Kaipara Harbour - Kaipara Harbour visitor guide showing a virtual tour of 'Kaipara Harbour' linked to an interactive map with local and travel information. 360° panoramas from Northland.

Kaipara Harbour is a large enclosed harbour estuary complex on the western side of Northland on the North Island of New Zealand. Before the arrival of Europeans it was the home of the Ngāti Whātua Māori and is named after the para fern, which was used for food ('Kai' in Māori). This travel map shows some of the points of interest around Kaipara Harbour.

By size, Kaipara Harbour is one of the largest harbours on earth, but is mostly shallow formed from drowned river valleys, or rias, and the water surface area shrinks from 947km² at high tide to about 410km² at low tide. The mud flats are mined for sand, producing much of the sand needed in Auckland for construction. Plans are under-way to generate electricity from tidal power at the mouth of the harbour.

Mangrove forests around Kaipara Harbour are vital breeding grounds for many species of fish, which, in turn, support the fishing industry in New Zealand. In particular, Kaipara Harbour mangroves support breed snapper, mullet, flounder, sole, kahawai, white trevally, gurnard, yellow‑eyed mullet and skates, rays and sharks.

Europeans arrived at Kaipara in the mid 19th century and began to fell and mill kauri trees and dig for fossilized kauri gum. Several towns and villages grew up around the industry. However, by the 1920's the kauri became exhausted and Kaipara became something of a backwater, turning to dairying.

For the traveller, Kaipara Harbour offers small villages set in rolling countryside. Numerous places offer scenic flights, various boating and sailing activities.

Kaipara Harbour - Attractions

• Kauri Museum - museum in Matakohe exploring the history and impact of the kauri logging industry, also containing the Kauri Museum Gum Room.
• Coates Memorial Church - built at Matakohe in honour of Prime Minister Joseph Gordon Coates (1878-1943), depicted as a knight in amour in a round stained-glass window.
The Woodturners Kauri Gallery & Working Studio - kauri woodworking shop and studio at Dargaville.
• Dargaville Museum - maritime museum in Dargaville with the largest pre-European canoe exhibition in New Zealand.
• Ripiro Beach - 100km of golden sands stretching from Maunganui Bluff and Aranga Beach down to the entrance to Kaipara Harbour at Pouto Point with 153 known shipwrecks.
• Kaiwaka Cheese Shop - found 20km north of Wellsford selling a wide range of cheeses from around New Zealand, Holland, France and Switzerland.
• Go North - with outdoor Activities including scenic flights, blowkarting (land yachting) on Ripirio Beach and kayaking.
• Kaipara Coast Sculpture Gardens - changing sculpture exhibition set along a 1km trail in the Kaipara Coast Plant Centre.