WHANGAMATA

Whangamata remains the top spot for Kiwi holidaymakers over summer, according to new figures.

For the fourth year in a row, coastal North Island destination Whangamata has topped the list of accommodation bookings made through the website Bookabach.

The figures were taken from collated bookings between December 1, 2011 and January 11 this year.

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The Billabong Pro presented by Sony, scheduled to take place at Whangamata this weekend 28th-30th January, has been postponed due to an unfavourable swell forecast.  New Zealand Pro Series has been rescheduled for 10th - 12th February at Whangamata. The event now coincides with Event Two of the Billabong Grom Series presented by Oceanbridge scheduled for the same weekend.

"The calendar of events is full for summer so we thought it would be a great opportunity to hold the Billabong Pro on the same weekend as the Grom Series at Whanga and make an action packed weekend of it"  Billabong Events Manager AJ Matthews said.

The Billabong Pro will remain a three day event commencing on Friday 10th February while the Grom Series will start on Saturday 11th February as originally scheduled. Combined with the two surfing events will be the land based activities with Skinny bringing horizontal bungy and slum dunk as well as a massive blow up soccer pitch to the beach.

"We are sure the groms will enjoy surfing as part of a bigger event and sharing the weekend with all of the best surfers in New Zealand" Matthews said.

Whangamata remains the top spot for Kiwi holidaymakers over summer, according to a bach booking website.

For the fourth year in a row, the Coromandel town has been the top destination chosen by people using Bookabach.

Bookings between December 1 and January 11 showed Lake Wanaka jumped seven spots to No 2 while Raglan, with the cheapest average rental of id="mce_marker"84 a night, was third.

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New Zealand’s surfing elite will converge on Whangamata this “Auckland Anniversary Weekend” (28^th – 30^th of January 2012) for the annual Billabong Pro presented by Sony.

The event is now in its eighth consecutive year and boasts the largest prize pool of the New Zealand Surf Series with over id="mce_marker"2,800 of cash and prizes up for grabs.

The Whangamata Pro is the second stop of the series closely following the National Championships being contested in Auckland at Piha this week (15^th - 21^st of January).

The Billabong Pro Whangamata presented by Sony includes three major divisions - Open Men’s, Open Women’s, and Junior Men’s (under 20 years of age).

Collecting or eating shellfish from Tairua to Whakatane Heads is out of bounds after a potentially paralysing poison spreads further around the coast. The Toi Te Ora Public Health Service yesterday extended its health warning on eating shellfish which has been in place from Tairua south including Whiritoa, Whangamata, Onemana and Waihi since late 2011, to include the eastern Bay of Plenty and all other in-shore islands along the coastline.

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A rookie lifeguard is being credited with saving a man thrown from his jetski in heavy surf at a popular Coromandel beach. Sam Barclay, an 18-year-old from St Kentigern College, was cooking at the Whangamata Surf Club earlier this week when colleague Rachelle Bright spotted an unoccupied jetski in the waves.

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Containers and debris from the wrecked Rena could drift as far north as holiday hotspot Whitianga and beachgoers have been warned to look out for timber and other dangerous material that could be hidden in the surf.

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People in the Bay of Plenty are urged to stay safe after Waihi Beach was closed after containers and debris washed ashore on Waihi Beach.

"It's pretty easy to get someone badly hurt," said Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee at a press conference with Maritime New Zealand earlier today.

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Whangamata Beach is still a Rena wreckage / container free zone as of 9:45am this morning, and is expected to stay this way.
 
 Waihi beach has been hit by containers and debris and is currently closed.
 
 More updates as they come to hand.

Containers from the split container ship Rena have washed up on Waihi Beach.

Maritime New Zealand yesterday confirmed the Rena, which grounded on the Astrolabe Reef off Tauranga in October, had separated into two pieces in high seas on Saturday night.

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