Haruru Falls is a five-metre-high horseshoe-shaped waterfall on the Waitangi River, about 3km west of Paihia. The falls are not dramatic by New Zealand standards, but the walk to reach them — along a boardwalk through a mangrove estuary — is genuinely lovely. The boardwalk starts near the Waitangi Treaty Grounds and follows the river upstream through thick mangrove forest, arriving at the falls after about 45 minutes on foot.
The falls are particularly atmospheric after rain, when the volume increases and a fine mist hangs in the air. A picnic area sits above the falls. The walk can be extended into a full-day circuit through the Waitangi Forest, with good kauri trees visible in the upper sections. You can also reach the falls by kayak from Paihia at high tide.