Anchorage Bay

If you get hungry, there are many great restaurants near Anchorage Bay.  The Park Cafe Marahau serves incredible pizzas, tacos, seafood, meat, and poultry dishes.  Beached Whale Restaurant & Bar serves delicious salads, pizzas, falafels, burritos, meat, seafood, and poultry dishes.  Hooked on Marahau serves incredible salads, burgers, seafood, poultry, and meat dishes.  Courtyard Cafe serves amazing soups, pancakes, burgers, seafood, meat, and poultry dishes.  If you are looking for another good and affordable restaurant nearby, Roots Bar serves delicious meat, seafood, and poultry dishes.

If you are looking for Anchorage Bay accommodation, there are many great options nearby.  If you are looking for an upscale hotel, the 4-Star Torrent Bay Lodge offers a few amenities, including an outdoor seating area, a hot tub, and a restaurant.   A more affordable hotel is the 4-Star The Sandcastle Seaview Cottage Accommodation, which offers a few amenities, including comfortable rooms and a kitchen in all rooms.  Another moderately priced option is the 4-Star Ratanui Lodge, which has several amenities, including an outdoor pool, a hot tub, a garden, and a fitness room.  A more reasonably priced option is the 3-Star Waitapu Springs B&B, which has a few amenities, including an indoor pool, a barbecue area, and comfortable rooms.  If you are looking for another affordable hotel, Anatoki Lodge Motel has an outdoor pool, comfortable rooms, and a kitchen in some rooms.

Anchorage Bay does not have lifeguards but has several other amenities, including a nearby campground, several hotels, a boat launch, and hiking trails.

Anchorage Bay offers many fun activities, including swimming, sunbathing, beachcombing, fishing, kayaking, watching wildlife, hiking, snorkeling, paddleboarding, boating, and photography.  If you plan to go into the water, the waves are usually calm, making it a safe area to swim.  The water near the beach is calm and shallow, which is ideal for canoes, kayaks, and small boats.  Snorkelers and divers may spot the diverse marine life that thrives in its clear waters.  Hikers can enjoy the nearby Abel Tasman Coast Track, which offers unique insights into the local biodiversity.  Also, at low tide, visitors can explore the nearby Pitt Head Peninsula or walk across the estuary to Torrent Bay, offering stunning coastal views.  In addition, there are many interpretive signs around the area that provide information about the local ecology and history.  If you enjoy camping, you can book a nearby campsite near the Abel Tasman Coastal Track with a 34-bunk DOC hut and 50 tent sites that offers an amazing camping experience.  Visitors often spot dolphins, fur seals, and various native birds, including tui, fantails, bellbirds, and weka, in the surrounding waters.  Anchorage Bay is known for its pristine waters, striking rock formations, and breathtaking vistas, making it a perfect location for capturing photos.  Dogs are not allowed here, and the beach is open from sunrise until sunset.

Anchorage Bay, New Zealand, offers an access path for people with disabilities.

Getting to Anchorage Bay is difficult—the hikers can access this remote beach via the moderately challenging Abel Tasman Coast Track, which is a three-hour hike from the nearby town Marahau.  Alternatively, there are regular water taxis operating from nearby towns, including Kaiteriteri and Marahau, to reach this beach.  Sea kayaking is another popular way to explore the Abel Tasman coastline, including Anchorage Bay from the nearby towns.  Visitors can also reach Anchorage Bay by private boat, yacht, or chartered sailing tours to experience this bay in all of its scenic splendor.

The beach got its name "Anchorage," as this beach is sheltered by headlands from the south and to the north, making it the perfect place for yachts to anchor their vessels.

There are many attractions near Anchorage Bay.  Abel Tasman National Park is the smallest national park of New Zealand, spread over 22,530 hectares, but it is renowned for its stunning natural beauty, golden sand beaches, tidal estuaries, hiking trails, campsites, lush forests, native bushlands, and clear turquoise waters.  It is an ideal spot for relaxation, swimming, kayaking, snorkeling, diving, boating, and picnicking.  The Abel Tasman Coast Track is a 60-kilometer-long, immensely popular hiking trail positioned within New Zealand's Abel Tasman National Park, which stretches from Marahau in the south to Wainui in the north, with many inland tracks.  This moderate hike typically takes three to five days and passes through golden beaches, inlets, tidal crossings, suspension bridges, and lush native forests.  This track offers several amenities, including huts, campsites, and water taxis.  It’s perfect for nature lovers seeking scenic coastal views and outdoor adventure.

Split Apple Rock is an iconic granite rock formation located off Kaiteriteri Beach at the southern edge of Abel Tasman National Park that resembles a perfectly halved apple, with two symmetrical sections, making it a popular natural attraction for photographers, kayakers, and nature lovers.  Visitors can take boat or kayak tours to view this natural wonder.  Wainui Falls is a 20-meter-high waterfall positioned near Golden Bay within Abel Tasman National Park that cascades into a picturesque pool where visitors can take a refreshing dip.  Visitors can access this waterfall via an easy hiking trail that winds through lush native bushes, a swing bridge, and follows the Wainui River, which offers a tranquil escape into nature.  If you are looking for another nearby attraction, Tonga Island Marine Reserve is a protected area known for its golden sand beaches and sheltered coves spread over 4,535 acres that offers a unique opportunity to experience New Zealand’s vibrant marine ecosystems along the coast of Abel Tasman National Park and is home to a variety of marine species, including blue cod, snapper, triplefins, dolphins, seals, starfish, crayfish, and sponges.  This reserve is known for its golden sand beaches and sheltered coves, where visitors can enjoy many activities, including snorkeling, diving, kayaking, boating, and watching wildlife.