Hi, I'm planning a trip to New Zealand for November, and the first two weeks will be on the north island. I'm looking for some advice regarding good wing destinations. Raglan is on the list, but I'm also looking at the bay of islands as we have friends there. Does anyone have any data on launch spots or conditions in that area? I will be in Nelson on the South Island, which looks like it's a good spot for winging as well. If anyone has any other locations that are must dos, I would appreciate any information I can get!
If you are driving North from Auckland to the Bay of Islands, check out Orewa beach - east coast, just North of Auckland - great in any wind with North or East in it.
In the Bay of Islands - North East try Long Beach at Russell - can be excellent, or TeTi Beach at Waitangi. Ti Beach is good from North East to North West.
Anything with West in it - NW through to SW try the sandy beach at Tapeka Pt - even better if there is some swell. Southwest, you can rig and go out from the beach at Russell, but there are a lot of moored boats to negotitate. Good when you get out past them.
South through to Easterly not great in the Bay, but Oakura which is about 30 minutes drive South of Russell down the coast is good in southeast or easterly.
Also worth thinking about is driving up to Doubtless bay - good beaches at Cable Bay, and the Karikari peninsular - anything with east / north is good at Tokarou Beach, and west/south at Rangiputa - long beach inside a harbour - drivable on beach - great place for kiting / dinging on flat water.
If you are experienced and want a challenge and waves - in anything westerly head for Ahipara at the bottom of 90 mile beach.
Google: Orewa Beach, Te Ti Beach Waitangi, Tapeka Pt Russell, Long Beach Russell, Oakura Bay Whangaruru, Rangiputa Beach, Tokarau Beach.
I hope you get some decent wind!
Bring a good light wind setup that will work in 8+ kn if you want max time on the water. Otherwise you might only get 3-4 days a week on the water if it's a bad week
Most of what I've done when visiting is at Auckland beaches, but wing trips to Raglan were awesome. Coromandel had some awesome beaches to wing foil at (I did Otama and Opito). In Nov/Dec last year I averaged about 4 days foiling per week with 12kn+. With a good light wind rig you could have some epic sessions if it's a gentle 8-10kn afternoon sea breeze (about 2-3 days per week it seemed like).
also check out the Kiwi Foil Froth Facebook group, and this site has some basic location info to get started foilpro.co.nz/listing-category/wing-foiling-spots/
Select to expand quotekiwiupover said..
Bring a good light wind setup that will work in 8+ kn if you want max time on the water. Otherwise you might only get 3-4 days a week on the water if it's a bad week
Most of what I've done when visiting is at Auckland beaches, but wing trips to Raglan were awesome. Coromandel had some awesome beaches to wing foil at (I did Otama and Opito). In Nov/Dec last year I averaged about 4 days foiling per week with 12kn+. With a good light wind rig you could have some epic sessions if it's a gentle 8-10kn afternoon sea breeze (about 2-3 days per week it seemed like).
also check out the Kiwi Foil Froth Facebook group, and this site has some basic location info to get started foilpro.co.nz/listing-category/wing-foiling-spots/
Any place to rent gear in Raglan?
Awesome! Thx to you both for the beta! Much appreciated. If you had to pick between Raglan and the other wing spots mentioned close to the bay of islands, which would you choose for early November?
Raglan is south of Auckland vs Bay of islands which is north. Honestly anywhere you go will be awesome, raglan is 2 hours south and Bay of islands is roughly 4 hours north of Auckland. There's an ozone shop in Raglan that does lessons and has jet skis. I think they do gear rental too. It takes them a couple of days to respond to emails :-)
try reaching out to these guys for rental/tours/accommodations. They do a lot in Bay of islands www.waternomads.co.nz/
Hit up the Facebook kiwi foil froth page for more first hand info.
I spent lots of summers around bay of islands as a kid and the beaches are amazing. Weirdly enough I'm just about to get on the plane to Auckland with my gear and will be hitting the water in 48 hours. Raglan and Bay of islands are both on the list. but Auckland has good spots too!
Select to expand quoteKiwiG said..
If you are driving North from Auckland to the Bay of Islands, check out Orewa beach - east coast, just North of Auckland - great in any wind with North or East in it.
In the Bay of Islands - North East try Long Beach at Russell - can be excellent, or TeTi Beach at Waitangi. Ti Beach is good from North East to North West.
Anything with West in it - NW through to SW try the sandy beach at Tapeka Pt - even better if there is some swell. Southwest, you can rig and go out from the beach at Russell, but there are a lot of moored boats to negotitate. Good when you get out past them.
South through to Easterly not great in the Bay, but Oakura which is about 30 minutes drive South of Russell down the coast is good in southeast or easterly.
Also worth thinking about is driving up to Doubtless bay - good beaches at Cable Bay, and the Karikari peninsular - anything with east / north is good at Tokarou Beach, and west/south at Rangiputa - long beach inside a harbour - drivable on beach - great place for kiting / dinging on flat water.
If you are experienced and want a challenge and waves - in anything westerly head for Ahipara at the bottom of 90 mile beach.
Google: Orewa Beach, Te Ti Beach Waitangi, Tapeka Pt Russell, Long Beach Russell, Oakura Bay Whangaruru, Rangiputa Beach, Tokarau Beach.
I hope you get some decent wind!
This is great stuff for my trip too! Cheers!
Select to expand quoteKiwiG said..
If you are driving North from Auckland to the Bay of Islands, check out Orewa beach - east coast, just North of Auckland - great in any wind with North or East in it.
In the Bay of Islands - North East try Long Beach at Russell - can be excellent, or TeTi Beach at Waitangi. Ti Beach is good from North East to North West.
Anything with West in it - NW through to SW try the sandy beach at Tapeka Pt - even better if there is some swell. Southwest, you can rig and go out from the beach at Russell, but there are a lot of moored boats to negotitate. Good when you get out past them.
South through to Easterly not great in the Bay, but Oakura which is about 30 minutes drive South of Russell down the coast is good in southeast or easterly.
Also worth thinking about is driving up to Doubtless bay - good beaches at Cable Bay, and the Karikari peninsular - anything with east / north is good at Tokarou Beach, and west/south at Rangiputa - long beach inside a harbour - drivable on beach - great place for kiting / dinging on flat water.
If you are experienced and want a challenge and waves - in anything westerly head for Ahipara at the bottom of 90 mile beach.
Google: Orewa Beach, Te Ti Beach Waitangi, Tapeka Pt Russell, Long Beach Russell, Oakura Bay Whangaruru, Rangiputa Beach, Tokarau Beach.
I hope you get some decent wind!
All good recommendations. A tip to Orewa: don't try to battle through the onshore waves at Orewa directly to get out, but go a few kilometers north to Hatfields Beach. Same waves as Orewa, but much easier to get out. And yes, I love the area around Doubtless Bay and Karikari Peninsula: you'll find a spot in nearly any wind direction! Tokerau Beach as mentioned is great. It's a big bay, you have various access points and could also drive on the beach (though no need to really). Depending where you launch you can pretty much choose how much wind and waves you want.
Select to expand quotefreezy said..
Awesome! Thx to you both for the beta! Much appreciated. If you had to pick between Raglan and the other wing spots mentioned close to the bay of islands, which would you choose for early November?
Depends what you like.. You will have a lot more company on the water in Raglan, buzzy little surfers town. Heaps of places to eat out etc.. Picks up mainly westerly winds (which is what you should normally get that time of year. But what is normal nowadays..?).
Bay of Islands/ Doubtless Bay will be a lot quieter, lit less people. There might be a few out in the water, but you could also be by yourself. The Karikari Peninsula picks up Easterlies and Westerlies, and plenty of things to explore here. I might be a bit biased, we just love it there 
Or do both. Base yourself a week here and a week there. If you don't want to bring your own gear you can rent everything you need from us waternomads.co.nz and take it wherever in NZ you want. We are flexible with pick up and drop off locations as long as we get enough notice.
Select to expand quotekiwiupover said..
Raglan is south of Auckland vs Bay of islands which is north. Honestly anywhere you go will be awesome, raglan is 2 hours south and Bay of islands is roughly 4 hours north of Auckland. There's an ozone shop in Raglan that does lessons and has jet skis. I think they do gear rental too. It takes them a couple of days to respond to emails :-)
try reaching out to these guys for rental/tours/accommodations. They do a lot in Bay of islands www.waternomads.co.nz/
Hit up the Facebook kiwi foil froth page for more first hand info.
I spent lots of summers around bay of islands as a kid and the beaches are amazing. Weirdly enough I'm just about to get on the plane to Auckland with my gear and will be hitting the water in 48 hours. Raglan and Bay of islands are both on the list. but Auckland has good spots too!
Thank you for the mention! Hit me up when you are in Doubtless Bay, we are here for another 2-3 weeks and would love some company on the water!
Select to expand quoteWaterNomads said..kiwiupover said..
Raglan is south of Auckland vs Bay of islands which is north. Honestly anywhere you go will be awesome, raglan is 2 hours south and Bay of islands is roughly 4 hours north of Auckland. There's an ozone shop in Raglan that does lessons and has jet skis. I think they do gear rental too. It takes them a couple of days to respond to emails :-)
try reaching out to these guys for rental/tours/accommodations. They do a lot in Bay of islands www.waternomads.co.nz/
Hit up the Facebook kiwi foil froth page for more first hand info.
I spent lots of summers around bay of islands as a kid and the beaches are amazing. Weirdly enough I'm just about to get on the plane to Auckland with my gear and will be hitting the water in 48 hours. Raglan and Bay of islands are both on the list. but Auckland has good spots too!
Thank you for the mention! Hit me up when you are in Doubtless Bay, we are here for another 2-3 weeks and would love some company on the water!
Starting monday for a week :-) Can you PM me your mobile? Cheers!
Select to expand quotekiwiupover said..WaterNomads said..kiwiupover said..
Raglan is south of Auckland vs Bay of islands which is north. Honestly anywhere you go will be awesome, raglan is 2 hours south and Bay of islands is roughly 4 hours north of Auckland. There's an ozone shop in Raglan that does lessons and has jet skis. I think they do gear rental too. It takes them a couple of days to respond to emails :-)
try reaching out to these guys for rental/tours/accommodations. They do a lot in Bay of islands www.waternomads.co.nz/
Hit up the Facebook kiwi foil froth page for more first hand info.
I spent lots of summers around bay of islands as a kid and the beaches are amazing. Weirdly enough I'm just about to get on the plane to Auckland with my gear and will be hitting the water in 48 hours. Raglan and Bay of islands are both on the list. but Auckland has good spots too!
Thank you for the mention! Hit me up when you are in Doubtless Bay, we are here for another 2-3 weeks and would love some company on the water!
Starting monday for a week :-) Can you PM me your mobile? Cheers!
Done ??
Thx so much for the info! I may get in touch as we get closer to look at some gear rentals.already bringing two mountain bikes, and all of my wing gear ha ha! Are there any locations that you would recommend for a beginner? Or places to avoid as a beginner? My daughter is just learning and she would love to get on the water as well, but only in the location where it would be safe to do that.
Select to expand quotefreezy said..
Thx so much for the info! I may get in touch as we get closer to look at some gear rentals.already bringing two mountain bikes, and all of my wing gear ha ha! Are there any locations that you would recommend for a beginner? Or places to avoid as a beginner? My daughter is just learning and she would love to get on the water as well, but only in the location where it would be safe to do that.
Most places are safe depending on the wind/wave/tide conditions. Lake Pupuke in Auckland is a great 'safe' spot to learn and they have beginner gear to rent at Mad Loop madloop.co.nz. The lessons are VERY affordable, but you tend to get very talented but indifferent millennials as instructors :-)
Hi Freezy,
plenty of great spots to learn winging. Different schools have different approaches. Some teach on big long boards first to get a feeling for the wing, others tow behind a boat to learn the foiling part. I would recommend to do your research to make it fun for your daughter (then she will want more). Have a look at our blogpost waternomads.co.nz/where-to-learn-how-to-wingfoil-in-new-zealand/
This list gives you an idea where to start your research and also which ones fit in your travel plans. Auckland isn't that nice to spend a lot of time, but you said you're going to be in Nelson?
