Auckland

Understand

thumb|Auckland – City of Sails Auckland is New Zealand's largest city, home to 1.5 million people, nearly one-third of the country's population and more than that of the entire South Island. It is the main economic and travel hub and home to an international airport. It's lucky enough to have its own beautiful landscapes, waterways, and other attractions to draw tourists in. It is not New Zealand's political capital though – that honour goes to Wellington. Auckland is by some measures the most isolated city of over 1 million people in the world; the nearest city of over 1 million people is Sydney, 2,160 km across the sea in Australia.

Auckland is called the "City of Sails" for the large number of yachts that grace the Waitemata Harbour and the Hauraki Gulf, and for the city's love of sailing. More than 135,000 yachts and launches are registered in Auckland and several America's Cup regattas have been held here. Auckland could also be called the "City of Volcanoes"; much of its natural character comes from being built on the Auckland Volcanic Field, which consists of about 50 volcanoes. All of them are individually extinct (Rangitoto was the latest to erupt, in the mid to late 15th century), but the volcanic field as a whole is not. The city also features a large number of urban beaches and parks, numerous arts and cultural institutions and events, and is home to a multitude of sporting teams.

Auckland is frequently ranked highly in international quality-of-life polls, inclu…

Get around

Local transport options include bus, train, ferry, shuttle, taxi, and car rental. Use the Auckland Transport (AT) website to plan trips by public transport. AT also has a mobile app that can be used to find the time of the next bus, ferry or train or to find the quickest way to get to your destination using public transport. Google Maps is also reliable for directions. If you wish to do a lot of cross-city travel, or travel outside the city, it may be more convenient to hire a car, though some city roads are congested at peak times, and finding a parking spot can be challenging. If you don't travel too far, an electric scooter that can be hired from different companies via app might be a good and cheap alternative where you don't have to worry about the traffic jam and parking.

Waitematā Station (formerly known as Britomart Transport Centre) on the corner of Queen St and Customs St in the CBD near the waterfront is the main information centre for public transport. You will find free bus, train and ferry schedules there – which is handy since the frequency of some services is low and sometimes irregular. Timetables can also be downloaded from the AT website.

The AT HOP card is a prepay smart card for travel on bus, train and ferry services that costs $5 and is available from a number of retrailers and major stations around the city. Cash is no longer accepted on buses and trains, but you can also use a contactless card (e.g. Visa) or a digital wallet (e.g. Google Pay) for th…

See

thumb|Auckland Art Gallery Auckland's many volcanoes offer great vantage points to take in the city and some of them have been turned into parks. Popular ones include Mt. Eden and One Tree Hill in Auckland Central and Mt. Victoria in Devonport.

Auckland Art Gallery, cnr Kitchener and Wellesley Streets. The largest collection of national and international art in New Zealand, housed in an award-winning landmark building on the edge of Albert Park in the heart of Auckland. The Gallery regularly hosts touring international exhibitions and offers a calendar of talks, performances, film screenings and children's activities to complement its exhibition programme. Has a shop and café. Free entry to permanent exhibitions for locals (excluding special exhibitions), $20 for international visitors Auckland Domain is Auckland's oldest park and hosts weekend sports events. Includes the historically important winter gardens with impressive flower bed displays, tropical plants and statues (free). There are scenic views of the Waitemata Harbour and islands of the Hauraki Gulf from in front of the museum.

thumb|Auckland War Memorial Museum thumb|Māori carving in Auckland War Memorial Museum Auckland War Memorial Museum, Parnell. The museum displays collections of significant importance at its prominent position in Auckland Domain. It was constructed in the 1920s as a war memorial to those that fought and died in theatres of war. The cenotaph located on the grounds below the steps leading up …

Do

Movies. Ticket prices vary around Auckland. The cheapest are in the west, with adult tickets at WestCity in Henderson the lowest at $8.50, and a bit higher at $10 at LynnMall and Westgate. Hoyts Hibiscus Coast in the north on Whangaparaoa Peninsula is also cheap at $10.90. Elsewhere in Auckland prices are in the $18.50 to $19.50 range, except on Tuesdays when there is a $12.50 special (2017 prices). Visit the Waitakere Ranges in West Auckland, replete with impressive waterfalls and rugged but beautiful beaches. Around 45 min (peak hours) drive from central Auckland. Eden Park in Central Auckland is the national stadium, hosting rugby union and cricket. Golf: notable courses are Gulf Harbour, and Formosa at Beachlands.

Buy

The downtown area of the CBD has a number of souvenir shops for a range of budgets. Check around the lower Queen Street and lower Albert Street area.

Hobson Street (at the top end) has a couple of large shops also stocking honey and health products.

The High Street/Vulcan Lane/O'Connell Street area is the Fashion centre of Auckland Central and has local designer stores as well as international brands

There are a number of markets in Auckland; perhaps the most famous for Aucklanders are the Otara and Avondale markets (serving South and West Auckland respectively).

Eat

There are some good cheap food courts (food halls) offering a variety of usually Asian foods usually priced around $10. Try next to the Queens' Arcade at the bottom of Queen St (slightly hidden entrance), or the Metro award winning Food Alley (9-11 Albert St). Very good value and good quality predominantly non-Asian choices are available at Elliott Stables (39 Elliott Street, near Wellesley). Also on the same block is the Atrium on Elliott (21 Elliott Street), a good quality food court of predominantly Asian food. Check out the once-a-week night markets at various locations on different nights.

Britomart Precinct on the waterfront in the city centre is home to an array of popular and diverse bars and eateries. Cafe Hanoi, Ebisu, Mexico Britomart, Giapo ice cream, to name a few. A must visit.

Ponsonby is not far out from the CBD and features delicious restaurants such as Bali Nights, Mexico, San Ray, and the Ponsonby Food Court. It also features famous Duck Island, serving various flavours of ice cream such as fairy bread, lolly cake, and apple pie custard. Must visit by far.

Viaduct Harbour provides upmarket dining, starting at $30 for mains. While this area has some very nice bars and restaurants, be wary of restaurants lacking customers and usually very quiet. It may be a sign of below average food or poor service.

Drink

thumb|Central Auckland skyline at night from Stanley Point, Devonport You can find neighbourhood pubs in many parts of the city, but the highest concentration of bars and clubs is in Auckland Central — particularly around the Viaduct area, K Road, Ponsonby and Parnell.

Sleep

Accommodation can be found throughout the city, but the largest selection is in Central Auckland particularly the central business district.

Backpackers hostels are predominantly found in the central business district although there are a few in other areas. These are usually intended for young adults coming from overseas but there are few, if any restrictions on who can stay. Beds in shared dorms will cost around $40-$60 per night, female only dorms are also commonly offered. Often, they will also offer private rooms for a premium but these will be more competitively priced than a hotel room in a similar area. They will usually have a shared kitchen, and various other shared facilities such as games and TV rooms but this will vary from hostel to hostel.

Motel style accommodation is found across the city, they will almost always have car parking available and a reasonably well equipped kitchenette in each room. These are often less expensive than hotels of similar quality and provide the ability to self-cater. They may have shared facilities such as games and tv rooms or occasionally pools or spas.

Traditional hotels are found mainly in the CBD although there may be others in areas with a high density of offices to cater to people on work trips. These are often the most expensive type of accommodation. Quality can vary from just adequate to luxury.

Airbnb can offer a range of accommodation to suit any size group and budget and often has locations outside of traditional ac…

Stay safe

Auckland is a safe place to visit, thanks to a quality of life that ranks alongside cities like Munich or Melbourne. That said, thefts and robberies are more prevalent than in the rest of New Zealand, and aggravated assaults are not unheard of. Make sure to take all the usual safety precautions. Asking locals can give you an idea of where not to go.

The area locals will most definitely warn you about is South Auckland, which is widely regarded as one of New Zealand's most dangerous locations due to its significant poverty and unemployment rates. While it is nowhere nearly as dangerous as "rough" areas in the USA or Europe, it is advised to remain on one's guard at night. People might also advise against going to certain parts of West Auckland, a former working-class area seen as "rough around the edges" that has thankfully improved markedly over the years, but still suffers from occasional burglaries and thefts.

As in the rest of the country, alcohol culture is very prevalent in Auckland, and it is not abnormal to see drunkards of all ages and from all walks of life meander around.

Drugs are also becoming a major issue in Auckland, with drug addicts becoming a common sight along Karangahape Road (commonly known as K' Road) and parts of Queen Street at night. Simply avoiding eye-contact will be enough to avoid trouble.

Connect

Free internet is available from the public library (limited 1GB per IP address per day). There is also free Wi-Fi in the Skycity food courts. There are 40 HotSpots that offer Wi-Fi connectivity, most notably Esquires cafe (inside Skycity Queen St, Middle Queen St, Lower Queen St, Nelson St), Starbucks (Victoria St, K' Rd, Lower Queen St) and other cafes around Auckland.