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# Bringing the Benefits of Hamilton Island to the Far North
- URL: https://goodoil.news/bringing-the-benefits-of-hamilton-island-to-the-far-north/
- Published: 2025-11-04T23:00:51.000Z
- Updated: 2025-11-04T23:00:50.000Z
- Description: Simeon Brown and Chris Bishop have done some good work with proposed roading improvements to the Far North. A much more significant improvement would be to make the Kerikeri Airport fully international. In 10 years Northland could go from the poorest to the wealthiest NZ province.
- Author: Reproduced with permission
- Tags: NZ Politics, Business, Economy

[**Alwyn Poole**](https://alwynpoole.substack.com/p/bringing-the-benfits-of-hamilton)  
*Began teaching in 1991\. TBC, HBHS, St Cuths. Founded/led Mt Hobson MS–18 years. Co-founded SAMS and MSWA. Econs degree, Masters in Edn, tchg dip, post grad dip – sport.*

I have just had the privilege of spending a week on [Hamilton Island](https://www.hamiltonisland.com.au/?ref=goodoil.news) off the north Queensland Coast. It was easy to get to – Auckland-Sydney-Hamilton Island (where five significant flights arrive every day).

It is a tiny place – five kilometres long by 3.5 kilometres wide. But the airport hosts planes with up to 300 passengers and the ferry from Airlie Beach is 45 minutes.

The hotels – we stayed at the Reef View – are high quality and very well serviced.

We ate at 10 different venues – every meal and all waitstaff were of high quality.

We took two boat trips. One was to Whitehaven Beach – which was beautiful re the fish life and the monitor lizards. The other was an all-day adventure to a part of the Great Barrier Reef – where we snorkeled for four hours and had a superb time.

As a declaration of interests – I own three, very small, tourism businesses in the Bay of Islands.

My strong opinion is that NZ needs a SUN destination in the same way that Queenstown provides a winter destination and is also working hard to be an all-year round venue.

The Far North is the poorest part of NZ with appalling education, NEET, employment and social welfare stats. A few rich (and semi-rich) people go to the Bay of Islands, buy some form of property and then try and make sure no one else arrives in paradise.  
  
[Here](https://www.hamiltonisland.com.au/HamiltonIsland/media/PDF-Files/PR/hamilton-island-at-a-glance.pdf?ref=goodoil.news) is a summary of what Hamilton Island means to the Queensland and Australian economy.

Simeon Brown and Chris Bishop have done some good work with proposed roading improvements to the Far North.

A much more significant improvement would be to make the Kerikeri Airport fully international and have flights coming in from Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne, Singapore, Hong Kong – every day. In 10 years Northland could go from the poorest to the wealthiest NZ province.

This article was originally published by [Education – the Absolute Best Ways](https://alwynpoole.substack.com/p/bringing-the-benfits-of-hamilton).