You drive down Whangarei Heads Road until that turns into Ocean Beach road, ending at an overlook that is short walking distance to the beach.
There is a larger parking area before the overlook, where freedom camping in self-contained vehicles is allowed. But this is a further walk to the beach as many of the ‘paths’ have been fenced off to save the vegetation and cut down on dune erosion. There are great views from the hills on either end of the beach, one of which is basically a huge sand dune. There is a trail that leads to Peach Cove, with the parking area only a couple kilometers down the road. Some people catch a lift back to their car or simply save some energy for the hilly trek back to your vehicle.