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New Zealand: The North Island

Overview

The regions/unitary districts of the North Island described below are arranged geographically, roughly from north to south, rather than alphabetically.

Northland

Northland is (unsurprisingly) the northernmost of New Zealand’s administrative regions, located in what Kiwis sometimes call the Far North or the Winterless North (because of the kind climate, with warm, humid summers and mild winters.). It occupies the top 80 per cent (285km/178mi) of the North Auckland Peninsula, encompassing just over 5 per cent of New Zealand’s total area. To the west is the Tasman Sea and to the east the Pacific Ocean. Much of the terrain is rolling hill country and farming and forestry (the region’s main industries) occupy over half the land.

The west coast of Northland is dominated by several long straight beaches, the most famous os which is the inaccurately named (80km/50mi) Ninety Mile Beach. The west coast has two large inlets, Kaipara Harbour and Hokianga Harbour. The east coast is more rugged, with bays, peninsulas and several large natural harbours. Northland is still home to kauri forests (the kauri is a coniferous tree native to the northern North Island, which grow up to 50m/165ft tall), although many of the forests were decimated in the 19th century.

Northland is New Zealand’s least urbanised region, with only around half of the population of 150,000 living in urban areas. Whangarei is the region’s largest population centre, home to around 50,000 people, and seven other centres have populations of over 1,000. Around a third of the population is Maori, most of the rest being of European descent. Pacific Islanders are under-represented, compared with the rest of New Zealand.

Northland’s economy is based on agriculture (particularly beef cattle), fishing, forestry and horticulture (particularly citrus fruit). Wood and paper manufacturing are also important and the region is a popular tourist destination, especially the Bay of Islands. Northland has New Zealand’s only oil refinery, at Marsden Point near Whangarei.

Auckland

Auckland is the second-smallest region (after Nelson), set on and around the isthmus of Auckland in the north of the North Island. Its coastline is bordered by the Tasman Sea and the Pacific, and the region has many fine beaches. Despite its small size, the Auckland region is by far the most populous, home to around 1.3 million people, roughly a third of New Zealand’s population.

The region encompasses the cities of the Auckland metropolitan area, smaller towns, rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. It’s very much dominated by the city of Auckland, which comprises much of the region.

Waikato

Waikato is situated in the northern central area of the North Island. The coastal area is mainly rough hill country, bounded by the Tasman Sea, with three large natural harbours: Aotea, Kawhia and Raglan. The area around Ragland is noted for its volcanic black sand beaches and fine surfing, and Waikato has some spectacular subterranean caverns.

East of the coastal hills is the Waikato River floodplain, with a wet, temperate climate and rich farmland, home to most of the region’s population. Waikato’s economy is heavily reliant on agriculture and is intensively farmed with crops and livestock, while the upper reaches of the Waikato river are used for hydroelectricity and the northern region produces good wines. Other industries include business services, communications and tourism, but these are less highly developed than in many other parts of New Zealand.

The city of Hamilton is the region’s main centre (population 125,000) and the towns of Cambridge, Te Awamutu and Tokoroa each have between 10,000 and 15,000 inhabitants. The people of Waikato sometimes use the nickname Mooloo for themselves or their province, but nobody seems to know why.

More pages

Page 1: Overview
Page 2: Bay of Plenty (BoP)
Page 3: Wanganui-Manawatu

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