ABel Tasman
This is one of our favorite national parks in New Zealand and there is plenty to do here. The water is really calm (most of the time) and warm so it is always nice to pack a pair of togs (swim suit) so you can take a dip at one of the many nice beaches.
Day Tramping from Marahau:
Marahau is the hub for Abel Tasman and has a large fleet of water taxis ready to whisk you off to various parts of the park. There are a couple of providers that you can choose from and I don’t think it overly matters which one you chose:
Abel Tasman Aqua Taxi and Mahahau Water Taxis
The water taxis run as far north at Totaranui with a number of stops along the way. You can either do it as a one-way and hike back to Marahau or get dropped in one location and picked up in another. We have done it both ways. The taxis aren’t all that cheap, but it does seem to be worth it.
to Anchorage and hike back: (13 km)
This is one of our favorites as the views are great, you don’t repeat anything, you can stop at any number of lovely beaches and logistics are simple. You do it in reverse, but then you have to time your arrival at the pick up to match the taxi schedule.
Torrent Bay to Ohetahuti: (13.6 KM)
This requires a drop-off and pick-up from the taxi, but is a really nice section of the trail with a lot more native bush.
Bottom line is that you can set up whatever distances you want based on your fitness and desire. Here is a breakdown of the distances and hiking times
Marahau to Apple Tree Bay and Back: (12 km)
If the water taxis are too much of a pain and/or expensive for you, you can do a nice out and back from Marahau. We like to go out to Apple Tree Bay as it is a good halfway point and the beach is lovely
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Day Tramping from Wainui/Totaranui:
The park can be reached from Golden Bay/Takaka through Wainui. The drive into Totaranui is a bit windy, but the beach there is to die for. It is very popular in the summer and has a huge camping area. This section of the park is some of the most beautiful and is way less crowded than the southern part…except during the holidays when the campground will be chockerblock full.
Totaranui to Seperation Point Return (16 to 18 KM)
There are a couple options on this hike. One is to stay on the main trail and just go to Whariwharangi and back. If you are up for it, you can add a bit of a detour and add on the side trip to Separation Point. This would make the total trip about 18 km.
The map on the left shows the route where you don’t drop all of the way down to Whariwharangi, but there is a nice overlook down to the beach.
There is a small loop on the headlands just at the start that you could leave off if you want to shorten the hike. All of it is good and you can’t go wrong.
Wainui to Whariwharangi: (5 km)
If you start at the Wainui car park (GPS -40.8097242, 172.956101) , it just a short hike into Whariwharangi. You can always lengthen it and head all the way to Separation Point which is 18 km return.
HUT-to-HUT Tramping
The Coastal Track: ( 3 to 5 days, 60 km)
This is one of the New Zealand Great Walks. It is an easy 3 to 5 day tramp with a number of huts and camping areas along the way. A complete DOC track guide can be found on this link. During peak season it can difficult to get bookings at the huts as it is one of the most popular multi-day hikes in New Zealand. You can usually get bookings at the campsites, many of which are nice beach-based areas. Just watch out for the Wekas!
The northern most hut, Whariwharangi, is the least popular and cannot be accessed by water taxi. We have done an overnight there with an in and out from Totaranui and it is a lovely hut. You could also come in from Wainui as well. We tried to find a shuttle between the two but did not have much luck…although I am sure there is someone in Takaka that would do it for you.
South of Totaranui is where all the water taxi access is located. If you really want to take it easy, you can have the water taxi shuttle your gear from hut to hut making it, truly, a series of day hikes.
There are a number of private lodges and Airbnbs in the park. Wilsons offers a self-guided or guided option that has you staying in their private lodges. So if you can’t get a DOC booking and/or want to swank it up a bit, this might be an option.
The Inland Track: (3 Days, 41 km)
There is a multi-day track that cuts through the interior of the park. The huts along that section are regular DOC huts and do not require reservations. It is a pretty hilly route; far harder than the coastal track. It also involves a lot of root ladders and potentially mud. Most of the trip reports do not paint an overly exciting picture of the hike as it has almost no views along its length. You will pretty much have it to yourself though. We have not done it.
Kayaking
Abel Tasman is one of the greatest places to go kayaking as the scenery is amazing from the water and it is a relatively benign place to kayak. No big ocean swells here. About the only difficulty you might encounter is the wind. If you have your own gear, you can just go. If not, There are a boat load (pardon the pun) of kayak operators in Marahau that you can use to go kayaking. It ranges from guided to self-guided, a few hours or multi-day. One nice thing is that you can rent a kayak for a few hours and do a 1-way and have the water taxi pick you up and bring you back. If you do a multi-day trip, you can also have the water taxis shuttle your gear from camp/hut to camp/hut.
The 1/2 day trip we have done starts in Marahau and you paddle north to Observation Bay with a cruise around Adele Island. It’s a lovely paddle and you will get see a number of cool birds and the fur seal colony on Adele Island.
wannabekiwi.com 
Let me know what you think!