What was supposed to be a gentle splash around in the shallows suddenly turned into a much scarier prospect when holiday-makers came face to face with a shark in New Zealand on Saturday. Papamoa Beach, a popular Bay of Plenty destination, was an idyllic haven for swimmers until a shark came into the shore, swimming around in only a few feet of water. Onlookers initially got out of the sea sharpish, but soon returned to take photographs and videos of the 2.5 metre bronze whaler as it eventually swam away. Scroll down for video . Once the the 2.5 metre bronze whaler appeared soon everyone was on the beach . Onlookers soon had their mobile phones out to take videos and photographs . 'Look at it, it's huge,' shouted one boy from the shore . All fears of an attack soon disappeared as children could be heard chatting and laughing happily on the shore as the fish swam around. 'Look at it, it's huge,' shouted a boy from the shore. But before long the shark had seen enough and turned back out to sea. The New Zealand Herald reports that shark sightings have become commonplace around the New Zealand coastline this summer, including close encounters with great white sharks in Auckland. Children could be heard chatting and laughing happily on the shore as the fish swam around . Two shark attacks left a surfer and fisherman with serious injuries. In February, a surfer was mauled by a shark off the Southland coast. Headlines were made around the world in December, when a junior Southland doctor ended up stitching up his own wound after being attacked by a shark while fishing near Cosy Nook, off the south coast. The shark soon had enough of all the attention and swam back out to sea . In the last fatal shark attack in New Zealand waters, Auckland film-maker Adam Strange, 47, was killed at Muriwai on Auckland's west coast in February 2013.
Paddlers get a fright when large shark swims into the shallows.
Papamoa Beach is a popular Bay of Plenty destination in New Zealand.
Holiday-makers were soon running for cover out of the sea.
But before long they were back on the shore taking photographs of it.
The last fatal shark attack in New Zealand waters was in 2013.