Cathedral Cove Kayak Tour

Recommended by 99% of travelers

Badge of Excellence

North Island, New Zealand

Great choice

10+ bookings last month.

3 hours (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

4.9

· Maria_O ·

Feb 2026

Great experience, informative friendly guide and great communication. We had no previous experience of sea-kayaks And found it very easy and hugely enjoyable. Btw, we had no issue parking as Michael directed us to a nearby carpark when primary one was full.

· Gail_M ·

Feb 2026

Day was absolutely gorgeous. Our guide was informative, stopped along the way for mini breaks and gear was in good condition. Highly recommend seeing cathedral cove by kayak.

Overview

Active travelers will love exploring beautiful Cathedral Cove–the Te Whanganui-a-Hei Marine Reserve–by kayak. Get an up-close view of the rock formations and sea caves from your kayak, and look out for marine life, including stingrays, many fish species, and possibly dolphins. Receive personalized attention and the chance to ask your guide questions on a small-group tour.

Includes snacks and hot drinks
Best suited to moderately fit travelers
Modern kayaking equipment will be provided
A fun way to see the sights while getting active

What's Included

Coffee and/or Tea

Hot chocolates, cappuccinos & cookies included!

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Hahei Beach, 2 Hahei Beach Road, Hahei 3591, New Zealand
The meeting point is at the kayaks on Hahei Beach. Drive to the end of Hahei Beach Road and park where you can. Walk onto the beach and the kayaks are to your right. Please arrive on the beach 15 minutes before the starting time of the trip.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Most travelers can participate

Any special needs/ requests just contact us directly and we'll try our hardest to accomodate you
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 8 travelers

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Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

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Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

lori_D

Great kayak on open sea. Runs only when safe but it might be rough water. Cave and surrounding landscape is beautiful and water is cool but stunning. Our guide Georga ( sorry unsure of spelling) worked extra hard due to high tide and rough seas to keep our group of 6 with varying levels safe. She was informative, watchful, strong and competent. She even made us fancy coffees. Great 3 hours!

Reviews

4.9

based on 957 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

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Sort by: Most insightful

Really awesome trip

Himanshu_D, Apr 2026

Amazing guide and trip, highly recommended, very friendly folks and the kayaking tour felt great *****

Thoroughly recommend!

Janet_L, Mar 2026

Just do it! Really competent guide and a fab trip with amazing scenery and real time to enjoy the Cove.

2-3 hours of kayaking,...

beth_m, Mar 2026

2-3 hours of kayaking, professional guides, basic fitness needed, beautiful setting, I think it is a great experience

Excellent activity- no prior experience needed

Maria_O, Feb 2026

Amazing day

Gail_M, Feb 2026

Day was absolutely gorgeous. Our guide was informative, stopped along the way for mini breaks and gear was in good condition. Highly recommend seeing cathedral cove by kayak.

Response from Host, Feb 2026

What a great review, thank you. Glad to hear you enjoyed your time on the water. Thanks again for kayaking with us!

Fun adventure

lori_D, Feb 2026

Response from Host, Feb 2026

Thank you for your comments, I'll be sure to let Georgia know you had a great time. Thanks again for kayaking with us!

Excellent tour, the best way to see Cathedral Cove

David_H, Jan 2026

Excellent half day in the Kayak, lovely visit to the cove and some fun in wild water around one of islands on the way back. Had a really great day.

Perfect day in Cathedral Cove

Jessica_W, Jan 2026

Shea did a FANTASTIC job of teaching us how to kayak and about the region. I learned so much about history, culture, and got a workout! The photos are amazing. I am so glad I made this happen!

So much fun!

Nigel_D, Jan 2026

A great family activity that everyone enjoyed and got alot out of. The whole family enjoyed the day and oir guide Marky was amazing.

Amazing waters, incredible views, fun trip!

Tracy_K, Jan 2026

One of my favorite activities of our vacation. The weather was perfect and the guide was great! We kayaked out and the wind was just strong enough for us to sail back in. Highly recommend!

must do!

Kylie_J, Jan 2026

this was incredible!! my 9 & 11yo loved it! was fun, we had some wind so made us use our muscles. the guides were 10/10 Marky Mark and Mo (loved them!!)

Great experience! Well...

Chris_K, Dec 2025

Great experience! Well worth it as you spend over 3 hours and get to beach on Cathedral Cove. Brad was a great guide and shared a lot of the history of New Zealand and surrounding islands as well!

Great kayaking trip

MaryLynn_K, Dec 2025

Great kayaking trip. The staff was all very professional. Well run day. Equipment in good shape. Even made us coffee per order on the beach

Great day

HARRYSTEWART_P, Dec 2025

Brilliant organisation knowledgable and interesting guide. The equipment was excellent and the care for customers was excellent.

100% Do It!

Scott_E, Dec 2025

Fantastic experience, and amazing staff from the get-go. AJ was our main tour guide, and Mason was also helping. From start to finish we loved the friendliness, professionalism, and entire experience. Honestly, wouldn’t change a thing. I am so glad we did this tour, and got to explore Cathedral Rock from a kayak. The kayaks are easy to operate, and groups were divided based on experience. I felt very comfortable, and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this tour to anyone.

Must have

Nitish_A, Nov 2025

Due to weather , we were allowed to do kayaking at a different sight . But the experience was amazing and crew was very friendly as well

Great fun kayaking!

ROBIN_A, Nov 2025

Great afternoon kayaking with Ollie (our guide) Good exercise on the old arms! Good fun & a welcomed warm drink & biscuit on the beach !

Fun morning

Sandy_B, Oct 2025

Brad, our guide was knowledgeable about not only the marine life, but of the geology and the history of the area. Equipment was good.

Highlight of our North Island trip

Paul_F, Apr 2025

This was an excellent activity - a real memorable highlight of our 3 week trip around NZ. The kayaks were stable and easy to manoeuvre and the guides were knowledgeable and friendly. Highly recommended.

Marvellous fun and the...

Kathy_J, Mar 2025

Marvellous fun and the sight in Cathedral Cove is stunning. Other family members had done this activity and it was on my bucket list. It didn’t let me down. Paddling in the bay was gorgeous and getting close to the natural beauty was worth every paddle. Our guide was very helpful and knowledgeable.

Response from Host, Apr 2025

Thank you for the great review!

Kayaking and beach

Erich_B, Mar 2025

Fun day out. A great experience. Super trainer/guide Georgia. The Kayaks were easy to steer as they had a rudder.

Response from Host, Mar 2025

Georgia is a great guide, we will pass this nice review on to her :) Thank you!

Outstanding Excursion

Frode_E, Mar 2025

Excellent adventure seeing beautiful scenery. We had plenty of sun but with a little bit of wind. We appreciated the outfit encouraged us to switch to AM because of the wind. Thank you! The kayaks were nice and stable and in good shape. Ollie was outstanding with his attention to detail, with personal interaction with all participants and fun and educational stories of the area. We will strongly recommend this outfit!

Response from Host, Mar 2025

Thank you for being flexible, we try to give everyone the best experience possible :)

Hahei Beach Kayak to Cathedral Cove a Must Do Tour

Allison_A, Mar 2025

Georgia was a great guide, very informative with health and safety, good fun and knowledge about the history. Highly recommended. The drinks on the beach were a bonus!

Response from Host, Mar 2025

Great to hear you had a nice time on the water with Georgia! Thank you for the review :)

Beautiful

Scott_D, Feb 2025

We hit a perfect day. Great trip in a beautiful place. The pace and length of the day were just right.

Response from Host, Feb 2025

So glad to hear you scored it with nice weather!! Thank you for the review

Lots of fun with very skilled staff

Rebecca_G, Feb 2025

The team is very cheerful and encouraging, but their true talent is how they make the difficult easy. The surf was pretty big and they helped us onto and off the beaches with extreme skill.

Response from Host, Feb 2025

Great to hear you had a nice time with our experienced guides! Thank you for the review

Good Trip

David_T, Feb 2025

Beautiful place, great staff. I would suggest that they increase the time at Cathedral Cove and don’t bother with the refreshments. Also paddling back the way we came would be not that hard and save time.

Response from Host, Feb 2025

Thank you for the feedback we will take this into consideration.

Fun paddle

Janet_W, Feb 2025

Easy paddle and Nathan our guide shared local maori information and served us coffee and tés. We met another nice couple who we enjoyed talking with. Their equipment was in good shape too.

Response from Host, Feb 2025

Great to hear that you enjoyed your time with Nathan and made some friends along the way :)

Beautiful day to kayak to cathedral cove

Lisa_M, Feb 2025

Had an awesome experience from start to finish. Great kayak equipment & awesome guide. Shout out to Will!! Easy checkin, a great safety briefing and tips if u haven’t kayaked before. The water was super clear and we were able to see the Sandy bottom in stingray bay and the seaweeds in gemstone bay. The swim and latte at cathedral cove was nice as we did the earlier kayak and it wasn’t crowded. Would highly recommend!

Response from Host, Feb 2025

Early birds get the treats! Awesome to hear that you enjoyed your entire kayaking experience. I will make sure your kind words get passed onto Will :) Cheers for the review.

See Cathedral Cove by Kayak!

Pamela_I, Feb 2025

Such a great time with Ollie who was so knowledgable and fun - loved the hot chocolate and cookies on the beach! Really a great time with a small group seeing the beautiful Cathedral Cove!