Only 40 minutes from Auckland City, Shakespear Regional Park is a sanctuary with magnificent views of the Hauraki Gulf.

The Tiritiri Track at Shakespear Regional Park is an easy 5 km round trip walk that will take you around 2 hours to complete. Shakespear Regional Park is a working farm, so you’ll have the opportunity to walk around the sheep and cattle. The native birds you might see are the White-faced Herons, Stilts, Dotterels, Tui and our native Pigeons.

Follow the red markers from the car park at Te Haruhi Bay head along the beach, past the campground and an old Māori settlement area at the eastern end of the bay. Continue along the cliff line for the best view of Tiritiri Matangi Island and return via the park’s main lookout.

Quick Facts about this walk

  • Location: Whangaparaoa, North Island NZ
  • Distance: 5 kms
  • Time needed: 2 hours return
  • Difficulty: Very Easy
  • Wheelchair Access: No
  • Route: Round Trip
  • Elevation: 60m
  • Wet Feet: No
  • Toilets: Yes
  • Dogs:  NO Dogs allowed at all in Shakespeare Regional – it is a wildlife sanctuary with controlled pest gates.
  • Mobile Coverage: Yes
  • Last Updated: May 2023

Summary points about the Tiritiri Track walk

Walk Highlights

Magnificent views of the Hauraki Gulf from the lookout, on a clear day you can just make out Auckland City.

Track Quality

You can pick to walk along the beach or over farm land on a great quality track.

Hazards

Stay away from any cliff edges.

Transport

There are connecting buses that run daily from downtown Auckland to the park entrance, however, the bus and ferry are the most direct route from downtown Auckland.

Water

Is in the camp ground and in the picnic area. Same goes for the toilets.

Driving Instructions

Shakespear Regional Park is approximately 50km or a 40 minutes’ drive from downtown Auckland. Follow SH1 north to the Silverdale off ramp. Go through Silverdale, turn right on to Whangaparāoa Road and follow the signs to the end of the peninsula.

Shops & Restaurants Nearby

Plenty to choose from in Whangaparaoa

Area & Trail History

The Ngāti Kahu iwi occupied the Whangaparāoa Peninsula before European settlers arrived in the 1820s. Archaeological surveys show two main living sites – at Army Bay and Te Haruhi Bay. Mr W H Shakespear purchased 800ha at the tip of the peninsula in 1883. In 1910 the Shakespear family built a homestead (now the YMCA Lodge) overlooking Te Haruhi Bay on ground that retains evidence of a Māori pā. During World War II the army acquired 130ha of the northeastern tip of the peninsula. The end of the peninsula was an important defence site during the war. The army constructed a range of defenses including 11 pillboxes, searchlights, electrified barbed wire entanglements and an anti-tank ditch. The Ministry of Defence continues to use the adjacent land. The Auckland Regional Authority purchased the area now known as Shakespear Regional Park in 1967 from the Shakespear family.

Shakespear Regional Park Map

Points of interest along the walk​

Main Gate at the start of the Shakespear Regional Park walk

Main Gate at the start of the Shakespear Regional Park walk

Track up to farm land at the point

Track up to farm land at the point

Through the camp ground at the start of the walk

Through the camp ground at the start of the walk

Start of the Tiritiri Track at Shakespear Regional Park

Step over the gate and walk to the end of the road and in to the camp ground. Make use of the toilets while you are there. Walk past the toilets and towards the hill, you should see the red marker post in front of you and to the right as well as the steps leading up to the farm land. Option two, walk up the beach, turn left and walk up to the hill at the end of the beach, you should see the steps and the track as you get closer to the hill.

Views out to Te Haruhi Bay

Views out to Te Haruhi Bay

First lookout point

At the top of the point you can sit down and enjoy the view of Te Haruhi Bay. This is one of many fantastic spots to stop for lunch. If it is too early for lunch, wait till you arrive at the sonar building, 35 mins away.

Shags resting in a tree at Pink Beach

Shags resting in a tree at Pink Beach

Pink Beach on the Shakespear Regional Park

Fisherman at Pink Beach

Pink Beach

Pink Beach, 5 min 300m. Not really a beach, there are layers of flat hard sand and stone, easy to walk on but also slippery. Again you can only get access to the rocks at low tide. It is a popular spot for fishing. If you stop on the wooden deck, watch out for the birds sitting above you in the trees, you could end up with fertilizer on your sun hat.

The lookout

The lookout on the Shakespear Regional Park walk

The Lookout

Look out 30 Min – 1.5 Ks
A little workout for 10 mins. The security fence at the top of the hill, it belongs to the Ministry of the Defence so keep out, unless you would like to have free accommodation for a few days. I know the food is great and the beds are hard, I am X Army. Excellent views from the lookout, stay a while, read about the area and history, and talk to your follow trampers. Enjoy the surroundings. Binoculars would come in handy. From the lookout, you can look back to Shakespear Regional Park beach.

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