Five departures a day from Sandspit Wharf, an $85 adult return, and a rule that you book at least two hours ahead: those are the numbers that shape a trip to Kawau Island this summer. Kawau Cruises' timetable, in force until the end of April, brings boats back from South Cove, Bon Accord, North Cove and Vivian Bay.
Kawau Cruises' Summer Timetable, 21 October 2026 to 30 April 2027; the low-season timetable ended on 20 October and the next one is not yet published; checked 23 October 2026 Kawau Cruises – Summer Timetable 2026–2027 (PDF) · 2026-10-23
Kawau has roughly 70 permanent residents, many more holiday homes, and almost no roads, so the boat from Sandspit does the work a bus would do elsewhere. Kawau Cruises calls it a shuttle: it leaves the mainland at 08:00, 10:30, 14:30, 16:00 and 18:30, and comes back by collecting passengers bay by bay, the earliest at 06:40 from Vivian Bay.
The 10:30 is different from the rest. It is the Royal Mail Run Cruise, which delivers mail and freight around the island's private jetties with commentary, and on the same morning the Mansion House Cruise lands day visitors at Mansion House Bay, where Sir George Grey's restored house and gardens are run by the Department of Conservation. Both pick up from Mansion House at 14:00.
None of it is turn-up-and-go. The summer timetable asks for bookings at least two hours before departure, and the operator's FAQ says pre-booking is essential to hold a seat.
A seat on the shuttle is sold as a return: $85 for an adult and $50 for children from 5 to 15, with under-fives free. Islanders and bach owners who cross often buy the ten-trip ticket instead, and it is valid on private water taxis too. Bookings go through the office on 09 425 8006; the online system was still being tested when we checked, and Kawau Cruises takes EFTPOS and most cards but not American Express.
If none of the five times suits, a private water taxi will take a group of up to five across for a single price, with a per-head rate for bigger groups and an unpriced surcharge between 7pm and 7am. The two 10:30 cruises cost more because they include the skipper's commentary and, for the Mail Run, a tour of the bays.
| Adult, return | $ 85 |
| Child 5–15, return | $ 50 |
| Adult ten-trip ticket | $ 377 |
| Child ten-trip ticket | $ 189 |
| Boat for up to 5 passengers, from | $ 227 |
| Larger groups, per adult | $ 46 |
| Larger groups, per child | $ 28 |
| Mansion House Cruise, adult | $ 85 |
| Mansion House Cruise, SuperGold or tertiary student | $ 77 |
| Mansion House Cruise, family (2 adults, 2 children) | $ 241 |
| Royal Mail Run, adult | $ 128 |
| Royal Mail Run, senior | $ 120 |
| Royal Mail Run, child 5–15 | $ 67 |
| Royal Mail Run, family (2 adults, 2 children) | $ 356 |
Fares printed on the Summer Timetable for 21 October 2026 to 30 April 2027; cruise and water-taxi prices from Kawau Cruises' pages, read 23 October 2026 Kawau Cruises – Summer Timetable and fares (PDF) · 2026-10-23
Kawau lies about 8 km off the coast and roughly 45 km north of Auckland, according to Kawau Cruises, and is nearly cut in two by Bon Accord Harbour, a long drowned valley entering from the west. The shuttle crosses from Sandspit to the bays where people live; there are no roads on most of Kawau, so the boat stops at the jetties instead.
Sandspit sits about 5 km east of Warkworth: turn off State Highway 1 at the northern end of town, take Sandspit Road and follow the wharf signs to the car park, ticket office and jetty at the end. The council car park is watched round the clock and charges $6 a day out of season and $12 a day in summer, paid by coins or card. Kawau Cruises asks you to be there 30 to 45 minutes early to load bags, collect tickets and park.
South Cove is the first bay listed on the return timetable and, with North Cove and Bon Accord, where most of the island's roughly 70 permanent residents live. It is one of the few places with a public jetty; most houses on Kawau have their own private landing. The 10:30 cruises go instead to the historic jetty in Mansion House Bay, which DOC keeps for drop-offs and pick-ups by commercial boats.
Book by 09 425 8006 at least two hours before your sailing. Kawau Cruises warns that every trip may run on its 16-seat boat, so numbers matter.
Allow 30 to 45 minutes at Sandspit. Boats run to a strict timetable and will not wait for late arrivals.
Food, clothing and drink travel free. Gas bottles, fuel tanks, bags of soil or cement, building materials and whiteware are charged, and large items need two days' notice.
Dogs are banned from the historic reserve, where kiwi and weka live. The only place to light a barbecue is DOC's fixed one.
Seal food in lidded containers, tape boxes shut and clean soil from boots. Pest eradication is under way on the island.
There is no rubbish collection on Kawau and no bins in the reserve, so everything comes back to the mainland with you.
Twenty minutes: that is Kawau Cruises' figure for a direct water taxi from Sandspit. The shuttle publishes no crossing time, because each return run collects passengers from up to four bays. At $85 the adult shuttle return costs the same as a Mansion House Cruise ticket, so a day visitor heading for the historic reserve gets the commentary for no extra charge.
Inside Mansion House the opening hours are short: after Labour Day DOC opens it from 12:30 to 2pm on Wednesdays to Fridays and to 3pm at weekends, so check the day before you plan around it. Further south in the Gulf, the Rangitoto Island ferry is a turn-up day trip from the city, while Belaire's boat to Rākino is closer in spirit to Kawau: a small island service run around residents' needs, on set days only.
Five in the summer timetable: 08:00, 10:30, 14:30, 16:00 and 18:30, every day until 30 April 2027.
Yes. Kawau Cruises asks for bookings at least two hours before sailing, by phone on 09 425 8006.
17:45 from Vivian Bay, 17:35 from North Cove and 17:20 from Bon Accord. South Cove's last listed pick-up is 16:35.
The 10:30 cruises do, returning from Mansion House at 14:00. The other sailings serve South Cove, Bon Accord, North Cove and Vivian Bay.
The boat is $85 return for an adult. DOC then charges $10 to go inside the house if you are 16 or over.
Not into the historic reserve: DOC prohibits dogs there to protect kiwi and weka.
A private water taxi takes about 20 minutes direct. It costs from $227 one way for up to five people.