Cathedral Cove sits around the headland from Hahei Beach, and with the beach-level walk between them closed, the shoreline route is the water. Cathedral Cove Water Taxi runs it from a yellow flag in the middle of Hahei Beach, every 30 minutes in season, landing on the sand at the southern end of the cove. You pay on the beach, $40 per direction for an adult, and come back whenever you like.
Season September to May, no exact dates published; hours 10am to 4pm, from 9am December to March — checked 2 October 2026 Cathedral Cove Water Taxi – operating status and hours · 2026-10-02
Picture the coast north of Hahei: a long beach, then a headland, then Mautohe Cathedral Cove and its rock arch. The shoreline path between them, the Hahei Beach Short Walk, is closed; storms in early 2026 damaged it again, and DOC asks people to keep off it. The water taxi covers the same stretch of Mercury Bay by sea.
It runs from September to May, every 30 minutes from 10am to 4pm, with a 9am start from December to March. There is no booking and no fixed return: take the boat one way and walk out by the main track, or ride both ways and stay as long as you like.
This boat starts from Hahei Beach, not from Whitianga, and it is the operator's claim that it is the only boat that puts passengers onto the sand at the cove.
Every fare is per trip in one direction, so a return costs twice the figure. Cards (Visa, Mastercard, EFTPOS and Paywave) and cash are all taken, either at the flag on the sand or once you are aboard. Children's fares cover ages 3 to 17; GST is not mentioned.
A visitor directory still lists older prices and a shorter season for this boat. We use only the operator's own figures, which matched on two separate readings.
| Adult, one way | $ 40 |
| Child 3–17, one way | $ 20 |
| Family, 2 adults and 2 children, one way | $ 100 |
| Family, 2 adults and 3 children, one way | $ 115 |
Fares on Cathedral Cove Water Taxi's website, read 29 September and 2 October 2026 Cathedral Cove Water Taxi – prices · 2026-10-02
The trip stays inside Mercury Bay, running from the middle of Hahei Beach, past the headland, to Mautohe Cathedral Cove. The water here is the Te Whanganui-o-Hei marine reserve, so leave fishing gear at home; snorkelling gear is worth bringing. The operator points out that you see the cove from the boat before you are dropped on it.
Walk down from the main car park and toilet block on Hahei Beach Road to the middle of the beach and look for the big yellow flag and the sign; that is where you pay and board. There is no wharf: the boat comes in to the sand, so expect to step through shallow water. The map pin marks the toilet block above the boarding point.
The boat lands at the southern end of the cove, marked by a small sign on the beach, and comes back to the same spot every half hour. There are no toilets and no rubbish bins at the cove; small rubbish can go in the bins on board.
DOC closes Mautohe Cathedral Cove after heavy rainfall under its trigger action plan, because landslides and rockfall are a known risk on the track and on the beach itself. Check DOC's alerts before you go, and keep an eye out for debris once you are there.
The Hahei Beach Short Walk is shut, and DOC asks people not to use it. DOC's main track to the cove reopened at the end of January 2026, subject to the same rain closures.
Boarding and landing happen on the beach, not at a jetty. Wear sandals and keep bags off the water.
No toilets, bins or shop at the cove. Take water, sunscreen, warm clothes and a towel, and bring your rubbish back.
Cathedral Cove is in the marine reserve: look, swim and snorkel, but take nothing.
The cove has had a hard few years. DOC says Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 and Cyclone Vaianu in 2026 damaged the reserve, and a January 2026 storm undid repairs to two nearby tracks. In May 2026 DOC proposed concentrating its money on Mautohe Cathedral Cove itself and removing the Waimata/Gemstone Bay Track and the Hahei Short Walk; by August it had begun talks with the Hahei Residents and Ratepayers Association about rerouting the short walk, and warned there would be no quick fix. Until that is settled, anyone setting off from the sand at Hahei goes by boat or not at all along the shore.
DOC also recognises Ngāti Hei's cultural connection to Mautohe, protected through whakapapa and Treaty settlement legislation. Among the other short summer hops on this site, the Māpua ferry to Rabbit Island is the nearest match: a ten-minute run to a long beach, paid on board, every hour in summer.
No. Go to the yellow flag in the middle of Hahei Beach, pay, and board; boats leave every 30 minutes.
Adults pay $40 per direction and children aged 3 to 17 pay $20. Families pay $100 per direction (two parents, two kids) or $115 if a third child comes along.
From September to May, 10am to 4pm, starting at 9am from December to March, and only when the weather allows.
Yes, one-way fares are sold. If you walk out, use DOC's main track; the shoreline walk back to Hahei Beach is closed.
This water taxi starts at Hahei Beach, not Whitianga. We have not found a Whitianga service we could confirm.
DOC closes the cove after heavy rain because of landslide and rockfall risk. Check DOC's alerts and the operator's daily status before going down to the beach.