By Richard Moore

Latest Tours and Activities

Auckland is New Zealand's largest city with more than one million people living within its boundaries.

Auckland is known as the City of Sails and the chosen playground is the beautiful Waitemata Harbour where yachts and ferries play their way through the blue waters.

It could also be known as the volcano city because dotted around the harbour and city are extinct cones that offer spectacular views of the metropolitan area.

The two major volcanoes are the island of Rangitoto, which you can get to by ferry, and One Tree Hill where an obelisk stands and has become an icon of the city.

Auckland is built on an isthmus and water is never far away. In fact the city is split by the Waitemata Harbour and the Auckland Harbour Bridge is the main link for commuters from the North Shore to the central city.

The bridge is known as The Coathanger and you can take walking tours over it and bungy jump under it.

A newer symbol of Auckland is the huge Sky Tower which, at 328m, is the 12th highest tower in the world. From the viewing platforms on Sky Tower you get stunning views of up to 90km away.

Restaurants and good eateries abound in Auckland, together with theatres, galleries and museums.

Two must-see places are the Museum of Transport and Technology and the Auckland War Memorial Museum. MoTaT, as the former is known, is near the Auckland Zoo and both can be seen in a day.

Auckland has stunning - and potentially dangerous - black sand beaches on its west coast. Piha is the most famous while Muriwai is also wild.

On the way to the black sands you can drive through the very pretty Waitakere Ranges.

What's On In Auckland