Plan & prepare
Arranging a visit to Little Barrier Island
If you would like to visit Little Barrier Island, you first need to get a permit from the Department of Conservation.
Before applying for a permit, please contact the Warkworth Great Barrier Island Area Office to discuss available dates.
The only part of the island open to the public is the area around Te Maraeroa and up to five tracks. To protect the island, the maximum number of visitors permitted to land is 20 per day, although this may vary dependent on the management activities scheduled for the time of your visit.
Fees and application
Landing on the island
Supervisors and group leaders
Looking after the island
What to bring
Island tracks
Getting there
'No landing' sign on Little Barrier Island
Fees and application
A processing fee of $25.50 (incl GST) per person is required and must accompany your permit application.
Application form
Permit to enter Little Barrier Island Nature Reserve
PDF (27K) or Microsoft Word (56K)
Landing on the island
Landings and departures at Little Barrier Island are only possible during suitable weather conditions. Even in agreeable conditions, landings are difficult and may need to be performed in chest high surf on slippery boulders.
Because of landing difficulties, visitors must:
- Be at least 12 years of age.
- Be physically able.
- Wear suitable clothing and sturdy footwear - walking boots or shoes or hard soled wetsuit booties. Bare feet, jandals and sandals are not suitable.
- Be willing to help unload supplies and not worried about getting wet on arrival. Unsuitable clothing and attempts to keep dry on arrival make landing more difficult and dangerous for others.
Delayed return
Due to the difficulties in landing and departing from Little Barrier, a delayed return is a real possibility if visiting the island. When visiting the island:
- Bring enough food and clothing to cover for an enforced overnight stay.
- Have a contingency plan arranged with your boat skipper in case of deteriorating weather.
- Arrange a 'telephone tree' so if your planned return is delayed, a message can be sent to one person who can then relay the information on.
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Supervisors and group leaders
An accredited supervisor must accompany every group travelling to Little Barrier Island. These people are not a guide but are to make sure you follow permit conditions.
In addition, every group of visitors to the island must nominate one person as their group leader. The group leader is responsible for ensuring that the biosecurity and other permit conditions have been read and understood by all members of their party and complied with before departing for the island. The group leader is also responsible for the group's safety.
Looking after the island
Main landing point on Little Barrier Island in stormy weather
Little Barrier is free of all introduced predators except wasps. This makes it a very important sanctuary for many of New Zealand's threatened species now extinct, or in danger of extinction, on the mainland.
It could spell disaster for many species if new diseases or pests such as ants, mice, rats, stoats or cats got to Little Barrier Island. For this reason, strict biosecurity conditions must be followed by all visitors to the island, including:
- Packing, checking and sealing all personal gear in a rodent-free area at DOC's Warkworth quarantine room immediately prior to departure
- Unpacking all personal gear in the island's quarantine store immediately on arrival on the island
- Taking all rubbish with you when you depart, including unwanted food such as apple cores, unwanted fillings from sandwiches, etc.
More detailed biosecurity information will be supplied upon issue of your permit. The Island Ranger will turn away any supplies or people if they do not comply with permit conditons.
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What to bring
- Appropriate clothing, including a raincoat and sturdy footwear
- Water bottle (2-3 litres)
- Food for the day, plus extra food in case of delayed departure
- At least one cell phone and first aid kit should be carried per group
- Whistle (useful for finding someone lost in the bush)
Kokako
How to pack
Because of the risk of reinvasion of pests, visitors are not permitted to take their own day packs to Little Barrier Island. Your gear will be packed into fish bins during your biosecurity check, which will then be sealed and not opened again until you are in the quarantine store on the island.
The Island Ranger will advise when it is ok to open the bins and will provide you with daypacks to use during your visit.
Anything you want kept dry should be sealed against immersion in salt water, either in plastic bags or a water tight container. Breakables should be well padded as a precaution against unavoidable rough handling.
Island tracks
There are usually five tracks open to visitors on Little Barrier. Visitors should be aware of the following:
- The tracks are trails only and require good robust footwear
- Vegetation on each side of the tracks is fragile and visitors must stay on the track in order to protect this fragile ecosystem
- Visitors moving away from the bunkhouse must advise the party leader so that appropriate action can be taken in the event of an accident
- Bush safety practices must be followed, with warm clothes and snack food carried at all times.
Getting there
Because of the need to include details of how you will be travelling to Little Barrier Island in your permit application, you need to arrange transport to the island before you apply for your permit.
Charter boat operators authorised to transport visitors Little Barrier Island
Contact
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