We visited Kawhia and Aotea - known as the "land that time forgot".
According to the Hamilton & Waikato website:
"One of the Hamilton & Waikato’s, and indeed New Zealand’s, best kept secrets is Kawhia Hot Water Beach. Head down to Ocean Beach in Kawhia at low tide, clamber over the sand dunes and stroll down onto the beach. Find your spot and start digging for an instant natural hot water spa, with stunning views to match."
The little town is really cute with oyster beds visible from the road.
We left the town and drove to the very remote bay and beach which are stunning - once you make it over the very high sand dune. According to the Kawhia Habour website, in order to take advantage of the hot water bubbling up through the sand when the tide recedes, it is best to do so approximately 2 hours before low tide. So before that you may not see any evidence of the hotpools.
The sand is both black and dark blue.
The day we visited, it was dark with cloud cover and raining. As we were walking we could see steam, but could not pinpoint exactly where it was coming from.
Later after a bite to eat, we drove to Aotea which had the most stunning views out over the bay.
According to the Hamilton & Waikato website:
"One of the Hamilton & Waikato’s, and indeed New Zealand’s, best kept secrets is Kawhia Hot Water Beach. Head down to Ocean Beach in Kawhia at low tide, clamber over the sand dunes and stroll down onto the beach. Find your spot and start digging for an instant natural hot water spa, with stunning views to match."
The little town is really cute with oyster beds visible from the road.
We left the town and drove to the very remote bay and beach which are stunning - once you make it over the very high sand dune. According to the Kawhia Habour website, in order to take advantage of the hot water bubbling up through the sand when the tide recedes, it is best to do so approximately 2 hours before low tide. So before that you may not see any evidence of the hotpools.
The sand is both black and dark blue.
The day we visited, it was dark with cloud cover and raining. As we were walking we could see steam, but could not pinpoint exactly where it was coming from.
Later after a bite to eat, we drove to Aotea which had the most stunning views out over the bay.
