Pacific Coast Highway NZ Drive Pack | The Stable

The Pacific Coast Highway is New Zealand's official touring route along the North Island's eastern seaboard — a journey from Auckland through the Coromandel Peninsula, the Bay of Plenty, and around the remote East Cape to Napier. It is one of the great coastal drives of the Southern Hemisphere.

The route begins with the Coromandel Peninsula — tight, winding roads through native bush to Cathedral Cove, Hot Water Beach, and the gold-mining heritage of Thames and Coromandel Town. The peninsula is a microcosm of New Zealand's diversity — rainforest, beaches, and mountains packed into a compact area.

The Bay of Plenty — Tauranga, Mount Maunganui, and Whakatane — offers wider roads and golden beaches. The Mount (as locals call it) is one of New Zealand's great beach towns, with a volcanic cone, excellent surf, and a café culture that rivals any in the country.

The East Cape is the highlight — New Zealand's most remote and culturally rich region. The road follows the coast through small Maori communities, past carved meeting houses (wharenui), and to the East Cape Lighthouse — the first place in the world to see the sunrise each day. The landscape is wild and beautiful, the communities are welcoming, and the pace of life is unlike anywhere else in New Zealand.

The journey ends in Napier — the Art Deco capital of the world, rebuilt in the 1930s after a devastating earthquake. The Hawke's Bay wine region, surrounding Napier, produces some of New Zealand's finest red wines.