Auckland
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"The City of Sails"
Introduction
Auckland (Tamaki Makaurau), with a population of 1.2 million, is the largest city in Aotearoa/New Zealand, and the main arrival point for travellers flying into the country. Ethnically diverse, Auckland is also the world's biggest Polynesian city. It is built on volcanic cones and between natural harbours.
Regions
Auckland is composed of four "cities":
- Auckland City - comprising the city centre and surrounding suburbs
- The North Shore - over the Harbour Bridge
- Manukau - South Auckland, known for its Pacific population
- Waitakere - West Auckland, known for bush, beaches, and "Westies"!
There are also a number of islands in the Hauraki Gulf including populous Waiheke.
Climate and Weather
Auckland is notorious for "four seasons in one day" weather. Rain tends to be fleeting or intermittent rather than sets in, so don't be discouraged by a shower! Particularly in summer, it can also become humid.
The risk of sunburn can be high, even with cloud cover, so make sure you wear sunblock during the summer months.
Attractions
Contents |
- General & Tourist
- Auckland Zoo
- Sky tower
- Kelly Tarlton's Underwater World
- Waiwera thermal reserve and slides
- Auckland Zoo
- Outdoors
- Surf beaches of Muriwai and Piha
- Tiri Tiri Matangi Island - wildlife reserve
- West Auckland bush
- Woodhill Forest for mountain-biking
- Rangitoto Island
- Auckland's volcanoes
- Surf beaches of Muriwai and Piha
- Shopping & Cafes
- Fashion shopping in Newmarket
- Ponsonby Road's cafes and restaurants
- Eclectic shops, bars, nightclubs on K Road
- Thrillseeking
- Harbour Bridge Climb
- Harbour Bridge Bungy Jump
- Skytower Jump
- Museums & Galleries
- Auckland War Memorial Museum
- Maritime Museum
- Auckland City Art Gallery
- MOTAT
- Fashion shopping in Newmarket
- Scenic
- Harbour cruises
- Devonport
- Harbour cruises
- GLBT
- K Road nightclubs
- Ponsonby Road
- Hero Festival (February)
- K Road nightclubs
- Cultural
- South Auckland's Otara markets (Saturdays)
- South Auckland's Otara markets (Saturdays)
- Events
- Free Summer concerts
- National and international rugby, cricket, netball, tennis etc.
- Easter Show
- Chinese Lantern Festival
- Grey Lynn Park Festival (November)
- Round the Bays 8.5km Fun Run/Walk (March)
- Big Day Out (January)
- Free Summer concerts
Transport
From the Airport
The Airport is quite isolated and in Manukau, so it is difficult to exit without paying for transport. Trying to hitch is usually unsuccessful.
Door-to-door shuttles are available, and more economical than taxies. The price varies according to regional destination, and can be up to $40NZD.
There is a regular Airbus service running between the Airport and city centre every 20 minutes, or every 30 minutes after 6pm. It costs about $13-15 one way, or around $20 return.
Arriving By Bus
Travellers coming north into Auckland by inter-city coach will usually be able to disembark at main stops at Manukau and by the Skytower in the city centre.
Public Transport
Auckland's public transport includes buses, ferries and trains, and it is not difficult to get around the city without a private car. You can get day and three-day passes which will save you money. There is also a useful journey planner available at Maxx, which will help with finding routes. Most public transport is available between 7am and 11pm. For Friday and Saturday partygoers, the NiteRider bus service leaves the inner city for the suburbs at 2am and 3am for a flat-rate fare.
Couch Surfing
As at December '06, there are over 300 members in Auckland, half of whom are active
As at 05 Nov 2009, there are over 1200 Registered Surfers in the Auckland Group. One million Registered Surfers worldwide was achieved early 2009.
Meetings
There have been Couchsurfing meetings in "Lenin bar" in the Viaduct.
In 2008 Surfer Barbara Fackelmeier started the regular CS drinks night in Auckland.
In January 2009, weekly CS Happy Hour drink/food nights were inaugurated in the Auckland Group by CS'er Smersh at the Waterfront Café, providing an affordable & fun night out for Surfers in a scenic location for summer.
In March of same year this original weekly Happy Hour became a mobile Event, starting at the funky Mexican Café.
Guides
(Aucklanders - add yourselves here if you'd like to be a guide for CouchSurfers arriving in the city)
(More corrections, guides and reference info to follow shortly - as with most Wikis this is a work in progress...)
1. Entering NZ via Auckland International Airport:
- Note for Australian Passport holders there is a seperate queue.
- Bureaux de change available. Check www.xe.net/ucc for current rates in advance to get an idea. And ask first at any office about exchange fees and minimum exchange amounts.
- Sleeping at the airport?: http://www.sleepinginairports.net/oceania/auckland.htm
2. Communications:
- Vodafone Auckland Airport: SIM card NZD35; includes $5 call credit and an extra $10 is available by registering online.
- USA phones may not operate unless tri-band. GSM network is predominant here. (Someone verify other networks pls? CDMA is dead.)
- Ask for a FREE-PHONE at the International Airport, but BEFORE going downstairs to IMMIGRATION; dial 1 (for an outside line) then the number you want...
- Internet: Akl airport(cost?)
- Public telephones: There are a few coin machines but most take credit cards and prepay cards. Prepay cards are available from most dairies (dairy is similar to general/convenience store), petrol stations, convenience stores etc.
- Time & Date: Date is DD/MM/YY(YY) i.e. expansive format, not MM/DD/YY as in e.g. USA. Time is usually 12-hour e.g. 1:30pm, not 13:30.
- Interacting with local residents/Terminology:
Open-soled rubber footwear is correctly called 'Jandals' - contraction of 'Japanese Sandals'. Not 'thongs' or 'flip flops'.
Beer is kept cool in a 'Chilly Bin'
'Hangi' food is properly cooked under the ground. Beware of cheap imitations.
Smaller powerboats are often referred to as 'fizz boats'
3. Emergency numbers:
- Dial 111 from any type of phone, public or private with an outside line. Police, Fire, Ambulance.
4. Transport from Airport:
- Airport Shuttle bus - cost about NZD15 to CBD; some city stops are available.
- Bus 380 to Manukau; connects with Southern Train line at Papatoetoe, and other bus services.
5. General Auckland Transport Info:
- www.maxx.co.nz
- The green 'LINK' buses circle the inner city in 2 directions; cost $1.60 for any single trip. Good to do a complete circuit to becpome familiar with the inner city.
- The red City Circuit buses are free and cover a small route within the CBD.
- 'Britomart' is the central Auckland Transport Hub. From there you can get most buses, trains and ferries. At the intersection of Queen St and Customs St.
- (Mar 2009) A daily pass - 'Auckland Pass' - is $11 for most buses and trains. A daily pass that includes all buses & most ferries is called a 'Discovery Pass' and is $13. You can buy these on most buses. For longer return trips it's cheaper to buy a daily pass than 2 seperate tickets. ('Go Rider' info)
- There are several ferries from downtown/Britomart to the North Shore; most go to Devonport every half hour. Cost $10 return.
- Train services are very limited; there is no 'metro' as such. Buses are available but have limited services e.g. 1 per hour in outer suburbs.
6. Accommodation if no CS available or an emergency:
- (list some central backpackers and contact info)
7. Warnings:
8. Hitchhiking:
- DO NOT DO THIS IF YOU'RE A SINGLE FEMALE. NZ may seem safe, green and innocent but the lack of people about can also be a safety issue. Several backpackers have never been seen again after accepting rides.
9. (Residential locations descriptions).
10. (Further; bbq etc ettiquette...)
From CS Wellington Posts:
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Posted 16 January 2009 - 11:35 by Joel Goldbeter from Brussels, Belgium (Permalink)
Hey Vanessa, since I arrive in Wellington on the 21st, I would love to join! :-) I know culture is different in each country, so I was wondering: in NZ what is the habit, everyone brings his own food and drinks, or food to share with everyone, drinks to be shared with everyone...
This might look like a silly question, but believe me it's not :-) In Belgium we're more the sharing type, especially for the drinks, but 2 Belgian friends of mine who lived for 6 months in Quebec where invited at a their first party where everyone brought drinks. When they started tasting other people's wine or vodka, the other guests started staring at them meenly! It appeared that it was extremely rude to touch other people's drinks, even when it was a full bottle of vodka...
I don't wanna make the same mistake ;-)
Cheers, Joel
Reply Picture Posted 16 January 2009 - 19:36 by SMERSH from Auckland, New Zealand (Permalink)
Hi Joel,
That's an interesting story...
I met a French guy years ago who had earlier moved to NZ and found he initially became unpopular because he 'never brought anything' to parties. He said 'What do you mean? I always bring something!' He would bring a gift, like flowers etc, and expect drinks to be provided.
He said that he was used to a situation whereby bringing drinks would be considered rude, as it would suggest that the host's drinks were not good enough for the guest...
Standard ettiquette here is that you bring drinks for yourself. Perhaps it's because we generally live in stand-alone houses with some land, rather than small apartments, and if you have 200 people in your 5-brm house - as I have had - you won't want to buy drinks for all of them. Especially when you only know 20% of them.
You would place your drinks somewhere inconspicuous, or even hide them somewhere at larger parties. If you leave drinks out on a table at a big house party you could say goodbye to them later in the night.
At smaller parties though the host will often tell you to put your beers in the fridge, or the bath if they've filled it with ice. Again, you're only expected to drink your own so choose carefully after you've had a few.
However a bbq would usually be a smaller, earlier function than a general house party.
Here you would bring your own drinks but also some food. Unlike drinks, you would often bring something 'communal' i.e. other people can share what you've brought and vice versa
At a bbq, you will usually find that all the meat is cooked first - perhaps over several sessions if there's a lot - then salads and other accompaniments are made available and everyone can start helping themselves to whatever they want. Obviously you wouldn't fill up your plate with expensive steak, especially if you only bought along cheap sausages (snarlers/snags/bangers).
What and how much you bring is up to you. Anything from a small pack of cheap supermarket snarlers is acceptable.
Something marinated is often good e.g. a tray of spare ribs, lamb chops etc. Bring something that you like, but expect it to be shared.
Sometimes people bring something just for their own personal consumption e.g. a single steak that they want cooked a certain way. My opinion is that this is generally a little annoying; when I'm having a bbq I would usually say they can cook it themselves after I've finished cooking the meat(and vege things) for *everyone else* at the party... It's also not in the communal spirit.
When I go to other peoples' bbqs I would often bring some meat and a potato salad. However some bbq hosts supply all the salads, and some rely on salads being brought.
But if you bring something just a little extra, as well as some basic meat/vege component, that will be a good look as it's more than the minimum entry requirement.
Perhaps some garlic bread, a dessert, some cuisine from your home country...or how about some flowers? :)
.............................
Posted 18 January 2009 - 7:53 by SMERSH from Auckland, New Zealand (Permalink)
I've just been reminded of one other thing possibly worth mentioning...
Not long ago a family friend from Sth Africa was invited to a party and told to 'bring a plate'. Which she did.
However, the expression in NZ social terms means more than an empty plate...
Similar to a 'pot luck dinner', it means to bring food, usually on a plate i.e. don't go silly with something extravagant, it could be just a plate of club sandwiches, asparagus rolls, chipolatas, sausage rolls, bacon & egg pie(as opposed to the Aussie 'egg & bacon pie', which is of course vastly inferior). With tomato sauce of course.
The above is a sample of Kiwi cuisine that would be expected at any self-respecting 21st or wedding organised by grandparents. (One consumes as much of this stuff as possible in order to counteract the alcohol necessary to tolerate the speeches).
But I digress. Best not to bring an empty plate to any Kiwi function, unless perhaps some disposable ones to the beach picnic I'm organising... :)
Reply Picture Posted 18 January 2009 - 8:00 by Ryan Jameson from Wellington, New Zealand (Permalink)
An ex-girlfriend was sending a text to several friends from overseas explaining what a potluck is. She meant to text 'everyone brings a dish' but her predictive texting came up 'everyone brings a fish'.
It was a strange potluck.
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Tips
Make sure your host gives you good directions on getting to their place, particularly if you are arriving via public transport. You can also generate and print maps from Wises or Smaps.
Auckland's attractions are spread out, so don't discount hosts who don't live in the city centre. Different suburbs have different characters, and many have their own shops, cafes and bars. Ask your host about his or her area.
If planning to stay with a student, be aware that the university semesters are March-June and July-November, with exams at the end of each. Both universities are in the city centre.
Free & Useful
Auckland International Airport has a free internet spot with three computers available - on your left as you exit the luggage chains and are ready to head out.
Auckland has a Freecycle group (offering and requesting items to keep them out of landfills) here
- This article is a stub. You can help by expanding it.wikitravel:Auckland
