1 active Abel Tasman alert
- ClosureRoad resealing closures near Kaiteriteri, 29–30 OctoberExpect rolling closures on roads near Kaiteriteri from 6am to 8pm on Thursday 29 and Friday 30 October while crews reseal the roads.Official details
Overview
About Apple Tree Bay
Why stop
- The tidal estuary and sandy shore make a memorable Coast Track pause.
Heads up
- No road access, and the campsite water needs treatment.
Map
Where it is
Loading the Abel Tasman map
Full mapPlan your stop
Before you go
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Abel Tasman Tour Guide
Your drive to Apple Tree Bay, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Abel Tasman National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
More stories near here in the app
- Mārahau and Te Waharoa
- Abel Tasman Centre
- A Fern's Hidden Generation
- 23 audio storiesacross Abel Tasman’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Kea, New Zealand Fur Seal, Little Penguin, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 43 trails, 65 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
More about Apple Tree Bay
A beach stop on the Coast TrackApple Tree Bay is a small sandy beach and tent campsite on Abel Tasman’s Coast Track, where the…
Apple Tree Bay is a small sandy beach and tent campsite on Abel Tasman’s Coast Track, where the shore meets a tidal estuary. Keep it for an overnight or swim stop along the southern track: it gives you a real beach break, but you can only reach it on foot or by boat.
Plan the approachThere’s no road access to the campsite.
There’s no road access to the campsite. Walk in on the Coast Track or arrange a water taxi; taxis need to be booked ahead. DOC lists 15 non-powered tent sites, and bookings are required. This is a basic camp, so bring your food.
Water, toilets and tideThe campsite water is untreated; boil or otherwise treat it before drinking.
The campsite water is untreated; boil or otherwise treat it before drinking. There are pit toilets and a few picnic tables. Behind the beach, a tidal estuary changes shape with the water, and at some tides it puts water on both sides of the camping area. For a photo, include the estuary channels in the foreground and the curving beach beyond; a frame of open sea alone misses what makes this bay different.
Why the name stuckThe bay was once called La Grande Plage by French explorer Jules Dumont d’Urville.
The bay was once called La Grande Plage by French explorer Jules Dumont d’Urville. The Apple Tree name is thought to date to around 1928, when Leo Manoy bought a small parcel here for family camping and later built a bach. That old privately owned parcel fits a broader pattern: some small lots bought before Abel Tasman became a park in 1942 remained in private hands.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Abel Tasman
10 sightingsKeaMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
54 sightingsNew Zealand Fur SealMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
20 sightingsLittle PenguinMost seen around 9 PMSighting map
21 sightingsSouth Island KākāMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
527 sightingsWekaMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
16 sightingsTūīMost seen around 7 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Abel Tasman. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
