Bay of Islands Kayaking

Hi, I'm doing a little research on Kayaking on our Bay of Islands day. We'll be there in Mid November this year, we've both kayaked before & feel pretty comfortable just paddling around the Islands by ourselves, question is: Do we need to pre book? Or will it be pretty easy to get off the ship & just rent a couple of kayaks & life jackets for 3 or 4 hours? Thanks in advance :)

I think it would be advisable to book but check that they are aware that there is a slight possibility that the port stop will be cancelled if the weather is bad. I'm sure they will be used to dealing with cruisers though.

There seem to be a few companies offering kayak hire there so you should be able to find one that fits your needs.

BTW most of the islands are too far away from Paihia to kayak to in a few hours, at most all you'd be able to do is go along the coast. I've heard that kayaking up to Haruru Falls is good, I have a friend who used to kayak regularly and did that a few times. Also consider doing a kayaking tour as that way you'll probably get to learn a bit about the area etc.

I think it would be advisable to book but check that they are aware that there is a slight possibility that the port stop will be cancelled if the weather is bad. I'm sure they will be used to dealing with cruisers though.

 

There seem to be a few companies offering kayak hire there so you should be able to find one that fits your needs.

 

BTW most of the islands are too far away from Paihia to kayak to in a few hours, at most all you'd be able to do is go along the coast. I've heard that kayaking up to Haruru Falls is good, I have a friend who used to kayak regularly and did that a few times. Also consider doing a kayaking tour as that way you'll probably get to learn a bit about the area etc.

Hi, thanks for your reply, I'll look into pre booking... just hoping for some nature & maybe a few dolphins... regarding the weather, do you mean just a little rain, or bad storms? I'm hoping that ports in late spring in New Zealand are pretty fair weather.... I do know around the glaciers it can get pretty cold though. :)

Hi, thanks for your reply, I'll look into pre booking... just hoping for some nature & maybe a few dolphins... regarding the weather, do you mean just a little rain, or bad storms? I'm hoping that ports in late spring in New Zealand are pretty fair weather.... I do know around the glaciers it can get pretty cold though. :)

Since the Bay of Islands is a tender port strong winds can cause the port stop to be cancelled as it would be unsafe to operate tenders under those conditions. This can happen at any tender port, not just NZ ones. It's always wise to keep this in mind when booking private excursions.

November will be variable weatherwise. The best weather is usually February / March.

I'm not sure whether you'll see dolphins close to where you'd be able to kayak.You should see them in Milford Sound though. To really enjoy the beauty of the Bay of Islands and, to have the best chance of seeing dolphins, it would be best to do one of the local cruises, such as the one out to the Hole in the Rock.

Thank you again!