Getting to, from and around Waiheke Island

Best options for entrants in Windsurfer LT Interdominion regattas

Summary of options

Public Transport Services

Modes of transport

  • Ferries: Sealink or Fullers
  • Buses: Auckland Transport
  • Rental cars
  • Our van at Oneroa

Both Auckland Transport and Google can be used to plan travel across these public transport services. However the AT Travel Journey Planner, which is great for bus and train travel on the mainland, will route you from Half Moon Bay Ferry (or the adjacent Sealink) terminal to anywhere on Waiheke Island via a long detour by bus and train back to the downtown Auckland City Terminal, for a ferry from there. Ignore that route. For Half Moon Bay to Waiheke Island, book directly with Sealink, and plan any Eastern Suburbs bus travel via the AT Travel Journey Planner to the Half Moon Bay Sealink Terminal.

Visitors to Auckland: if you are going to use Auckland Transport services, you will need to first buy an AT Hop card.

Getting to Waiheke Island, Friday 6th March

Ferries 6th March
  1. Sail over
  2. Swim
  3. Get a ferry: The WindsurferLT trailer, with spare space for your travel bags (please label them), is booked to leave from the Sealink Ferry Terminal at Half Moon Bay (HMB), which is nearly 2 km from the race start point at Little Bucklands Beach.

All Half Moon Bay ferries go to the Kennedy Point ferry terminal.
Book in advance on the Sealink website, or foot passengers can usually just turn up at the ferry terminal and pay there.

The Sealink website drops each trip off one hour before departure. (Kiwi logic – don’t ask!) Foot passengers can still turn up, pay and board.

Sealink ferry Point Kennedy

From Waiheke

There are two ferry terminals on the island: the Kennedy Point Terminal and the Matiatia Terminal in Rocky Bay.

  • To go back to Half Moon Bay, leave via the Kennedy Point ferry terminal. The trailer is booked on the 10:30 a.m. sailing on Tuesday 10th, so it will leave the Regatta headquarters at around 9:30. You can arrange the night before for your travel bags to be loaded into it or the car.
  • To go back to the Auckland City Terminal at downtown Auckland, leave from either the Kennedy Point Terminal or the Matiatia Terminal. The latter is closer to Oneroa, 4 minutes by bus, so is probably the better option.

Getting around Waiheke

  • Auckland Transport Buses: There are buses from Matiatia Terminal up to Oneroa then, if you wish, on Eastwards along the island. To get direct from Matiatia Terminal to Kennedy Point Terminal you need the route 501 bus ( <20 minute trip).
  • Walk. Hopefully you are booked around Oneroa, and can easily walk between the beach, the village, and race headquarters.
  • Our van: we are pleased to have been provided by our sponsoring partner, Stay Waiheke, with a 7 seater van for the weekend. We will use this mainly just for getting some support people and partners to Man O’ War Bay for the marathon race, nominally to be held on Sunday.
  • Rental cars, are supposedly available on the Island, in case your other half is accompanying you, but hates the water, and wants to go galavanting off around the vineyards.
  • The Waiheke Weekender is online, and free paper copies are at Oneroa, at the ferry terminals, etc. It has lots about what’s on, where to go, etc.

More: keep in touch via our Whatsapp group during the regatta.