Twin Coast Discovery Highway: full of scenery and history

Auckland – Northland – Auckland, covering West Coast’s ancient forests, 90 Mile Beach and at its farthest point Cape Reinga, returning via East Coast including the Bay of Islands.

Tāne Mahuta, also called Lord of the Forest, is the largest known Kauri tree which stands today, and is estimated to be over 2,000 years old.

The Te Paki Sand Dunes are the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.

Ninety Mile Beach is renowned for spectacular sunsets, and boasting one of the best left hand surf breaks in the world.

At Cape Reinga, the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean in a spectacular swirl of currents.

According to Maori oral history, the spirits of deceased Maori leap from Cape Reinga, into the ocean to return to their ancestral homeland of Hawaiki.

New Zealand’s oldest bridge is at Kohukohu.

Built in 1835, Christ Church in Russell is the oldest surviving church in New Zealand.

The Stone Store at Kerikeri in the Bay of Islands is New Zealand’s oldest surviving stone building.

-Gaurav Sharma