Opua

Opua is a place in the Bay of Islands in the Far North district of Northland on the North Island of New Zealand. It is the first port for overseas yachts that arrive after crossing the Pacific to New Zealand.

In the original city plans of 1870 the place was called Newport. According to the 2006 census, Opua East and Opua West had 612 inhabitants, an increase of sixty since 2001.

The Opua School is a coeducational primary school for the 1 to 8 Class with a decile rating of 7 and 89 pupils in 2009. The school was established in 1886. It allows the inclusion of children of the harbor yachts for several weeks or months, and therefore has a very international character for such a small community.

Train

The Opua Branch, a branch line which is sometimes seen as part of the North Auckland Line, provides access to the town. The first railroad to Kawakawa was inaugurated on April 7, 1884. When completed in 1925, the North Auckland Line was a passenger train that ran three times a week; called the North Country Express, it ran directly from Auckland to Opua.

In November 1956, this was replaced by a railcar of NZR RM class with eighty-eight seats. This, however, ended in Okaihau on the Okaihau Branch. Travelers to Opua, therefore, had to use mixed trains of freight and passenger cars. On June 18, 1976 the track was completely converted to freight transport.

As Opua’s importance as a trading port waned, the cargo volume also declined and the route was used for the last time in 1985. It was then leased to the Bay of Islands Vintage Railway, which operated up to 201 tourist trains between Opua and Kawakawa.

The Land Transport Safety Authority pulled the railway’s operations license. A portion of the route in Opua is now private property, and negotiations are underway with the aim to resume the train service by the end of 2009.