The beach, walks and lighthouse at Castlepoint New Zealand combine to create one of the best coastal landscapes in North Island. It is worth taking the time to complete the detour. Below is my guide to help you plan your visit and walk the short but scenic tracks: Castlepoint Lighthouse walk and Deliverance Cove track.
Why visit Castlepoint NZ?
Castlepoint is one of my favorite coastal landscapes in New Zealand. It is often overlooked as people rush South to Wellington and to cross to South Island.
But I think it deserves a detour (if you have the time):
- There is a long quiet beach offering beautiful sunrises
- The lighthouse is standing on a rocky promontory with magnificent views
- The rocks have created a lagoon where you can soak or relax (when not too windy)
- The deliverance cove track is one of the best short walks in North Island
- Reef, lagoon, sand dunes, walking, beach… it has it all!
One of the most beautiful locations in North Island.
And if the pictures are not enough to convince you, below is a short video of my stay:
Castlepoint or Castle Point?
Depending where you look at, it can be written Castlepoint or Castle Point. Official documents have it as Castlepoint scenic reserve, while the sign at the site is written Castle Point Scenic Reserve. What I read on a board sign, it that the rock was called Castle Rock by Captain Cook, and the settlement was derived from it as Castlepoint.
Many more pictures available after the practical tips 🙂
PLANNING TIPS – Castlepoint New Zealand
How to get to Castlepoint – Location
- Located on North Island, East Coast
- North of Wellington
- Wellington to Castlepoint = 2h 30 drive
- Napier to Castlepoint = 3h40 drive
- The turn from the main road 2 is at Masterton
- Masterton to Castlepoint = 1h drive
- A great detour to add to your New Zealand road trip
- Public transport? If you don’t drive, Castlepoint will be difficult to reach. You can take the train to Masterton and hitchhike to Castlepoint (I have not seen any bus)
- Note: also Flat point beach looks close by, it is a 2h drive between them – and between the 2, I think Castlepoint wins by far in terms of scenery.
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Visiting Castlepoint
- Plan half a day
- Toilets at the beach and near the Scenic Reserve carpark
- Free access
- There is one small store with snacks. If you are staying longer, bring food.
- Camping is not permitted in the reserve. Castlepoint Motorcamp at the northern end of the beach is the only place where camping is permitted.
- Motorcycles and other vehicles are not permitted on the sand dunes.
- Removal of fossils is not permitted
- The area can be extremely windy. Bring layers of clothes to protect yourself from the sand.
- See information on the walks further in the article
Need to rent a car in New Zealand?
My tips:
- Compare prices on my favorite platform: Discovercars.com – one of the best rated comparison sites!
- Prefer a car with enough power for the mountain areas
- Consider their full coverage option – it for peace of mind!
- Book early to have a large choice of vehicles!
Where to stay in Castle point – accommodation
- You can find accommodations in Castlepoint by the beach, mostly rentals. Check out options and book
- I stayed at the Castlepoint Holiday park & motel. My unit was tired-looking but practical. However other units they add seem to be more modern – Check out photos and availabilities
- The camping ground is at the North end of the beach
Drive to Castlepoint (from Masterton)
The fastest road to reach Castlepoint is from Masterton (located on Road 2).
The drive takes 1h one way. It is winding but not difficult. The road is in good condition.
The road is called Masterton Castlepoint Road. Very original 🙂
The scenery is very enjoyable like everywhere in New Zealand. it is never flat!
About the names Castle Point and Deliverance Cove
Castlepoint has been inhabited by the Maori people for a long time. It was a strategic location as it offered safe harbour, fishing ans sealing, as well as fertile soil. The Maori name is Rangiwhakaoma. It translates to “the skies that race”, because of the fast moving clouds when it is windy.
In 1770, it was named by Captain Cook. He found that the main rocky promontory, at the end of the lagoon, looked like a castle.
In 1843, 2 missionaries met bad weather as they were sailing from Gisborne to Wellington; They found shelter at Castlepoint in a cove they names Deliverance Cove.
Things to do in Castle Point Scenic Reserve – Map
Castle Point Scenic Reserve
The main thing to do in Castlepoint is to explore the scenic reserve.
It is located at the South end of the beach.
Just keep driving to the carpark
Below is the map of the Castlepoint scenic reserve you can see at the carpark:
The carpark is located just behind the small sand dunes with a views of the lighthouse on the left, the lagoon in the middle and 162m high Castle Rock on the right:
Castlepoint Scenic Reserve walks
There are 2 walks you can enjoy:
- The lighthouse walk – 30min loop (including around 82 stairs up and 120 stairs down) – easy walk with well maintained path. You can even walk higher than the lighthouse for great perspectives – see next section
- The Deliverance cove track – 1h30 loop (including 160 steep stairs at once ) – half of the tour is on the sand along the lagoon, the other half is up the cliffs with wonderful views. See photos later in this article
- If you are doing both, I recommend starting at the carpark up the forest on the deliverance cove track and then walk down on the lagoon and finish with the lighthouse loop (the opposite of what I did)
Castlepoint Lighthouse Walk
The most famous and easiest walk is the loop around the lighthouse.
You first have to cross the flat sandy area to find the beginning of the path going up to the lighthouse.
The walk will take you 30min.
The slope is quite gentle and gives you opportunity to admire the different colors of the rocks on the side. The rocky promontory you are walking on is called Tokatumoana. It translates as “the rock before the sea”
Along the way you will find a few benches and board signs with explanations of what you are looking at.
Past the lighthouse you will see easy steps to go even higher. It is worth it in order to get wonderful views of both the lighthouse and the the landscapes.
About the Castlepoint lighthouse
- The light first shone on 12th January 1913
- 23m high white iron tower (52m above sea level)
- It flashes 3 times every 30s
- It switched to diesel-generated electricity in 1954 and to mains electricity in 1961
- It was one of the last attended station to be built
- It had been constructed in England and brought in pieces to New Zealand
- The last lighthouse keeper left in 1988 when it was automated
- The light can be seen for 26 nautical miles (48km)
- You can see a board sign with technical drawings of the lighthouse during the walk
Wildlife sightings
From the upper platform, I recommend taking a break and looking at the sea with binoculars (you can read my tips to choose your pair here).
You may spot dolphins and whales!
Why is that?
Off the Wairarapa Coast, the East cape current turns and joins the Cook Strait current. The anti-cyclonic flow is the Wairarapa Eddy and it creates a feeding ground of lobster.
The migrating whales swim along the shore on their travels from the South Pole to the tropics.
You may spot Southern Right whales, Humpbacks, Sperm Whales, Orca and common dolphins.
After that, you loop back down via the sea-side of the rocky promontory and back on the path to the beach.
This is one of the most beautiful short walks I have done in New Zealand!
Castlepoint Lagoon & Castle Rock
You can also walk along the lagoon and relax for a while. There is a lot of space and you won’t be bother by crowds. However some people go on the beach with their 4WD and this can be annoying.
The Reef and lagoon
The Reef is comprised of limestone. It is made of fossils deposited on a shallow bank 2 million years ago, near the beginning of the Ice age.
The erosion has created this beautiful lagoon in deliverance cove.
About Castle Rock – geology
- Its maori name is Matira (which translated to “tilt upwards”)
- It is a 162m high rock
- The top 100m are 2 million year old limestone and sandstone. They are on top of 5 million-year-old grey siltstone
- The fossils in the region indicate that the layers of sandstone were formed in cool sea while the limestone layers were formed in the warm seas
- It is estimated that the uplift of the reef above sea level occurred about 2,4 million years ago
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Deliverance Cove Track
As I was walking from the lighthouse walk, I did the Deliverance Cove track in the opposite direction. It means that, when I finished walking along the lagoon, I had to walk up the 160 stairs instead of down.
But is was not too difficult.
And I could stop frequently to admire the views…
However I recommend doing the Deliverance cove track first and then the lighthouse to walk down those stairs with the view 🙂
At the top of the staircases you can sit and enjoy the magnificent landscape! Isn’t it splendid?
And from that vantage point you can also turn around and admire the next cove: Christmas Bay.
At the top of the cliffs, it is a simple track:
Bring a big memory card because the views of Castle Rock and the lagoon along the way are mesmerizing! Below are a few pictures:
I finished with a short walk in the forest. But if you do the opposite, you will start through the forest from the carpark (don’t go down to the beach).
Castlepoint Beach in pictures
The beach of Castlepoint is on the other side of the lighthouse.
It is a long sandy bay with beautiful views of the lighthouse and its rocky outcrop.
However you don’t have views of Castle Rock from there.
Below are a few pictures of the beach at different times and with different tides, to give you an idea:
Sunrise at Castlepoint – Pictures
Being on the East coast, this beach is a great place to enjoy sunrise. You just have to be willing to wake up early 🙂
The Mataikona Rocks
The lighthouse and the lagoon are the main attractions in Castlepoint.
But if you have time, I recommend driving North from Castlepoint for 8km (15min) to visit the Mataikona Rocks.
What are the Mataikona rocks?
The rocks are an off the beaten path geological gem.
The rock formations are long parallel lines with spiky tips.
They were made by sandstone compressed under the Pacific ocean, bent by the colliding tectonic plates (Pacific and Indo-Australian)
Behind is a Sandy Bay and in between you can see rock pools.
Good to know:
- You should visit at very low tide to be able to see the rocks
- There is 3km of the road that are quite narrow and winding (but paved)
- I think the best view is just before the unsealed road starts
- GPS coordinates in my eBooks
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