Best Berry Farms: Tauranga to Whakatane
What is a road trip without stopping for fresh fruit? We love heading down the coast (Tauranga to Whakatane) and looking for the best berry farms are always on our list for a stop over, stretch the legs or for a bite to eat.
However, we are also lucky enough to have some of these berry farms less than 20 minutes away. This makes it great during the summer and picking months.
Lukas enjoying a bite of a strawberry as he picks
Sometimes picking the right berry farm can be a tough decision especially if you are not sure of all the facilities that they offer or not.
Below is our list of the best berry farms we have visited with the best features and qualities each one has to offer.
But whichever one you pick, the berries will no doubt taste sweet and juicy
TIP: PYO (Pick Your Own)
Blue Corner Berry Farm Whakatane
Opening Hours: 8:30 am to 5pm everyday
Another beautiful spot just outside of Whakatane, heading towards Tauranga.
To be honest we usually drive straight past this place on our way to Julians, what a mistake that was.
The people here are so friendly and always have a smile of their face.
The boys bouncing on the trampoline in the playground
They grow blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries and Rānui berries.
There is a beautiful court yard area with seating and mature trees. It’s a great spot to bring a blanket and relax. They also offer sheltered seating too. The boys loved the playground, especially the trampoline.
They do a great coffee along with muffins, delicious slices and hot chips. If the day is hot you can also enjoy an ice cream (which are massive) or a smoothie, they even have their own honey to sell too.
Relaxing with an ice cream on a hot day at Blue Corner
We will definitely be stopping here again, this is certainly one of the best berry farms around.!
Location: 364 Thornton Road
Opening Hours: 8:30 am to 5pm everyday
Julians Berry Farm and Café
This place has got everything and surely must go down as one of the best berry farms in the Bay of Plenty, if not New Zealand.
Family photo time after picking strawberries
We always stop here when we are taking a day trip or holiday to Ohope Beach or heading further down the coast.
Julian’s makes their very own strawberry ice-cream and this one the last thing the kids get before we leave. They also have a range of different flavours.
We have eaten a couple of times in their cafe and the food has always been great. They serve a wide variety of salads, burgers, and sandwiches along with the usually sweet treats.
They offer cabinet food too as well as a small kids menu including pizzas, fries and chicken nuggets.
Time to shoot some hoops
The cafe is child-friendly with indoor and an outdoor sheltered seating area.
There is an awesome fenced in playground with swings, climbing frames and slides. They even have a basketball court to shoot hoops and a volleyball court.
If mini golf is more your style then you can challenge your family members and/or friend to 18 holes. We haven’t done it …yet. However it looks like a lot of fun.
Boys our walking the strawberry fields looking for the biggest strawberry
They also have an animal farm; calves, lambs, chicks and rabbits. If you are lucky you might even see some horses.
But the real reason we stop here is for the STRAWBERRIES!! We love getting a container and heading out into the fields to pick the best and tastiest strawberries. You an allow to eat a couple while you pick just don’t go toooooo crazy.
You can also pick blackberries and boysenberries, ranui berries, raspberries and logan berries.
However if you are short on time or if picking is not your thing you can purchase the above in their shop along with, karakaberries, blueberries and avocados.
Location: 12 Huna Road
Opening Hours: 9.00am – 4.30pm daily
Somerfields Berryfruit Farm
Somerfield’s Berry fruit farm makes our list of best berry farms as it is a very popular place to pick your own. We have been here a few times and always found it best to get there when it opens.
We arrived mid morning one time and the queues to pick were long, won’t make that mistake again.
For us this is a shorter 20 minute drive out towards Oropi.
The boys were extremely proud of the strawberries they picked
If you love to pick your own then you are in for a treat otherwise they have containers on strawberries and blueberries to purchase in their shop.
As well as PYO strawberries and can also PYO raspberries and blueberries depending on the season. Just check their facebook page for details.
Strawberries washed and ready to eat… only lasted about 5 minutes
If it’s a hot day then you are in luck as they sell their own ice creams & frozen fruit.
Location: 1002 Oropi Road
Opening Hours 8am-5pm
Bell Road Berries
A wonderful spot to come and pick strawberries, blueberries or boysenberries.
As this is a stones throw from home in Papamoa, we often head out here to pick fresh strawberries.
Entrance to Bell Road Berry Farm. This is where you weigh your strawberries after picking them
The patches are on the ground but that’s ok and they are fine with you eating while you pick. Just don’t get carried away.
Always check their facebook page as this is up to date and tells you what is available.
Location: 129 Bell Road, Papamoa Beach
Opening Hours: 9am -5pm
Black Stump Berries
This place is located between Papamoa and Te Puke and is the perfect spot for a family outing.
Getting ready to pick the best strawberries
This is a great spot to PYO strawberries. Often we head here if we have friends coming over or are making pancakes with fresh fruit.
There is nothing quite like eating freshly picked strawberries. Plus the kids love searching for the biggest strawberry they can find!
The strawberry plants here are high so when you are picking it’s not hard on your back
Somethings we like to make a morning of it and either before or after we pick we grab a bite from the cafe.
There is a delicious range of scones, donuts, muffins, pies and cronuts to pick from. Along with smoothies iced coffee and chocolate.
The kids love grabbing an ice cream and even best they also serve diary free ice-cream. For our kids this makes Black Stump one of the best berry farms locally.
Black stump playground, Sawyer loves hanging here
While we sit back and relax for a little bit the kids are off exploring the playground. There is a mini putt course but we haven’t played it… yet.
Always check their facebook page as they provide up to date information on opening times and availability.
Location: 1841-1949 Tauranga East Road Papamoa Beach
Opening Hours: 10am -4pm but check their facebook page before you go.
Final Thoughts
We love our fruit especially strawberries and blueberries. Most of the time we have to buy extra as they get eaten on the car journey. Be there is nothing like eating PYO fresh fruit from the best berry farms.
This is summer for us as a family, especially in New Zealand.
Plenty of outdoor picnic tables at Black Stump Berry Farm
Having been to all of these best berry farms we don’t have a favourite however, we do try to stop at each one at least once a season and the ones closer to home… weekly.
We recommend you try them all, maybe not all in one day but definitely over the berry picking season.
Disclosure: This post might contain affiliate links. This means I might receive a small commission if you click and purchase something. Clicking on these links will not cost you anything, however it helps me to keep my website running. For more information click on our disclosure policy.
Meet the family
________________________________
________________________________
Subscribe to our Newsletter
________________________________
Looking for inspiration and travel advice
Join us and receive our updates & travel tips
Why not follow us on our adventures
Recent Posts
________________________________
Scott - 4 Degrees of Destination
_______________________________
Hi, I've been fortunate enough to have travelled for over 25 years. My parents gave me the travel bug when I was 10 years old by taking my sister and I to the USA and Mexico for two months. I've travelled by myself, with mates, with my wife and now as a family of four. My goal is to inspire our families to get out and see the world.
Resources
Coming soon
