Castlepoint New Zealand – The most Instagrammable spot on the North Island

Castlepoint in New Zealand offers some of the most beautiful coastal landscapes in the country, with it’s gorgeous beach, lagoon, limestone cliffs, and of course the Castlepoint Lighthouse. Still it often gets overlooked as it is far away from the major hot spots and getting there is a bit of a detour. We’re here to tell you that taking this detour is sooooo worth it.

Castlepoint is a tiny community on the east coast about 2,5 hours from Wellington. It has a little store, a campsite for campervans, and some other accommodation options, and that’s about it as far as facilities go. But then there is the scenery, and that will absolutely blow your mind.

Castlepoint Lighthouse

The main point of interest is the Castlepoint lighthouse, standing proud on top of the rocks on the northern side of the lagoon, drawing attention to itself. From the beach a path leads up to the lighthouse, and to the top of the hill, giving you the perfect spot to watch incredible sunrises over the ocean. Also, bring a pair of binoculars as you can often spot dolphins in the water, and depending on the season even orcas and whales!

The rocks that the lighthouse stands on connect to a rocky peninsula with ocean cliffsides that extends into the bay and separates the lagoon from the ocean. These cliffs can quite easily be climbed on, and you’ll usually find locals fishing on top of them. Be careful though, Castlepoint gets really windy and at high tide waves can sometimes crash over these cliffs. You don’t want to be on top of them when this happens.

 

Beach

Officially, there is only one beach in Castlepoint and it is aptly named Castlepoint Beach. This is a long sandy beach that stretches from the lighthouse to the north and it is the perfect beach to lie down on during a nice day to work on your tan. Then, there is Deliverance Cove to the South which is mostly sheltered from the wind by the rocky peninsula and cliffs around it, making it very nice for a swim and even for surfing. The swell pushes into the cove from the gap in the rocks, creating a pretty decent surf with barrels breaking on the sand. So if you’re into surfing, don’t forget your surfboard for some fun at The Gap.

 

Castle Rock

Even though the lighthouse draws all the attention, the visit to Castle Rock impressed us the most. This 162 meter high rock on the south side of the cove doesn’t just look cool with its steep green hill on one side and the ragged cliffs on the oceanside, but also provides the best viewing point to take in the whole scenery. The Deliverance Cove Track takes you from the carpark to the foot of Castle Rock. This shouldn’t take more than half an hour. At the end of the track you’ll find a small viewing platform that looks towards the beach, but if you’re not afraid of heights you’ll want to climb up further. On the top the real reward awaits; a mind blowing, jaw dropping, breathtaking panoramic view of the cove, the lagoon, and the lighthouse standing on top of its rocky outcrop in the distance. Be careful not to get too close to the edge, because the wind here can actually get strong enough to blow you over, and 162 meters is a long way down. Once you’ve put your jaw back in its place and taken at least 100 photo’s, you shouldn’t go back just yet. Instead walk to the other side of the rock, get your camera out again and gaze at an amazing sunset. And after the sun has gone down, look up. The night sky is incredible as there is hardly any light pollution in the area.

Make the detour to castlepoint!

You won’t hear a lot of tourists talk about Castlepoint as you travel through New Zealand’s North Island, and even many Kiwis don’t know about it. But unless you really can’t spare the time, it should absolutely be part of your New Zealand itinerary and it’s an excellent stop on your route between Wellington and Auckland.

 

Practical info on castle point

• You’ll need your own transport to get to Castlepoint as there is no public transport going here.
• Staying at the overnight carpark is free for self-contained vehicles, and there are toilets and rubbish bins near the carpark
• If you are staying the night, stock up. There is a small store in Castlepoint but it doesn’t sell much food other than some snacks.
• If you don’t have a campervan but still want to stay the night, consider staying in Masterton instead. Masterton has a lot more accommodation options and is only an hour away.

 

 

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