Kitekite Falls and the walks near Piha Beach

Kitekite is the classic waterfall near Piha Beach, and the regional tourism agency calls the path a must-do when in Piha.⁷ The falls drop about 40 meters in a series of tiers into a pool ringed by bush, and Tourism New Zealand notes the old kauri trunk at the start of the walk.⁸ On a still day you hear the water before you see it.

The falls are a geological feature as well as a pretty one. Auckland Council's schedule of outstanding natural features lists Kitekite among the highest and most easily reached falls in the Waitakere Ranges, pouring over a cliff of Piha Formation volcanic conglomerate with dikes visible in the rock face.⁹ The dikes are the darker, near-vertical bands: old cracks that filled with molten rock.

What makes the walk special is how fast the beach disappears. Within minutes you trade surf noise for birdsong, nīkau palms and tree ferns. The track is short enough for a family outing and varied enough to feel like a real walk in the bush, with boardwalks, stairs and stream crossings. It suits walkers who are steady on their feet and happy with some uneven ground.

Every walk in these hills starts with the same routine. Auckland Council asks track users to make sure shoes and equipment carry no visible soil and to use the hygiene stations at track entrances and exits.⁶ The reason is kauri dieback, a soil-borne disease spread by a pinhead of mud.²⁴ Scrub, spray, walk, and never step off the formed track onto roots.

Storm damage is the other reason to check before you go. The council says the 2023 storms left many west Auckland tracks needing to be rebuilt, a job it is doing in stages.²⁵ At Kitekite the news is good: all storm-damaged tracks at the falls are open again.¹⁶ More work is funded, including a new boardwalk and bridge to give safe access across the lower slip and stream to Knutzen Track.²⁶

The council keeps a live map of open and closed walking tracks and asks visitors to check it before visiting a regional park.²⁷ Its projects page was last updated in October 2026, and conditions can change after heavy rain, so treat any list here as a snapshot.²² If a sign at the start says a track is closed, it is closed, whatever an older guide or app may tell you.

Some famous viewpoints are out of bounds for now. The Piha Beach lookout on the cliffs above the southern beach is Tasman Lookout. Auckland Council lists the Tasman Lookout Track as shut, blocked by three large slips; until it reopens, the sand at low tide is the only way to The Gap.⁵ It expects the repairs to be completed in the first half of 2027.²⁰

Lion Rock's summit track is closed too, with the council citing unsafe and unstable land.⁴ North of the village, only the upper section of the Laird Thomson Track, from Anawhata Road to Te Waha, is open; a large slip closes the rest, with work also due in the first half of 2027.²¹ None of these closures stops you enjoying the beach, but they do shape the day.

If you came for a high view, the Mercer Bay Loop is the open alternative on the southern cliffs, and the drive down Piha Road gives a sweeping view of the bay from above. For The Gap, plan your beach walk for low tide and check the tide before you set out, since the council says the beach route works only at low tide.⁵ The council's map is the final word on what is open on the day you visit.²⁷

Without a car, a guided trip saves the logistics. A listing called Explore Black Sand Piha Beach and Water Falls in West Auckland stops at Piha Beach and then Kitekite Falls, where the walk is self-guided within a time limit set by the guide, over stairs, rocks and natural surfaces. It lasts 4 hours with pickup, from $126.

The tour this site sells does not list Kitekite; its walking is on rainforest bush tracks instead. Its program fills a half-day of 5 hours: pickup in Auckland, rainforest bush tracks, time on Piha's black sand and afternoon tea in the kiwi style, at a pace for all fitness levels. It costs from $118.

A private 7-hour tour adds Karekare Falls and an optional Mercer Bay loop to Piha and Arataki, from $188. Whichever you choose, wear shoes with grip, bring a light rain layer and water, and expect to clean your footwear at the kauri stations before and after every walk.⁶