Lake Mahinapua Campsite
Mahinapua Scenic Reserve
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Lake Mahinapua Campsite
Camp beside Lake Māhinapua within forest surroundings. A popular overnight and day stop. Enjoy water sports in the lake.
Historically Lake Mahinapua was a main access waterway up and down the coast using paddle steamers.
Fees
Adult (18+ years): $15 per night
Child (5–17 years): $7.50 per night
Infant (0–4 years): free
Passes
The DOC Campsite Pass can be used at this campsite.
Bookings
Bookings are open for the 2023/24 season.
Book Lake Mahinapua Campsite online.
A $10 service fee applies to phone and in-person booking. This is a limited service – book online first. An in-person booking is dependent on there being space available.
Your booking will be for a site, which will be allocated or selected on arrival.
Getting there
10 km south of Hokitika, turn off SH6 into Lake Mahinapua Access Road, opposite the hotel. 300 m to roadend.
DOC Campsite Pricing
Lake Māhinapua Campsite is categorised as a DOC Standard Campsite. The following pricing indicates usual pricing. Prices vary for some campsites and may include seasonal pricing. Visit the DOC website for exact pricing.
DOC Standard Campsite
Standard campsites have a more limited range of facilities and services than Serviced campsites. These campsites have toilets, a water supply that could be treated or untreated tap water, or from a stream or lake, and vehicle or boat access. Bring your own soap for washing hands. Untreated water should be boiled before use to ensure it's safe. Wood BBQs and fireplaces, cold showers, picnic tables, a cooking shelter and rubbish bins may be provided; this will vary from site to site.
| Feature | Value | Value |
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| Unpowered Site | Adult | $10.00 to $15.00 per night |
| Unpowered Site | Child | $5.00 to $7.50 per night |
| Unpowered Site | Infant | $0.00 per night |
Adults are 18+ years, children are 5-17 years, infants are 0-4 years.
Details
| Feature | Value | Info |
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Organisation |
DOC West CoastCentral government organisation |
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Location |
South Island ▷ West Coast ▷ Hokitika |
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Basic Camping
Reviews
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2.0/5
I don't know why there are so many good reviews, maybe I had bad luck.
Toilets were absolutely disgusting, worst I've seen in 3 weeks (freedom) camping. No cleaning/maintenance in winter? Yes, the spot is beautifully situated, but hard to find a somewhat leveled spot and with a lot of rain it's hard to find a spot at all because it's very muddy and there are huge potholes in the grass and you dont want to get stuck. There is no potable water tap. There is a semi-sheltered place to wash dishes.
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4.5/5
Awesome spot, lots of friendly wekas and plenty of space to spread out.
Solar shower rope hoists in the bathrooms are a bonus and loved the new shelter with sinks for dishes too!
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5.0/5
One of our favourites campsites of the trip, plenty of space and a really chilled out vibe.
Didn’t try the solar shower, so can’t advise if that works.
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4.0/5
Lovely spot with almost everything you need, clean toilets, showers, sinks, some shelter, even a recycling station.
Well positioned close to Hokitika and on a very cute lake and not too many sandflies
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3.5/5
Lovely location but toilet out of order (public toilets nearby available) and mozies bad.
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5.0/5
Beautiful camp next to Lake Mahinapua.
Clean flush toilets, cooking/dishes shelter with multiple sinks, rubbish and recycling station, even a solar shower! (Though probably a lucky dip to get a hot shower when it's busy!).
Lake is lovely for a kayak and morning sunrise. Nice bush walks around camp.
Weka, falcons and glowworms top it off to make this a definite 10!
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4.0/5
A lovely lake with the back drop of the mountains.The camp site is back a little from the lake a large grassy area with plenty of choice where to park.
Clean and tidy toilets, solar shower and shelter for kitchen area.
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4.0/5
Very few campers (July 2020) Grounds well maintained tho choose site carefully because of wet conditions.
Clean flush toilets w/paper, small outside shelter area with cold water and sink. Beautiful lake views and walks through the bush.
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4.5/5
This is a gorgeous campsite, right on the shores of the lake.
The amenities were clean with flushing toilets. Lovely big communal undercover areas. Mowed grassy and flat camping areas. DOC Campsite, so cost $13 per person, per night.
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2.0/5
I don't know why there are so many good reviews, maybe I had bad luck.
Toilets were absolutely disgusting, worst I've seen in 3 weeks (freedom) camping. No cleaning/maintenance in winter? Yes, the spot is beautifully situated, but hard to find a somewhat leveled spot and with a lot of rain it's hard to find a spot at all because it's very muddy and there are huge potholes in the grass and you dont want to get stuck. There is no potable water tap. There is a semi-sheltered place to wash dishes.
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4.5/5
Awesome spot, lots of friendly wekas and plenty of space to spread out.
Solar shower rope hoists in the bathrooms are a bonus and loved the new shelter with sinks for dishes too!
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4.0/5
Lovely spot with almost everything you need, clean toilets, showers, sinks, some shelter, even a recycling station.
Well positioned close to Hokitika and on a very cute lake and not too many sandflies
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5.0/5
One of our favourites campsites of the trip, plenty of space and a really chilled out vibe.
Didn’t try the solar shower, so can’t advise if that works.
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3.5/5
Lovely location but toilet out of order (public toilets nearby available) and mozies bad.
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5.0/5
Beautiful camp next to Lake Mahinapua.
Clean flush toilets, cooking/dishes shelter with multiple sinks, rubbish and recycling station, even a solar shower! (Though probably a lucky dip to get a hot shower when it's busy!).
Lake is lovely for a kayak and morning sunrise. Nice bush walks around camp.
Weka, falcons and glowworms top it off to make this a definite 10!
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4.0/5
A lovely lake with the back drop of the mountains.The camp site is back a little from the lake a large grassy area with plenty of choice where to park.
Clean and tidy toilets, solar shower and shelter for kitchen area.
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4.0/5
Very few campers (July 2020) Grounds well maintained tho choose site carefully because of wet conditions.
Clean flush toilets w/paper, small outside shelter area with cold water and sink. Beautiful lake views and walks through the bush.
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4.5/5
This is a gorgeous campsite, right on the shores of the lake.
The amenities were clean with flushing toilets. Lovely big communal undercover areas. Mowed grassy and flat camping areas. DOC Campsite, so cost $13 per person, per night.
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5.0/5
Excellent doc campsite.
Included in the campervan pass and has really good facilities. Flushing toilets, with soap and tp. Even a solar shower but we didn't use so not sure how well it worked. They also have rubbish and recycling bins. One of the best equipped DOC sites we stayed in at this price.
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3.5/5
We stAyed at this DOC site after reading reviews.
Not a massive site, but enough space for choice of spots. Lake itself is nice with mountain backdrop. 10mins from Hokitika. Limited toilet facilities only.
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4.0/5
Pretty basic campsite but all we needed with our self-contained van.
Flushing toilets! Water! A beautiful walk to the lake. Bugs galore, but they were at every campsite we stayed at.
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5.0/5
An amazing campsite if you are lucky enough to be here on a fine early morning!!
Took probably the best photos of our trip as the lake was dark and glass and acted like an enormous mirror. 10/10 would stay again.
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4.5/5
Really nice spot to camp.
Sunrise over the lake was beautiful. Seeing the Weka birds roaming the campsite was cute- we even saw chicks! Clean toilets and lots of room.
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5.0/5
BEST SPOT EVER!
December 2018 the price is NZ$ 13 per person. Put cash in envelope at camp or wait for ranger to pay by card. HUGE area to camp. If you have a solar shower, you can use the cubicles to hang it up. Toilets with running water are big and clean. A few drinking water stations around the camp. Good sized area to clean dishes. Benches down by the lake. Great little walks around the area. Glowworms to be seen on the road in/out from the camp to the mainroad. Not so many sandflies this time. Awesome spot. Mahinapua Pub open for public till around 17:00. Weak sound of music for the Kiwi Experience busses parties after that. All in all - GREAT place to stop on the westcoast.
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5.0/5
Beautiful place to camp!
Great facilities, bring your own solar shower to hang up. The lake was incredible in the morning, check it before the wind comes up. Would recommend to park up here!
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5.0/5
$13pp closer to the main road.
Rubbish and recycling bins, portable fresh water. Security cameras. Box to put money. A lot of spaces
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4.0/5
Would be quite expensive but wet used it with a doc campsite pass.
Very nice spot! Showers didn't work maybe because we were in off season.
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3.5/5
DOC campsite and free with conservation pass.
Large and quiet campsite with nice lake view. There's a pier that is nice for a photo shoot and get into the lake to swim. Basic facilities with flush toilet.
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4.5/5
The view is amazing mostly in the morning.
Weka are surrounding so keep your stuff in van or tent
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5.0/5
One of the best DOC sites we visited.
Only a few other campers there. Toilets were clean and there was water available. The views of the snow capped mountains were fantastic. Short drive through what seemed like a dodgy forest at night was beautiful during the day. 10/10 for views.
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3.5/5
Basic DOC site.
Was a great stop for us after a long drive through Arthurs Pass from Kaikoura heading to the West Coast..... but we arrived too late to enjoy any views..... We parked near the picnic area. There were at least 5 others there even in winter which was rare to see during our trip at any DOC site. Had the DOC pass so was free for us.
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4.5/5
The Lake Mahinapua campsite has a beautiful setting close to the edge of the lake with a one-way road in and another leading out through thick bush.
Given a clear morning the sunrise over the lake is superb. The main camping area is a large grassed circle that gets chewed up by the wheels of heavy vehicles in wet weather making deep ruts and mud. A smaller camping area nearby is shaded for the first half of the day by a steep bush covered hill. There are clean flush-toilets and a space to hang a solar-shower as well as a separate covered space for dish washing and possibly food preparation out of the rain. Freshwater and rubbish / recycling are available onsite. A shallow concrete slipway next to the campsite gives easy lake access for small boats & kayaks. Close to the campsite there are a couple of easy bush walks and it is possible to get onto the West Coast cycle trail from the campsite but making this connection requires a couple of kilometres of main-road riding. The camp is very popular and the only downside is the relatively high cost for a DOC site.
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4.5/5
Fantastic campground.
Plenty of space, beautiful view from the lakefront that is accessible from the campground! As well as it being close to town if you need to get up early for a tour the next day.
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4.5/5
Amazing entrance to this place.
It was raining and parts of the camp grounds were soft, and some people got stuck. Lovely lake. Magnificent sunrise.
