Farewell Spit travel guide

Access on the spit is restricted so an organized tour is the only way to truly experience this weird and wonderful place. You can also book and join the Farewell Spit tour en route to the spit at the visitor centre, or see tour operators, page .

The spit is formed entirely from countless tons of sand ejected into the northerly ocean currents from the numerous river mouths scattered all the way up the west coast. It is a dynamic, almost desert-like landscape, with sparse vegetation struggling to take root in the dry and constantly shifting sand. The majority of the spit is a DoC nature reserve and the vast mud flats that it creates along its landward edge are one of New Zealand’s most important wading-bird habitats. Over 100 species have been recorded around the spit, but it is the sheer numbers of each species that are most notable. Migrating flocks of godwit and knot can run well in to the thousands, providing a memorable sight. Black swans use the food-rich mud flats of Golden Bay, and when the tide is in they gracefully tread the water in huge flocks. There is also a small colony of rapacious gannets at the very end of the spit.

Both Cape Farewell and Farewell Spit were noted by Tasman in 1642 (no doubt a little shorter than it is now) and named by Cook when he left the shores of New Zealand in 1770. The lighthouse, at the very tip of the spit, was first erected in 1870. It has an interesting history and was replaced due to rotting timber.

The spit is a remarkable and memorable landscape if only for its powerful sense of isolation, but to see it from afar and from sea level is a strangely unremarkable experience. With its vast dune system, no more than 20 m in height, its sheer length and the omnipresent coastal haze, its very presence is, to say the least, muted. At best only a small grove of pine trees near its tip can be seen, like some tiny far off island. If you cannot afford to go out on the spit or simply want to get a better impression of its scale from afar, the best place to view it is from the elevated hills around the Pillar Point Light Beacon, accessed from Wharariki Road and Puponga.