Leave State Highway 1 at Kawakawa, 200 kilometers north of Auckland, on the road signposted to Opua. Opua is a further 11 kilometers along a winding road.

Take the Fullers Bay of Islands car ferry across the narrow channel between Opua and Okiato and follow Aucks Road to the Wairoro turnoff, as shown on the map. For details of the car ferry and also the other ferry services and tours click on the picture of the Opua car ferry.

The total driving time from Auckland to Opua is about 3 hours, depending mainly on traffic. Whangarei - the only major town on the route - is about 2 hours driving time from Auckland. There is an all-road route to Russell and Okiato, however we would not recommend it to travellers not already familiar with the area.

When we are staying at Yfanwen and one of us needs to go back to Auckland we take the bus. The Intercity Line run an excellent service taking about 4 hours - not much longer than the car journey, from the top of Opua Hill terminating at the Sky Tower in Auckand. The bus also stops at the rapid transit centres in Albany and Takapuna, using the Northern Busway.

Using the tides you can walk via Pipiroa Beach to the car ferry, and thence to Opua. The climb to the bustop at the top of the hill takes fifteen minutes. It is a very novel and pleasant way to comute to Auckland!