Pohara

About 10km northeast of Takaka is pint-sized Pohara, a beachy village with a population that quadruples over summer. It has more flash holiday homes than other parts of Golden Bay, but an agreeable air persists nonetheless, aided by decent food and lodging, and a beach that at low tide is as big as Heathrow's runway.

Pohara lies close to the northern gateway of Abel Tasman National Park. The largely unsealed road into the park passes Tarakohe Harbour (Pohara’s working port), followed by Ligar Bay. It's worth climbing to the Abel Tasman lookout as you pass by.