The Cream Trip meanders in and out of many of the smaller bays, calling on locals and delivering their stores and Royal Mail as it has done for over 100 years. The trip passes many different points of historical interest relating to both early European and Maori settlement. You may also see seals, dolphins and sometimes whales, as well as bird and fish life. A choice of ways to get there Air New Zealand operates flights to the Bay of Islands daily with connecting flights from all other major centres. If you prefer to take a coach tour many operators have tours of different lengths to many different places - just make sure you choose one that includes the Bay of Islands.
Some operators have one, two or three day tours from Auckland just to the area.
You can also take an express coach from Auckland - the Northliner or Intercity and do your own thing when you arrive. I have a piupiu that was given to my father in 1916 when he was a missionary in New Zealand for the LDS Church. He was told then that it was worn at the Treaty of Waitangi. It has been in a trunk for most of the time that I have known about it. As chidren we were never permited to play with it.