Matarangi is a beach settlement on the

Coromandel Peninsula The Coromandel Peninsula ( mi, Te Tara-O-Te-Ika-A-Māui) on the North Island of New Zealand extends north from the western end of the Bay of Plenty, forming a natural barrier protecting the Hauraki Gulf and the Firth of Thames in the we ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, with around 420 permanent residents in 2018 which increases to over 7000 holidaymakers during the summer period of late December to February. It was developed in the 1980s as a purpose-built resort town and occupies a white sand peninsula between the

Whangapoua Harbour Whangapoua Harbour is a shallow natural harbour in the northeast of the Coromandel Peninsula. It is located between Whangapoua in the north, Te Rerenga in the southwest, and Matarangi on the Omara Spit in the north separating it from the ocean. ...

and historic

Mercury Bay Mercury Bay is a large V-shaped bay on the eastern coast of the Coromandel Peninsula on the North Island of New Zealand. It was named by the English navigator Captain James Cook during his exploratory expeditions. It was first named ''Te-Whangan ...

. It is half an hour from the towns of

Coromandel Coromandel may refer to: Places India *Coromandel Coast, India **Presidency of Coromandel and Bengal Settlements ** Dutch Coromandel *Coromandel, KGF, Karnataka, India New Zealand *Coromandel, New Zealand, a town on the Coromandel Peninsula *Coro ...

to the west and

Whitianga Whitianga is a town on the Coromandel Peninsula, in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. The town is located on Mercury Bay, on the northeastern coast of the peninsula. The town has a permanent population of as of making it the ...

to the south east. Matarangi has a mix of older, smaller holiday houses (known in New Zealand as baches), while waterfront sections have luxury holiday homes and prestige lifestyles. The main attraction for families is the 4 km long white sand ocean beach which provides safe swimming all year round and surfing when the conditions are right. Beach access is from Kenwood Drive which leads to the Village Green with picnic facilities and a playground or from Ocean Close. The harbour also offers swimming, boating, kite surfing, fishing and bird watching, with an upgraded boat ramp, boat parking and picnic area. Occupying the scenic end of the sand spit ″the pines″ is "The Dunes", a Bob Charles-designed championship eighteen-hole golf course with a licensed club house, restaurant and pro shop. There is also a bowling green and there are several public tennis courts in the town. The small shopping centre has a

Four Square Four square is a team sport played among two teams with two players each on a square court divided into four quadrants: A, B, C, and D (usually numbers 3, 4, 2, and 1, respectively, depending on the court.) The square that a player gets to befo ...

store, liquor outlet, cafe, gift store and two real estate agencies. Accommodation consists of Matarangi Villas close to the golf course and holiday homes that can be rented privately or through Air BnB and other holiday rental agents.

Demographics

Matarangi is described by Statistics New Zealand as a rural settlement. It covers . Matarangi is part of the larger Mercury Bay North statistical area. Matarangi had a population of 420 at the

2018 New Zealand census Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 * one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...

, an increase of 117 people (38.6%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 168 people (66.7%) since the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. There were 207 households, comprising 207 males and 213 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.97 males per female, with 39 people (9.3%) aged under 15 years, 33 (7.9%) aged 15 to 29, 180 (42.9%) aged 30 to 64, and 162 (38.6%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 93.6% European/

Pākehā Pākehā (or Pakeha; ; ) is a Māori term for New Zealanders primarily of European descent. Pākehā is not a legal concept and has no definition under New Zealand law. The term can apply to fair-skinned persons, or to any non-Māori New Ze ...

, 10.0%

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

, 0.7% Pacific peoples, 2.1%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, and 0.7% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 50.0% had no religion, 36.4% were

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, 1.4% were

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and 0.7% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 66 (17.3%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 63 (16.5%) people had no formal qualifications. 45 people (11.8%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 129 (33.9%) people were employed full-time and 66 (17.3%) were part-time.

References

{{Thames-Coromandel District Thames-Coromandel District Populated places in Waikato