Kawau was once the private playground of Governor George Grey, who presided over his own private zoo from the palatial Mansion House. Most of the island is still in private hands, with DoC managing several reserves, including at Mansion House Bay on Bon Accord Harbour. Daytrippers can picnic beneath the exotic trees, feed the peacocks, visit the historic Mansion House and walk to nearby bays and the remains of the copper mine.
DoC ranger Christine Cumiskey says Mansion House Bay is a great place to spend the day, with the gardens around the house looking great thanks to volunteers helping out - and a reduction in the number of wallabies on this part of the island.
"Some of the large specimen trees in the Mansion House gardens were planted by Sir George Grey during the time he lived there, and it's a great place to explore and possibly see the weka chicks and paradise ducklings that are running around, and maybe even spot a kiwi."
Elsewhere on the island there are quite a few baches for hire, a lodge and a boutique hotel. Kawau is also a firm favourite of cruising yachties, due to its sheltered anchorages. The large harbours of Bon Accord and North Cove are good not only for gazing at, drink in hand, they are also perfect for kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding.
Helen Jeffery of the Kawau Island Residents and Ratepayers Association says island residents and boaties have been pleased to see the reopening of the Kawau Boating Club on Bon Accord, which offers a bar and bistro for all visitors and shower facilities for members, with 24-hour-access fuel to be installed later in the summer.
"It's got about 400 members signed up so far, and the aim was to get to 500, so it's going really well. They've really pushed it to the whole boating community," says Jeffery.
Need to know
Getting there: Ferries run from Sandspit daily from December 26 to March. See kawauwatertaxis.co.nz.
Accommodation: Baches for hire on bookabach.co.nz; see also kawaulodge.co.nz and kawaubeachhouse.co.nz.
Facilities: Public toilets and cafe at Mansion House, bistro at Kawau Boating Club, restaurant at Vivian Bay (The Beach House).
Events: February 15, Music in the Gardens at Mansion House, featuring The Jazz Age and Miss Georgia Wood. Tickets $55 including ferry.
Motutapu
Motutapu offers a unique experience: visiting one New Zealand's largest pest-free sanctuaries, on the doorstep of its biggest city. The island was farmed for more than a century, but now DoC and a conservation trust are working to restore 30 per cent of the island to native vegetation. The project will take another 50 years, says John Eccleton of the Motutapu Restoration Trust.
"Progress to date, after 20 years of volunteer tree planting and 500,000 native trees grounded, is seven per cent of the 30 per cent goal, so there is still much work to do. Unlike other Gulf island ecological restorations, this project has significant scale and will span several generations of volunteers in fulfilment of the vision."
But it is a vision which is coming to life. Following translocations, takahe now roam free and breed on the island, along with Coromandel brown kiwi, saddlebacks and shore plovers. Kakariki, bellbirds and kaka have also arrived of their own accord to populate the island. Visitors can explore the two-hour Rotary Centennial Loop Track, starting from Home Bay, which takes them through the 100 ha of replanted forest, follow longer trails or explore the World War II gun emplacements on the island's heights.
"It has fabulous views, fascinating early Maori and early European history, unique geology, military heritage structures, and is a pest-free island sanctuary - only 30 minutes from the Auckland CBD."
Need to know
Getting there: Over the summer, Explore is running daily ferries to Home Bay on the eastern side of the island.
Accommodation: There's a DOC campsite at Home Bay. Bookings essential, online or phone (09) 379 6476.
Facilities: Toilets at Home Bay, visitor interpretative centre at the historic Reid Homestead.
Events: Public volunteer days on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Sunday of every month; see motutapu.org.nz for details.
Rakino
If you like your isolation complete and your views spectacular, Rakino might be just the island for you. Tucked away behind Motutapu, and running almost due north-south, Rakino keeps its secrets for cruising boaties, weekenders and a little over a dozen permanent residents. Woody Bay and West Bay are hugely popular spots for cruisers over summer, sheltered from the east and with sandy beaches and clear water providing great snorkelling and swimming.
The majority of the island is in private hands, and there are no shops, and no mains power, water or telephone. Residents rely on weekend ferries, solar power and cellphone coverage - but they love it.
John Denton, who has had a bach on the island for 40 years, says residents and visitors love the sense of getting away from it all.
He says the island has changed little since its "heyday" 30-40 years ago, when there were daily ferries and around 30 permanent residents.
"It's still a restful place to go and hide away. It's a great little community over there - everybody knows each other and helps each other."
While day-tripping is possible during the summer months, most visitors come for a weekend, hiring one of several baches available through rental websites.
"Just bring a bottle of wine or a few beers and sit and watch the tide come in and out," says Denton.
Need to know
Getting there: Ferries run from Stanley Bay and downtown Auckland on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays; more frequently over summer. See belaire.co.nz
Accomm: Baches for hire on bookabach.co.nz.
Facilities: None.
Rotoroa
Once a sanctuary for those struggling with alcohol and drug dependency, Rotoroa is now a sanctuary of a different kind. The 82ha island, lying off the "bottom end" of Waiheke, is now a wildlife, conservation and heritage park run by a trust.
Rotoroa is still owned by the Salvation Army, which ran a rehabilitation centre there for nearly 100 years, until 2005. The Rotoroa Island Trust now has a 99-year lease, and a mandate to revegetate the island, populate it with endangered native species and educate visitors about the island's historic and natural heritage.
"Because the island is privately owned, things are moving quite quickly with the conservation projects and people are able to see the progress being made," says trust CEO Bridget Best.
The trust has partnered with Auckland Zoo to create a living sanctuary, with whitehead, saddleback and kiwi released this year. They plan to introduce 20 native species over the next five years.
The island also offers attractive beaches, walking tracks, a museum and other historic buildings. Visitors can also stay on the island, in one of three restored baches or in hostel-style shared accommodation in the Superintendent's House.
"Our primary focus for the island is activities that contribute to conservation education, but we also want to continue to provide for day and holiday pleasure visitors in a way that's welcoming - you can just go there and relax."
Need to know
Getting there: Ferries from downtown Auckland run daily from December 29 - February 8. See 360discovery.co.nz.
Accommodation: Three baches to rent, plus shared hostel-style accommodation. See rotoroa.org.nz/accommodation.aspx.
Facilities: Walking trails, toilets, barbecues, museum.
Events: A series of free conservation talks in February (Saturdays from February 14, 10.30am). See rotoroa.org.nz for more details.
