Auckland by definition has a temperate climate, although it is often regarded by New Zealanders as having a subtropical climate. The city experiences four distinct seasons with warm summers and mild winters. Winter night temperatures rarely fall below 0 °C (32 °F). Auckland experiences regular rainfall throughout the year, with more in winter than summer, though it can also have periods of drought. Snow in Auckland is extremely rare – the last decent snowfall in the city was in the 1930s, although snow flurries occurred in 1976 and 2011. Daylight hours run between 7:30AM and 5:15PM in the winter, and from 6AM to 8:30PM in the summer.

• Discover Auckland website

Main article: Auckland Airport

-37.002174.7891 Auckland Airport. (AKL ^IATA). New Zealand's largest airport is located 22 km/14 miles south of central Auckland in the southern suburb of Mangere on the shores of the Manukau Harbour. There are frequent services from Australia and other New Zealand cities. There are also non-stop flights from locations in Asia, the Pacific Islands, the United States, Vancouver (Canada) and Santiago (Chile). Ground transport options from the airport to central Auckland include shuttles (NZ$35) and taxis (NZ$35-65 ask for fixed fare; NZ$75-90 metered). For public transportation, you can buy a HOP card for $10 at the airport and take the AIR bus from Stop A International Terminal, get off at Puhinui Train Station, then board a train to Britomart Train Station in the CBD; the journey will take 60-90 minutes including waiting times depending on the time of the day. 

-36.657174.6532 North Shore Aerodrome. Has a few flights from Kerikeri in the Bay of Islands, Tauranga and Great Barrier Island. 

The InterCity Sky City Bus Terminal at 102 Hobson St (behind Sky City Plaza) is the main hub for national coachline InterCity and its subsidiaries GreatSights. Facilities include an InterCity ticketing office, free Wi-Fi, café and luggage lockers.

Main article: Rail travel in New Zealand

The Northern Explorer train runs from central Wellington to -36.8485174.78033 Auckland Strand Station on Ngaoho Place, in eastern central Auckland. The 681-km (423-mi) journey takes about 12 hours. The trip runs much of the length of the North Island with stopping-off opportunity at Tongariro National Park. In a single day you will pass every kind of scenery: coastline, volcanoes and mountains, green farm pastures and dense New Zealand bush. The train leaves Wellington on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday, and returns from Auckland on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.

Additionally, there are daily regional services from Hamilton with the Te Huia passenger service. The service is mainly aimed at commuters.

Auckland is accessed from the south via State Highway 1. From Hamilton and New Plymouth you'll follow State Highway 1 north of Hamilton through northern Waikato and across the Bombay Hills into the southern suburbs of the city. From Tauranga and the Bay of Plenty, you'll follow State Highway 2 west of Tauranga to meet State Highway 1 at Pokeno, on the Waikato side of the Bombay Hills. From most other points south (including Rotorua, Napier, Palmerston North and Wellington), you will travel north to Tirau in the southern Waikato where you can choose between two routes; via Hamilton along State Highway 1, or via Matamata along State Highways 27 and 2.

From Northland, you'll follow State Highway 1 to Wellsford. From there, you can continue to follow State Highway 1 to approach Auckland through the northern suburbs and over the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Alternatively, you can follow State Highway 16 to approach Auckland from the northwest via Helensville.

Approximate distances and non-stop travel times to Auckland:

• Whangarei – 160 km, 2 hours
• Hamilton – 125 km, 1.5 hours
• Rotorua – 230 km, 2.75 hours
• New Plymouth – 360 km, 4.5 hours
• Napier – 415 km, 5 hours
• Wellington – 650 km, 8 hours

Auckland is a major cruise ship port of call with over 100 cruise ships a year. Auckland's main cruise terminal, Shed 10, refurbished in 2013, is located on Queens Wharf next to the central business district (CBD) and the Britomart Station.

To get beyond the CBD, look for a bus called "The Link". The red city LINK bus runs along Queen Street and is only $1. The Link bus will always end up back at the place you started so you can never get lost - stay on the bus and see it all for one low flat fare. Explorer runs a hop-on, hop-off bus service. Taxis are relatively plentiful; many, such as those that serve the airport, accept credit cards.

Bus services cover most areas of Auckland. Between 2015 and 2018, the bus network was significantly overhauled, simplifying routes and extending frequent bus services, with the trade-off of having to transfer to a train, ferry or another bus to access the CBD from the outer suburbs. Routes with two-digit numbers run at least every 15 minutes daily between 7AM and 7PM; routes with three-digit numbers operate on lower frequencies. Buses no longer accept cash - an AT HOP card is required.

The most useful bus routes for visitors are as follows:

• The City Link bus runs in a circuit from Karangahape Rd/Upper Queen St to Britomart or the Wynyard Quarter – it costs 64c with HOP (as of October 2023).
• The Inner Link is a loop service connecting CBD and the surrounding areas of Newmarket, Parnell and Ponsonby. It is fairly frequent and costs up to $2.37 with HOP card, if you stay in one zone.
• The Outer Link is a loop service that runs from Wellesley St, past the Universities, through Parnell, Newmarket, Epsom, Balmoral, Mt Eden, St Lukes, Mt Albert, out to the Meola Rd entrance to MOTAT, through Westmere, Herne Bay and then back to Wellesley St. The buses are bright amber and operate on a frequent basis, so no timetables are required.
• Northern Express (NX1 and NX2) buses run between the central city and the North Shore along the Northern Busway, a bus rapid transit (BRT) line. NX1 services start at Lower Albert St near Britomart and terminate at Hibiscus Coast busway station. NX2 services start in Wellesley St between the universities and terminate at Albany busway station. They run every 3 to 10 minutes during working hours and no more than 15 minutes apart in the evenings and weekends. Last services leave between 11PM and midnight, with some NX1 services after midnight on Friday and Saturday nights (but only to/from Albany, not Hibiscus Coast).
• The Tāmaki Link runs every 15 minutes between Britomart, Mission Bay, St Heliers and Glen Innes train station via Tamaki Drive, passing by Kelly Tarlton's.
• Route 18 provides a service every 12 minutes between Victoria St in the CBD and New Lynn train station, via Great North Rd, passing close to the Zoo and MOTAT.

Travel by urban train is a good option, but only if you are near a train line; there are few lines and not all suburbs are served. Rail in Auckland has had a renaissance since the turn of the millennium, especially after the central city terminus moved to Britomart in 2003. During 2014 and 2015 new electric trains replaced diesel trains, except between Papakura and Pukekohe in the south, where diesels still run.

An AT HOP card provides tag-on/tag-off travel.

The four main lines are the Southern, Onehunga, Eastern and Western lines. The Southern Line runs from Britomart station in the CBD, roughly parallel to the Southern Motorway, to Papakura, with some services continuing on to Pukekohe. The Onehunga Line follows the Southern Line as far as Penrose, before diverting southwest to Onehunga. The Eastern Line runs from Britomart through the east of central Auckland to Manukau Central, sharing with the Southern Line between Westfield and Puhinui. The Western Line runs from Britomart westward to Swanson station. There are no train services in North Harbour or in the suburbs east of the Tamaki River, although the Northern Express bus (see By bus above) from Britomart to Albany provides rapid transit service to the rail-less North Shore.

The Southern and Eastern lines have the most frequent and reliable services. Trains on these lines run every 10 minutes on-peak, 20 minutes off-peak and 30 minutes on evenings and weekends. Approximately 85-95% of these services run on time. Trains on the Western Line run every 15 minutes on-peak, and every 30 minutes off-peak and on weekends. The Onehunga Line runs every 30 minutes all day every day.

The road network experiences severe congestion at rush hour. Geography constrains the network to a limited number of routes. Auckland has a comprehensive road network for a city its size, but lack of investment in public transport and geographic sprawl means it is largely dependent on private cars.

It is often easier and cheaper to hire a car instead of using taxis, simply because the city is so large and spread out. Auckland city is well covered by the main global car rental companies, such as Avis, Budget, Hertz, Thrifty and Europcar. All car rental companies offer competitive pricing for economy class vehicles and unlimited mileage options. Local car rental companies like Apex and Jucy may also offer competitive pricing.

There are three main motorway systems running through Auckland. The Northern Motorway (from north of Orewa to the Central Motorway Junction (CMJ) a.k.a. Spaghetti Junction) – note that it has a toll for the last few kilometres beyond Silverdale. The Southern Motorway runs from the CMJ past the Bombay Hills where it splits into State Highway 2 (SH2), and merges to the Waikato Expressway. The Northwestern Motorway runs from Auckland Port through CMJ to near Kumeu. These motorways clog up during the morning rush in the CBD-bound direction, and in the opposite direction during the evening rush. The Harbour Bridge has a method of mitigating this traffic load – it changes the lane system from 4-4 to 5-3, favouring the side which has the heavier traffic load. So be careful when crossing the bridge – some lanes will be available for you at one time but not another.

Watch heading southbound over the Harbour Bridge – if you are heading to the Southern Motorway (e.g. to South Auckland or the Airport), make sure you are in at least lane 3 (if not lane 4) before you reach the bridge to ensure you go over on the main bridge and not the clip-on lanes. Otherwise you will have only a few hundred metres after the bridge to cross two lanes of traffic to lane 4 before lane 1, 2 and 3 split off towards the city centre and the Northwestern Motorway.

Some motorway on-ramps have traffic lights operating in busy periods – they allow one or two cars to proceed every three to eight seconds to ease the merging onto the motorway. Cameras may be operating to catch red-light runners.

Taxi fares vary considerably from company to company. For example, see the Get in: By plane section for an indication of fares from the airport to Britomart.

The Uber ride-sharing service is available in most of Auckland.

Ferry services operate from the CBD to other points on the mainland and to Hauraki Gulf islands.

There are many beaches, due to Auckland's straddling of two harbours. The most popular ones are in three areas:

• North Shore beaches (in North Harbour district) are on the Pacific Ocean and stretch from Long Bay in the north to Devonport in the south. They are almost all sandy beaches with safe swimming, and most have shade provided by pohutukawa trees. Most are accessible by bus. Takapuna Beach is the most centrally located, with a lovely beach-front café at one end. Just north of Long Bay is a family nudist beach. St Leonard's Beach is gay male nudist. Others are conventional.
• Tamaki Drive beaches are on the Waitemata Harbour, in the upmarket suburbs of Mission Bay and St Heliers in Central Auckland. These are sometimes-crowded family beaches with a good range of shops lining the shore. Swimming is safe. Mission Bay beach is Auckland's equivalent of Los Angeles' Santa Monica/Venice Beach and is extremely popular on a hot summer's day. To its east, Kohimarama and St Heliers beaches are usually less crowded. Ladies Bay to the east of St Heliers has historically been a nudist-friendly beach, but is frequented by regular beachgoers too, and is accessible by a 5 min walk down from the cliff-top road.

• West coast beaches are on the Tasman Sea, and have large expanses of sand and rolling surf. They have unpredictable rips so you should swim only between the lifeguards' flags, which cover select areas of the most popular beaches. They are about a 40-min drive from the city centre (via West Auckland) and the roads are narrow and winding. You'll need your own transport. There's little shade available, and few shops. The sand on these beaches is dark in colour due to high iron content from its volcanic origins. There are several smaller beaches accessible only by foot. The major beaches from south to north are:
  • Whatipu is the southernmost beach, and the most isolated. The last 7 km of the road there is unsealed, but in good condition. There's a track from the carpark to the beach conservatively signposted as 15-min walk. There are several volcanic outcrops surrounding the beach, and native vegetation including cabbage trees along the path. Manukau Harbour is just to the south of the beach, separated by Paratutae Island. Paratutae is joined to the beach except at high tide. There are caves signposted 20-min walk from the car park; the track is muddy during winter. The caves are less spectacular than they once were because they've partially filled up with sand. No dogs are permitted.
  • Karekare is the next beach north of Whatipu. It's considerably more popular and there are lifeguards patrolling the beach during summer. Karekare Falls is a waterfall not far from the road.
  • Piha is the best known and most popular beach. It has lifeguards during summer. The most notable feature is Lion Rock, which separates the northern and southern sides of the beach. There's a steep track partway up Lion Rock to get decent views. Kitekite Falls are a small and pleasant waterfall near the beach. Laird Thomson Track is a walkway from North Piha to the isolated Whites Beach, which usually has very few people on it.
  • Anawhata has no road access to the beach, but there's a fairly steep track down from an unsealed road. This is the least used beach and you may be the only people there at any given time.
  • Te Henga (Bethells Beach) is accessible by road, and has lifeguards in the summer. Erangi Point separates it from unpatrolled O'Neill Bay to the north, which can only be reached by foot.
  • Muriwai is the second most popular of the west coast beaches. There's a colony of gannets (seabirds) which nest in huge numbers and are worth seeing year round. Muriwai has a café, a golf course, and lifeguards during summer.

• Australia, Level 7 PriceWaterHouseCoopers Tower 186-194 Quay Street, ☏ +64 9-921 8800, fax: +64 9 9218820, consular.auckland@dfat.gov.au. M-F 9AM-12:30PM and 1-4PM, closed Sa Su. 
• Austria, 22a William Pickering Drive, North Harbour, ☏ +64 9 476-0994, austrianconsulate_auckland@xtra.co.nz. M-Th 10AM-noon by appointment. Honorary Consulate-General - the embassy is in Canberra, Australia. Accepts applications for new passports and identity cards but can not issue emergency travel documents. This consulate deals with Northland, Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty regions and there are other honorary consuls in Wellington and Christchurch. 
• Bangladesh, Apartment 7P Harvard on Hobson, 147 Hobson St, ☏ +64 9 302-0545, +64 21 793 495 (Mobile), fax: +64 9 302-0549, ataurrahman@xtra.co.nz. 
• Barbados, 19 Vaughan Rd, Okura, RD2, Albany, ☏ +64 9 473-5949, fax: +64 9 473-5948, FredWatson@xtra.co.nz. 
• China, 588 Great South Rd, Greenlane, ☏ +64 9 525-1588, fax: +64 9 525-0733, chinaconsul_ak_nz@mfa.gov.cn. M-F 9AM-noon & 2-4PM. 
• Greece, 108 Paihia Rd, One Tree Hill, ☏ +64 9 571-0238, fax: +64 9 571-0529, nikosp@xtra.co.nz. M-F 9AM-4PM. 
• Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, Level 18, 120 Albert St, ☏ +64 9 303-3903, fax: +649 302-3399, tecoakl@taiwan-roc.org.nz. 
• United States of America, Level 3, Citigroup Building, 23 Customs Street East, ☏ +64 9 303 2724, fax: +64 9 303 1069, aucklandacs@state.gov.