it can be heard in the rooms at considerable volume.
• The hotel requires a cash deposit of $20 to be held for a key bond. Apparently, people kept leaving without returning the room keys, causing a fair amount of expense to get the keys replaced all the time. Hence they now have the required deposit which is returned to you when you hand over the key at checkout.
• There is a sign in the room about the strict no-smoking policy for the building.
My first thought when I read this was “oh no, not again!” as my mind immediately flashed back to the time I stayed in a heritage-listed building in Brisbane. The result was a wild-eyed evacuation experience after someone decided that they could ignore all instructions and smoke in their room anyway….. You can read that story here.
Anyway, nothing bad happened this time, so obviously people are better at following instructions in New Zealand than they are in Brisbane!
Thank goodness for that.
Murals in Waiuku
There are some murals around the town, which I saw as I was driving in. I was able to grab a few photos of the murals I managed to find in a quick walk around the streets. You might be able to find some more. If you do, please share your photos in the comments below!
Check out some of my other posts about Murals from around the world here.
Kaos on Queen
This quirky little café deserves a mention. Apart from the unique décor and interesting menu selection, they were happy to work with dietary requirements. Gluten-free options were no problem.
All the menus were on the back of old record covers, and the floor was also papered with them. I had to smile at the Versailles-Style mirror room at the back of the café.
The Glenbrook Vintage Rail
I would have loved to have been able to take a trip on the Glenbrook Vintage Rail steam train! But they close the service down over winter and do restoration work. Such a shame that I missed out on this. Maybe next time I’m in NZ I can time this better.
If you are able to, check out the timetable and take a ride on the steam train from Glenbrook to Waiuku!
Where will you stay in Waiuku?
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