Tasman's Kaiteriteri beach has shot to the top of the leaderboard in a national vote on New Zealanders' favourite beach.

The golden-sanded seashore has nearly twice as many votes as its nearest contender, Mount Maunganui, on the site bestbeaches.org.nz

It's a vote being run by the Green Party in an effort to highlight what it believes is under threat from oil drilling.

MP Gareth Hughes says as people head off to the beaches to enjoy themselves, they need to remember there's a looming risk.

"All of our beaches could be impacted by a catastrophic oil spill, and that's what we;re raising awareness of."

Kaiteriteri Beach Motorcamp manager Paul Lovell says it's a beautiful flat beach, with very safe swimming.

He adds that whether it's waterskiing, boating or kayaking, there is always something going on.

Paul Lovell says 2500 campers are booked to arrive today and tomorrow.

He adds it's not just the camp that's busy - thousands of people are coming through every day on their way to the National Park.

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