Once it grabs you, it won’t let you go. The island has a way of capturing you. First it appeals to your senses, with the wind in your hair, the salt spray on your face, the scent of obscure blossoms in the bush, your body submerged in the hot pools.

If you delve deeper into local stories on your trip to the island, you’ll learn that many of our residents were once visitors too.

Tour providers like Go Great Barrier Island offer fantastic group tours sharing thrilling stories and tales for you to get to know the island beyond its beautiful landscape.

For many people the Barrier is a place to escape the stress and pressures of city life; to step back from traffic and overcrowding. It’s a chance to live with nature, not outside of it. Being off the grid helps and allows locals to be self-sufficient, live sustainably and get great satisfaction out of collecting their own water and generating their own solar or wind power and for many, growing their own produce. Barrier life teaches you to appreciate the small pleasures in life, the value of commodities and how overly convenient modern life has become.

Life on Aotea has always been pioneering and tough. It’s still not straightforward. Locals have to think about switching on a light, running the tap and scheduling their laundry with the sun. But, with so many more people trying to escape the grinds of modern life, Aotea has become a choice for enterprising people choosing to live sustainably.

Our Whakapapa

The rich history of Aotea/Great Barrier Island dates back to the initial settlement of Aotearoa by the East-Polynesian ancestors of today’s Maori population, Ngati Rehua Ngati Wai ki Aotea, who trace their ancestry over many centuries to the original inhabitants.

Throughout the Polynesian migratory age, many ancestral waka landed on the shores of Aotea, guided by the constellations. The first Polynesian wayfinder, Kupe, landed on our shores, calling it Okupe. Over the years this has changed to Okupu, still a name for one of our settlements now.

There are many archaeological sites all over the island, generally in coastal locations. Look out for pa (fortifications), with defence and habitation features, and terraced garden and settlement sites. Our local marae, Motairehe and Kawa, are in the north of the island.

Beaches on Aotea Great Barrier Island

The beaches on Aotea Great Barrier Island have something to suit everyones needs. Take the 90 minute drive north from the Tryphena ferry terminal and you’ll pass safe, sheltered and gently sloping sandy beaches where small children play, and come across breathtaking views of dramatic surf beaches at Medlands, Awana, and Okiwi.

Leave the main road and drive down an arterial route to the coast and you will discover more beaches, rocky headlands, and harbours at Okupu / Blind Bay, Whangaparapara, Port Fitzroy, Karaka Bay, Port Abercrombie with Nagle’s Cove in the distance. The road to Kawa and Motairahe will take you to Katherine Bay with two marae providing the heart of Aotea’s iwi community: Ngati Rehua / Ngati Wai ki Aotea.

Slip a kayak or small boat into the water and explore secluded coves where no other footprint appears on the sand.