Start from 44 curated places around Tauranga, NZ, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
Macau Bar Kitchen & Lounge
Waterfront pan-Asian sharing-plate restaurant on The Strand, blending Cantonese, Thai and Japanese flavours with NZ produce. The grown-up dinner choice downtown; loud, lively, generous portions.
Alimento Eatery
A Mediterranean-leaning kitchen in a former Masonic lodge on Spring Street, with a seasonal menu and a strong sustainability ethos. The grown-up dinner that feels different from the harbourfront strip.
Trails & outdoors
Mauao (Mount Maunganui) Summit Track
The 30-minute summit climb up Mauao from the base loop, with viewpoint stops and a 360-degree view at the top over the surf coast, the harbour and the city. The defining hike of the Bay of Plenty, steep but short. Note that Mauao's tracks are closed for slope-stabilisation work following the January 2026 landslide, with no confirmed reopening date.
Mauao Base Track
The 3.4km flat loop around the base of Mauao at sea level, on shingle paths with one or two stairs. The pram-friendly version of the Mount, an hour at a relaxed pace. Note that Mauao's tracks are closed for slope-stabilisation work following the January 2026 landslide; the base track has the most damage and is expected to stay closed longest, so check access before you go.
Things to do
Glow Worm Kayak Tour Lake McLaren
Twilight kayak tour from McLaren Falls Park onto Lake McLaren, finishing in a narrow canyon thick with glow worms after dark. Three hours, family-friendly, and the most distinctive activity in the region.
Tauranga Saturday Farmers Market
Saturday-morning market on Tauranga Primary School grounds with the strongest local-producer scene in the Bay. Coffee carts, cheese, organic veg, baking and a strong cluster of hot-food stalls.
Landmarks & sights
The Strand Tauranga
The waterfront street through downtown Tauranga, with the city's densest cluster of bars and restaurants, plus a small park and the wharf. The orientation point and the natural place to start an evening.
Mauao Base Track (Mount Maunganui Base)
The flat 3.4km loop around the base of Mauao, the volcanic plug that defines the Mount across the harbour. Pram-friendly, on rough but flat shingle paths with one or two stairs. Note that Mauao's tracks are closed for slope-stabilisation work following the January 2026 landslide, with no confirmed reopening date, so check access before you go.