FAQs

Booking & Payment

The standard-length day for each route can be booked instantly online. If you'd like something longer or otherwise customised, send an enquiry first and we'll agree the day and price directly.
Yes — each tour is a starting point, not a fixed script. Tell us about your group when you enquire and we'll shape the pace, stops and length of the day around you.
Private — every Takahē Adventures tour is just your own party. We never combine separate bookings into one group.
Yes — pricing is per person with a minimum charge for two guests. A solo traveller is charged the two-person rate rather than a separate solo price.

We’ll pick you up and drop you off anywhere in Auckland (including the airport).
See our Tours pages for the standard options or contact us before booking if you would like a custom start time or finish.
A gourmet picnic lunch or dinner is provided. We’ll ask about food allergies and dietary requirements in advance and can accommodate most needs. If we can’t accommodate a particular requirement, we’ll let you know.
- walking shoes, as clean as possible to minimise kauri dieback
- warm clothes, the coast can be cooler and windier than the city
- sun protection
- swimwear and towel if you’d like to swim
- camera
- drink bottle
- raincoat (or ask us to bring one)
- personal medication

Absolutely – our tours are shaped to your group, and we set the pace to the slowest legs in the group. And we’re more than happy to stop for ice cream at any point.
Our Rua afternoon/evening tour finishes late – around 10.30 pm - but you’ll know whether this is too late for your children.
Our tours are half price for children 3 years to 15 years old and free for infants 2 years old and under.
Both tours run door-to-door in a day, so they work for stopovers and cruise calls — tell us your ship or flight times and we'll adjust the timing as you need.
Anything from about 2km to 16km — you choose. A relaxed day is three or four short walks of 30–45 minutes each, on formed tracks, with the car never far away. A full day out is 15km with 800m of climbing. Most groups land in the middle.
No hiking experience is needed.
Yes — tell us in advance and we'll shape the day to suit, choosing shorter, flatter tracks and viewpoints reachable from the vehicle.

Auckland weather turns quickly, and the Waitākere Ranges, in particular, get more rain than most of the city — it's part of what keeps the forest the way it is.
If conditions are forecast to be wet on your day, we'll contact you 24 hours before your tour to give you an update so you can choose whether you’d like to go ahead. If you don’t, a full refund is available.
We will never run a tour if the weather makes it unsafe to do so, so if we have to cancel you’ll get a full refund.
For all tours, please bring a raincoat. If you don't have one, let us know in advance and we'll have one ready for you.
Free cancellation up to 48 hours before departure for any reason.
Free cancellation due to forecast rain
We sure do – tours run year-round.

Kauri dieback is a soil-borne disease that's killing kauri trees across the upper North Island, spread mostly on footwear and equipment. On Tahi, we use the cleaning stations at every track entry and exit, and stay on formed tracks — small things that make a real difference.
We are very proud to financially support Tāwharanui Open Sanctuary Society Inc (TOSSI), the hard-working team of volunteers who have put in thousands of hours of labour since 2002 to make the Tāwharanui Open Sanctuary a success. These tours would not be possible today if it were not for their dedication. We make a donation to TOSSI for every tour that you take with us to Tāwharanui.
We try to minimise our impact as much as we can, preferring hybrid/EV vehicles wherever possible.
We only take small groups, and are vigilant with our kauri die back protocols.