Photo: White Island Boats New Zealand

Two boats anchored on the outskirts of Crater Bay on White Island off the North Island of New Zealand wait for passengers aboard their tours.

These are the two boats that passengers board for tours to White Island, an active volcano in the Bay of Plenty off the North Island of New Zealand. The boats anchor in the water in Crater Bay where red rocks from the volcano sit along the coastline.

The boats can only enter Crater Bay to a certain point as the waters become shallow around the coastline of White Island. Once they anchor here, inflatable powered boats are used to take passengers ashore where they can explore the volcanic landscape of White Island, New Zealand.

The tour company is called White Island Tours and both the boats are fully equipped for trips to White Island. Once you arrive on White Island off the North Island of New Zealand, a guide will take you for an informative and interesting tour around the volcano. You will spend approximately one and a half to two hours on White Island and then venture back out to the boats for a scenic journey back to Whakatane, New Zealand.

In the foreground, the PeeJay IV floats in the yellow coloured water with the PeeJay V anchored not far off shore from the first tour boat. Both of these boats were built for the purpose of carrying passengers back and forth between the North Island and White Island.

The PeeJay IV is a sixty foot luxury boat able to carry fifty people and can sit twenty on the flybridge and room for thirty more on the deck below. The PeeJay V is a seventy-three foot luxury boat that has great viewing from all the seats whether on the upper or lower deck. Whichever of the boats you choose, the crew is very informative and pleasant and both take you to White Island for an incredible journey.

White Island Tours boats - PeeJay IV and PeeJay V, anchored in Crater Bay, White Island, Bay of Plenty, East Coast, North island, New Zealand.