Opononi Hotel

Bay of Islands & Northland


Try to score an outside table at this laid-back local pub (mains $13 to $36) so you can take in the improbable views of Opononi's massive sand dunes just across the harbour. There are regular live gigs in summer and it's a good place to watch a game of rugby with the locals.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Bay of Islands & Northland attractions

1. Arai-te-uru Recreation Reserve

2.55 MILES

Covering the southern headland of the Hokianga Harbour, this reserve offers magnificent views over the harbour and along the wild west coast. A short walk…

2. St Mary’s Catholic Church

8.49 MILES

Catholicism arrived in Aotearoa in the form of well-respected French bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier, who celebrated NZ’s first Mass at Totara Point…

3. Clendon House

9.94 MILES

This pretty cottage was built in the bustling 1860s by James Clendon, a trader, shipowner and magistrate. After his death, his 34-year-old half-Māori…

4. No 1 Parnell

10.02 MILES

Occupying a century-old corner building originally built as a grocery store, this upmarket commercial gallery exhibits interesting work by local artists…

5. Tāne Mahuta

10.12 MILES

Near the north end of the park, not far from the road, stands mighty Tāne Mahuta, named for the Māori forest god. At 51.5m, with a 13.8m girth and wood…

6. Te Matua Ngahere

10.51 MILES

From the Kauri Walks car park, a 20-minute walk leads past the Four Sisters, a graceful stand of four tall trees fused together at the base, to Te Matua…

7. Village Arts

13.3 MILES

A sophisticated surprise in such a small place, this volunteer-run gallery fills a restored heritage building with ever-changing exhibitions – mainly from…

8. Māngungu Mission

14.43 MILES

Completed in 1839, this sweet wooden cottage contains relics of the missionaries who once inhabited it, and of Horeke’s shipbuilding past. In the grounds…