A staff member was trapped inside Whangamata BNZ as an axe-wielding man smashed its windows and counter this morning, police say.

Don't let the cold weather keep you from the royal waves.

Whangamata remains the top spot for Kiwi holidaymakers over summer, according to new figures.

It may be renowned for its waves, but Whangamata has other temptations.

Police are hoping the good behaviour at this weekend's Beach Hop in Whangamata continues as people head home.

A runabout reported missing off the Coromandel coast may not have logged its return and was probably never in trouble, say police.

In the 1950s, high-profile American surfers and their camera crews broadened their search for the perfect wave beyond their home beaches.

Liquor bans are in place and police numbers are being boosted in many of the traditional New Year's Eve hot spots.

Police have told parents to keep track of their children after finding a girl, 14, having allegedly drug-fuelled sex near a beach overnight.

A large slip overnight has blocked State Highway 25, just south of Whangamata, on the Coromandel Peninsula.

The Coromandel is promising cheap RWC accommodation rates that will undercut Auckland packages reaching into the thousands.