NZ’s Best Beach 2024: Comedian Tom Sainsbury reveals his favourites

The Herald is searching for New Zealand’s Best Beach and we need your nominations. Find out how to get involved, and take inspiration from comedian Tom Sainsbury, who reveals which beaches he’ll be nominating.

What do you love about the beach?

The ocean is one of my favourite places. I just love floating in the water, getting refreshed, exfoliating my feet in the sand and diving under the waves. I just love looking out at the horizon as well. It’s grounding.

What activities do you like to do at the beach?

Swimming, eating chips, doing power walks along the sand after indulgent meals.

What is your favourite family-friendly beach?

Cooks Beach in the Coromandel. Low waves that you can just float in, or waterski on. Plenty of bush walks all around.

What’s your favourite city beach?

Cheltenham Beach in Auckland. It’s the calmest and closest. So we go there to cool down.

Is Auckland's Cheltenham Beach, in Devonport, New Zealand's best city beach? Photo / AucklandNZ

Do you have a favourite surf beach?

The Mount, Mount Maunganui. I’m useless at surfing but we’ve got boogie boards!

What’s your favourite camping beach?

I once went camping in Te Werahi Beach in the Far North and it was a very, very special time.

What’s your favourite hidden gem?

Smugglers Bay in Whangārei Heads. You have to park and walk for 500 metres to the beach. But it is gloriously worth it.

What do you have planned more generally this summer – any work gigs, road trips, special events?

The film and TV industry gets pretty quiet in January so I’m going to be escaping to the beach as much as possible. And reading books. No special events but a road trip down the North Island to Kāpiti Coast. We’ll be staying at Pukerua Bay which has the cutest little beach.

The second season of Tom Sainsbury’s Small Town Scandal is out now – listen on iHeartRadio

To submit your nominations for NZ’s Best Beach, go to nzherald.co.nz/bestbeach or fill out the entry form below. Nominations are open until January 8, and the finalists in all five categories will be revealed on January 15. You’ll then be able to vote for the ultimate winners.