Cathedral Cove is one of the most picturesque and well known landmarks on the East Coast of Coromandel Peninsula. Breathtaking cliffs, crystal clear water and white sand beach. On a normal day in summer you can end up being surrounded by at least a thousand of others who love nature. In this blog post I am sharing some tips on how to get there and how to avoid crowds.

My clients travelled to New Zealand all the way from the US to visit their friends. While here, they decided to create some memories at one of the most beautiful locations in Aotearoa. They reached out to me to book a family photo session at Cathedral Cove and we started planning.

How to get to Cathedral Cove

Cathedral Cove Park & Ride will take you from a designated carpark in Hahei to the lookout where you will start your walk to Cathedral Cove. It is a seasonal service from December 1 to April 30. Adults $7 return, children (14 years and under) are free. The walk will take about 45 minutes and could be challenging for little children or elderlies. Bus operates on a continuous loop from 9am to 6pm daily, so if you would like to get a ride back to the carpark you will need to leave the beach at 5pm the latest.

The other more convenient and much faster option is Cathedral Cove Water Taxi which operates daily from 9am till 5pm from September through till May. The taxi service depends on weather conditions, so if there’s a big swell or strong wind, it will be cancelled. You can call them on the day of your trip to Cathedral Cove to check their operating status.

Private charter with Cathedral Cove Water Taxi

They are a family of three – mum, dad and a 3yo girl. It would have been very challenging to do a return walk to Cathedral Cove. Maybe not so much in the beginning, but definitely after the photo shoot. Therefore they looked at Cathedral Cove Water Taxi. We wanted to be at the beach around 6pm and given the last water taxi service is at 5pm my clients had to book a private water taxi charter. Yes, it is doable and totally worth it! They use sealegs amphibious boats that have wheels so you don’t even need to get wet getting on and off the boat! It is like a big car that gets into the water and rides. Just look at the excitement on the little girl’s face!

As mentioned earlier, it is a very busy touristic location which gets quite crowded during the day. When we got to Cathedral Cove beach by the boat I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was empty! The whole beach was left to us and we had an hour to enjoy it. Private charter with Cathedral Cove Water Taxi will take you there and back and will wait for you for an hour. It was perfect! There was no swell, no wind and the light was even.

Parents photographs during family photo session

We got all the shots I planned and squeezed a few portraits of the Mum and Dad. I always aim to get a few of those as we parents quite often forget about ourselves and family session for us is like a compulsory activity that should only include our children. It can (and should be) different! No doubt your kids will love looking at the photographs where their Mum and Dad share their special moments.

PRO TIP: If you would like to avoid crowds, I suggest you take the last bus service to the lookout and then embrace a long walk back to the carpark. Please make sure you watch weather conditions and timing as you don’t want to walk back in the dark! Or, book a private charter with Cathedral Cove Water Taxi. The team can take you there when everyone is left and it is really something I recommend doing.

If you are visiting Cathedral Cove and would love to have your own beautiful memories of this very special place, please reach out to me! I am a local photographer and can be your guide and planner if needed. The contact form is right here.