The largest town on the Coromandel Peninsula, Thames is the gateway to many of the attractions of the area and has an interesting history which dates back to the days of gold mining and kauri logging in the 19th century.
Old pubs and wooden houses still line the streets, and the museum and School of Mines are a highlight.
Despite not having beaches to rival those on the east coast of the Peninsula, Thames and the west coast looks out over the Firth of Thames, and you will find many pretty little bays surrounded by the beautiful Pohutukawa trees all along the coast.
The Kauaeranga Forest Park
The Kauaeranga Forest Park lies in a valley on the Firth of Thames.
Once one of the country’s major sources of kauri timber, it was logged for nearly 100 years and is now a picturesque wilderness offering walks through regenerating forest growth, over bubbling streams, under jagged limestone outcrops and past volcanic chimneys.
Access is through the town of Thames, only a 90-minute drive from Auckland, where a surprisingly grand town center was built off the wealth derived from the gold rush era but now simply serves the surrounding local farm community.
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Places near Thames & Kauaeranga Valley
- Coromandel Peninsula 33 kilometers away
- Waiheke Island 60 kilometers away
- Devonport 76 kilometers away
- Auckland 77 kilometers away
- Waikato 77 kilometers away
- Tauranga 82 kilometers away
- Bay of Plenty 102 kilometers away
- Great Barrier Island 107 kilometers away
- Warkworth 115 kilometers away
- Rotorua 127 kilometers away
- Waitomo 132 kilometers away
- Lake Taupo 178 kilometers away
- North Island 202 kilometers away
- Tongariro National Park 233 kilometers away
- The Kauri Coast 242 kilometers away
- Paihia 246 kilometers away
- Russell 246 kilometers away
- Taranaki & New Plymouth 249 kilometers away
- Bay of Islands 251 kilometers away
- Kerikeri 257 kilometers away
- Eastland & Gisborne 277 kilometers away
- Matauri Bay 278 kilometers away
- Napier 288 kilometers away
- Hawke's Bay 300 kilometers away
- Hastings 301 kilometers away
- Whanganui National Park 314 kilometers away
- 90 Mile Beach & Cape Reinga 353 kilometers away
- The Kapiti Coast 419 kilometers away
- Greytown 439 kilometers away
- Wairarapa & surrounds 445 kilometers away
- Martinborough 454 kilometers away
- Marlborough Sounds 464 kilometers away
- Collingwood & Farewell Spit 466 kilometers away
- Wellington 466 kilometers away
- Abel Tasman National Park 477 kilometers away
- Picton 481 kilometers away