Matarangi / North Island / New Zealand

Suitable for all surfers, this spot is right in front of the popular town of Matarangi and is therefore easy and convenient to get to.

The beach is made up of lots of clean sand, stretching all the way along the coast in front of the town. Despite the convenience of it you won’t see many other people out during the week, and only a handful at weekends. Bring a wetsuit if you intend to come out here in winter as the water temperature will be around 15° C, but if you're here in summer a shorty will be enough as the water will have warmed up to about 21° C.

You need to be here when the wind is coming from the south or south-east and the swell is coming from the north-west to get the most out of this place. It is best at the mid or high tide positions, and only on a rising tide, when it will start at about 1 m and rise to a maximum of about 2.5 m. It breaks to the left over a sandbar, and the waves are fairly fast although apart from that there nothing really special. Length is consistently short and you'll never see more than about 50 m here.

Matarangi is a relatively new town, having only been around about 25 years, but it's a popular and growing tourist destination. There are plenty of facilities here, mostly catering to upmarket and wealthy tourists and residents.

e current can be strong and easily drag you out if the tide is falling, and there are also shark sightings here although they aren't anything that should really bother anybody.