Three Northland walking tracks now officially 'great'

The view from atop Mt Manaia, at Whangarei Heads, is spectacular and now the trail to the top has been declared a "Great Short Walk."

Three Northland tramping tracks have been officially declared Great Short and Great Day walks.

Some of New Zealand's finest tracks are set to become part of a new network of Great Short and Great Day walks, the Government has announced, including three in Northland.

The 14 Great Short Walks - between 30 minutes to three hours - include the tracks to Mt Manaia, at Whangarei Heads, and Mangawhai Cliff. The five Great Day Walks - taking four to six hours - includes the Te Whara - Bream Head trail.

The Great Day and Great Short Walks, developed by the Department of Conservation (DoC) in partnership with Tourism New Zealand, are an expansion of the highly successful Great Walks brand aimed at promoting more of the fantastic walking experiences available across the country.

"This is a chance to draw more tourists off the beaten track and enable more communities to benefit from increasing visitor numbers," Tourism Minister Paula Bennett said.

Budget 2017's $76 million of new funding will allow DoC to better manage the impact of visitor growth, while also protecting biodiversity and threatened species.

"Ranging from Mt Manaia in Northland to Lake Gunn in Fiordland, the walks have been chosen from DoC's best and most spectacular tracks. Some, such as the track to Cathedral Cove, are already world famous, while others are relatively unknown gems," Conservation Minister Maggie Barry said.

"While many of these chosen walks are already top quality, others will see investment to make them truly world-class, with new facilities such as toilets or improved track surfaces.

"DoC's own research has shown tourists are looking for shorter, easier experiences and we're meeting that demand by highlighting the best through this new brand."