Auckland AC logistics

[btime]

Waiheke Island is 35 min's from the Auckland CBD by fast ferry - accomodation is largely in managed holiday homes with two or three larger places. Plenty of B&B and Luxury options too. In between AC race days there are many Vineyards for Wine, Olive and Honey tasting and local cussine plus outdoor activities for families, bike hire, kayaking, horse treks etc. Theres a locally based Charter boat who will be providing trips from here to the race course so avoiding the central harbour mayhem. Waiheke Island is very close to one of the race course options. For those with their own vessels, the island has ideal anchoring options due to lying West-East - in the Sou West or NE prevailaing wind patterns. Several Supermarket's make provisioning easy including Deli supplies etc. The surrpounding Hauraki Gulf has many other islands to explore.

 

[Woolfy]

Waiheke Island is 35 min's from the Auckland CBD by fast ferry - accomodation is largely in managed holiday homes with two or three larger places. Plenty of B&B and Luxury options too. In between AC race days there are many Vineyards for Wine, Olive and Honey tasting and local cussine plus outdoor activities for families, bike hire, kayaking, horse treks etc. Theres a locally based Charter boat who will be providing trips from here to the race course so avoiding the central harbour mayhem. Waiheke Island is very close to one of the race course options. For those with their own vessels, the island has ideal anchoring options due to lying West-East - in the Sou West or NE prevailaing wind patterns. Several Supermarket's make provisioning easy including Deli supplies etc. The surrpounding Hauraki Gulf has many other islands to explore.

Careful bro, we're already sinking under the weight of tourists, whilst they're very welcome we don't want too many and with the island overlooking one of the race areas it's probably going to get worse! 

 

[KiwiJoker]

This is all great info. 

I am also hoping to make a trip to NZ for the the Prada Cup Finals (see some action and avoid the crowds of the AC finals) which would be in February.  I would only watch a couple days of the races and tie it into a couple weeks traveling around NZ.  

Good plan.  Plenty of good advice here,  Be aware that peak holiday season including school holidays is mid December through end of January.

 

[The_Alchemist]

I was in Bermuda for the LV finals and it is hard to see the action on the water.  We went to the AC village and had stadium seating right next to the finish line.  It was fun to see the boats at their bases and watch them sail into the finish.  They had a separate set of commentators for the AC village with large screen TV's showing the close-up action.  I even won a Team Oracle polo shirt that was autographed by the whole team (would have been worth more if they had won).

Maybe I should just make my trip to NZ at another time when it won't be so busy and then just try to get down to Pensacola this winter to see AM sail by?  When would be the best time of the year to visit with the idea of missing all the crowds, but still have good weather on the south island?

 

[kenergy]

I was in Bermuda for the LV finals and it is hard to see the action on the water.  We went to the AC village and had stadium seating right next to the finish line.  It was fun to see the boats at their bases and watch them sail into the finish.  They had a separate set of commentators for the AC village with large screen TV's showing the close-up action.  I even won a Team Oracle polo shirt that was autographed by the whole team (would have been worth more if they had won).

Maybe I should just make my trip to NZ at another time when it won't be so busy and then just try to get down to Pensacola this winter to see AM sail by?  When would be the best time of the year to visit with the idea of missing all the crowds, but still have good weather on the south island?

Feb March. But I wouldn't worry too much about the crowds, they are always here in summer. Depending on where you go you may not even notice them. There are plenty of places that are off the beaten track that are better than the tourist traps. 

 

[Priscilla]

Feb March. But I wouldn't worry too much about the crowds, they are always here in summer. Depending on where you go you may not even notice them. There are plenty of places that are off the beaten track that are better than the tourist traps. 

Yup and the AC will be on free to air tv here at a more respectable hour.

 

[barfy]

Yup and the AC will be on free to air tv here at a more respectable hour.

To that end, Fiji would be a better destination than Auckland. Warm that time of year, nice locals, great food.

 

[Woolfy]

Maybe I should just make my trip to NZ at another time when it won't be so busy and then just try to get down to Pensacola this winter to see AM sail by?  When would be the best time of the year to visit with the idea of missing all the crowds, but still have good weather on the south island?

Nah, come on down whist it's all happening, sure there will be crowds, but we're a big little country, plenty of room for visitors, there aren't that many of us here already. If things turn out anything like previous cups here, the atmosphere will be amazing. The courses are all reasonably close to the shore, so most days you should be able watch from the multiple viewing points, I suspect there will be giant screens in the village so win win either way.

South island is a must, but if you can, give yourself 2-3 weeks down there, even then you'll still only see and experience a fraction of what it has to offer.

 

[Boybland]

Nah, come on down whist it's all happening, sure there will be crowds, but we're a big little country, plenty of room for visitors, there aren't that many of us here already. If things turn out anything like previous cups here, the atmosphere will be amazing. The courses are all reasonably close to the shore, so most days you should be able watch from the multiple viewing points, I suspect there will be giant screens in the village so win win either way.

South island is a must, but if you can, give yourself 2-3 weeks down there, even then you'll still only see and experience a fraction of what it has to offer.

I agree with this, the Auckland waterfront was fabulous last time the AC was in town, there is a lot to do down there even without the AC and if it is like any other sailing event that has visited access and visibility of the team bases will be really good!

Any time the crowds get to you just take a day to go walking in the bush somewhere or nip out to a mostly empty West coast surf beach.

 

[Ex-yachtie]

@sailman, I said I'd add more, but many things have been covered above.

- Waiheke is a great day trip.  Vineyards, beaches, small town.  Aim for Oneroa and most things are within walking distance from there.

- Mt Maunganui/Tauranga is great, but more than a day trip.  Could be combined with a round trip to Rotorua.

- Rotoroa Island is something else that's come to mind.  Another wildlife sanctuary, like Tiritiri Island. Note that this is different to Rotorua. I've heard of people ending up at Rotoroa Island, thinking that they were taking the ferry to Rotorua City (some ~1.5hrs from any coastline, on a lake).

- Goat Island is a marine reserve and good for snorkling.  Could easily be combined with a trip to Matakana Saturday markets, Brick Bay Winery/sculpture walk.

Having done some travelling in the U.S., it's worth noting that driving here is a different experience.  Whilst you might jump in a motorway in the US and drive at ~60MPH+, consistently, NZ roads are back lanes by comparison.  One lane each way typically, often dictated by the landscape (windy and hilly), slow and the cars are smaller and not built for the comfort I've experienced on long road trips in the US.  Whilst you might contemplate driving 200km each way for a day trip in the US, it's not as feasible here.  Allow more time than you would think. You'll also hit traffic issues that locals probably take for granted now.  Auckland's motorways are bad at peak times.  This turn a half hour trip into a 2-3 hour trip. It's worth planning around this, especially with the flexibility of being on holiday.

Hope that helps.  If anything else comes to mind, I'll come back. Happy to respond to DMs too.

 

[Sailbydate]

You're right about Auckland's motorways - except for Christmas/New Year when, ironically, all the fuckers seem to be in Northland! 

 

[Woolfy]

You're right about Auckland's motorways - except for Christmas/New Year when, ironically, all the fuckers seem to be in Northland! 

And Waiheke 

 

[The_Alchemist]

@sailman, I said I'd add more, but many things have been covered above.

- Waiheke is a great day trip.  Vineyards, beaches, small town.  Aim for Oneroa and most things are within walking distance from there.

- Mt Maunganui/Tauranga is great, but more than a day trip.  Could be combined with a round trip to Rotorua.

- Rotoroa Island is something else that's come to mind.  Another wildlife sanctuary, like Tiritiri Island. Note that this is different to Rotorua. I've heard of people ending up at Rotoroa Island, thinking that they were taking the ferry to Rotorua City (some ~1.5hrs from any coastline, on a lake).

- Goat Island is a marine reserve and good for snorkling.  Could easily be combined with a trip to Matakana Saturday markets, Brick Bay Winery/sculpture walk.

Having done some travelling in the U.S., it's worth noting that driving here is a different experience.  Whilst you might jump in a motorway in the US and drive at ~60MPH+, consistently, NZ roads are back lanes by comparison.  One lane each way typically, often dictated by the landscape (windy and hilly), slow and the cars are smaller and not built for the comfort I've experienced on long road trips in the US.  Whilst you might contemplate driving 200km each way for a day trip in the US, it's not as feasible here.  Allow more time than you would think. You'll also hit traffic issues that locals probably take for granted now.  Auckland's motorways are bad at peak times.  This turn a half hour trip into a 2-3 hour trip. It's worth planning around this, especially with the flexibility of being on holiday.

Hope that helps.  If anything else comes to mind, I'll come back. Happy to respond to DMs too.

Thanks for the great info.  We will be leaving in a few days for a drive to San Diego and returning home in March (~5,000 miles round trip).  Traveling is easier in the States, 200 kms is about a 2 hr trip.  We typically drive up to see the relatives early in the morning and return home that evening (~700 km round trip).

Sounds like it will be similar to driving through parts of Ireland and Scotland.  Very much looking forward to the beautiful countryside and the friendly people.

 

[phill_nz]

something nice ..yehh edited from an old quote i didnt post

as a for instance

i am 300 ks from the start of auckland city

it takes ~ 4.5 hours to drive it

and thats on highways 1 and 10 ( about the same quality and speeds as 1 )

 

[Swanno]

We're also heading across for the finals. Myself, wife and 7yo daughter and 4yo son. Looking forward to booking flights in a few months.

 

[Boybland]

@sailman, I said I'd add more, but many things have been covered above.

Having done some travelling in the U.S., it's worth noting that driving here is a different experience.  Whilst you might jump in a motorway in the US and drive at ~60MPH+, consistently, NZ roads are back lanes by comparison.  One lane each way typically, often dictated by the landscape (windy and hilly), slow and the cars are smaller and not built for the comfort I've experienced on long road trips in the US.  Whilst you might contemplate driving 200km each way for a day trip in the US, it's not as feasible here.  Allow more time than you would think. You'll also hit traffic issues that locals probably take for granted now.  Auckland's motorways are bad at peak times.  This turn a half hour trip into a 2-3 hour trip. It's worth planning around this, especially with the flexibility of being on holiday.

I agree with this, especially the part about Auckland traffic, even if you have visited Auckland before, if it's more than 10 years ago you will be astonished at just how bad it has got now!  That's why for staying in Auckland I recommended being near a train line (or close enough to town for a short bus trip), that way the actual America's Cup related ativities won't require a vehicle, don't plan on driving into the CBD unless you absolutely can't avoid it, it's a terrible idea pretty much all the time!

 

[barfy]

I agree with this, especially the part about Auckland traffic, even if you have visited Auckland before, if it's more than 10 years ago you will be astonished at just how bad it has got now!  That's why for staying in Auckland I recommended being near a train line (or close enough to town for a short bus trip), that way the actual America's Cup related ativities won't require a vehicle, don't plan on driving into the CBD unless you absolutely can't avoid it, it's a terrible idea pretty much all the time!

Or on the north shore, where you can short bus and ferry...near Birkenhead, Bayswater, or Davenport. Davenport may be dear, but offers the beaches of Cheltenham, and north head. Ok restaurants in Davenport, 15 min ferries to downtown, arrive 5 minute walk from the AC village.

 

[Ex-yachtie]

Or on the north shore, where you can short bus and ferry...near Birkenhead, Bayswater, or Davenport. Davenport may be dear, but offers the beaches of Cheltenham, and north head. Ok restaurants in Davenport, 15 min ferries to downtown, arrive 5 minute walk from the AC village.

You can long bus too. The Northern Expressway offers a consistent, regular and fast connection to the city centre, no matter the time of day. 

 

[weta27]

or Davenport

DEvonport, please!!!

The Esplanade is a cute, boutique hotel (built 1903) right on the Devonport waterfront, opposite the ferry terminal:

http://esplanadehotel.co.nz/

 

[Woolfy]

DEvonport, please!!!

The Esplanade is a cute, boutique hotel (built 1903) right on the Devonport waterfront, opposite the ferry terminal:

http://esplanadehotel.co.nz/

The Esplanade is a great little place, not flash, but really friendly and good value. It's got a bit of serious yachting history too. I'll let you find out for yourself, but Sir Thomas Lipton is a major player.