Watchman Island

Waitematā Harbour is the main access by sea to Auckland, New Zealand. For this reason it is often referred to as Auckland Harbour, despite the fact that it is one of two harbours adjoining the city. The harbour forms the northern and eastern coasts of the Auckland isthmus and is crossed by the Auckland Harbour Bridge. It is matched on the southern side of the city by the shallower waters of the Manukau Harbour. With an area of 70 square miles (180 km2), it connects the city's main port and the Auckland waterfront to the Hauraki Gulf and the Pacific Ocean. It is sheltered from Pacific storms by Auckland's North Shore, Rangitoto Island, and Waiheke Island.

Tāmaki Makaurau (lit. 'Auckland') is a New Zealand parliamentary Māori electorate returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. It was first formed for the 2002 election. The electorate covers the Auckland area and was first held by Labour's John Tamihere before going to Dr Pita Sharples of the Māori Party for three terms from 2005 to 2014. After Sharples' retirement, the electorate was won by Peeni Henare of the Labour Party in the 2014 election. It derives its name from the Māori-language name for Auckland; Makaurau is a descriptive epithet referring to the value and desirability of the land.

The Auckland regional geologic faults have low seismic activity compared to much of New Zealand but do result in an earthquake risk to the Auckland metropolitan area, New Zealand's largest city. There is also evidence of past tectonic, volcanic associations in a city located within what is, at best, a very recently dormant Auckland volcanic field. The only definite active fault in the Auckland Region, as defined geopolitically, is the Wairoa North Fault. However, there could be other possibly active faults within the Auckland region. Those of which include the Drury Fault and the Firth of Thames Fault. Further, the adjacency of the Hauraki Rift to Auckland means that the active Kerepehi Fault with its risk of magnitude 7 or above events should be considered as relevant.

Auckland (pronounced ) (Māori: Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about 1,440,300 (June 2022). It is located in the greater Auckland Region—the area governed by Auckland Council—which includes outlying rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, and which has a total population of 1,695,200. While Europeans continue to make up the plurality of Auckland's population, the city became multicultural and cosmopolitan in the late-20th century, with Asians accounting for 31% of the city's population in 2018. Auckland has the eighth largest proportion of foreign born residents in the world, with 41% of its residents born overseas. With its large population of Pasifika New Zealanders, the city is also home to the biggest ethnic Polynesian population in the world. The Māori-language name for Auckland is Tāmaki Makaurau, meaning "Tāmaki desired by many", in reference to the desirability of its natural resources and geography.Auckland lies between the Hauraki Gulf to the east, the Hunua Ranges to the south-east, the Manukau Harbour to the south-west, and the Waitākere Ranges and smaller ranges to the west and north-west. The surrounding hills are covered in rainforest and the landscape is dotted with 53 volcanic centres that make up the Auckland Volcanic Field. The central part of the urban area occupies a narrow isthmus between the Manukau Harbour on the Tasman Sea and the Waitematā Harbour on the Pacific Ocean. Auckland is one of the few cities in the world to have a harbour on each of two separate major bodies of water. The Auckland isthmus was first settled c. 1350 and was valued for its rich and fertile land. The Māori population in the area is estimated to have peaked at 20,000 before the arrival of Europeans. After a British colony was established in New Zealand in 1840, William Hobson, then Lieutenant-Governor of New Zealand, chose Auckland as its new capital. He named the area after George Eden, Earl of Auckland, British First Lord of the Admiralty. Māori–European conflict over land in the region led to war in the mid-19th century. In 1865, Auckland was replaced by Wellington as the capital, but continued to grow, initially because of its port and the logging and gold-mining activities in its hinterland, and later because of pastoral farming (especially dairy farming) in the surrounding area, and manufacturing in the city itself. It has been the nation's largest city throughout most of its history. Today, Auckland's central business district is New Zealand's leading economic hub. It also has a thriving culture that has influenced others across the world, built on its dynamic arts scene and a richly multicultural history.The University of Auckland, founded in 1883, is the largest university in New Zealand. The city's significant tourist attractions include national historic sites, festivals, performing arts, sports activities, and a variety of cultural institutions, such as the Auckland War Memorial Museum, the Museum of Transport and Technology, and the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki. Its architectural landmarks include the Harbour Bridge, the Town Hall, the Ferry Building and the Sky Tower, which is the second tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere after Thamrin Nine. The city is served by Auckland Airport, which handles around 2 million international passengers a month. Despite being one of the most expensive cities in the world, Auckland is recognised as one of the world's most liveable cities, ranking third in the 2019 Mercer Quality of Living Survey and at first place in a 2021 ranking of the Global Liveability Ranking by The Economist.

Stebbing Studios is a recording studio in Auckland, New Zealand. Artists who have had their work recorded over the years, include: Ray Columbus & The Invaders, Bill & Boyd, Gary Havoc & The Hurricanes, The Human Instinct, and Waves.

Westhaven Marina in Auckland, New Zealand, is the largest yacht marina in the Southern Hemisphere. The marina has nearly two thousand berths and swing moorings, and tends to be continually booked. Auckland, known as 'City of Sails', is generally known for its maritime passions.It is owned by Auckland Council, as successor to the Auckland City Council, which bought it from Ports of Auckland in 2004 for NZ$46 million.In 2008, it received its second-time-running international 'Blue Flag award' for its water quality, environmental management and safety standards. It is one of 640 marinas worldwide (and the only marina in New Zealand) to have received the award.

The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron is a New Zealand yacht club, and the club behind New Zealand's America's Cup campaigns, under the guises of New Zealand Challenge and Team New Zealand. It held the America's Cup from 1995 until 2003, becoming in 2000 the first non-American holder to successfully defend the trophy. After Team New Zealand's victory in the 2017 event, the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron are the current holders of the America's Cup. On March 21, 2021, they beat Circolo della Vela Sicilia's Luna Rossa Challenge to again win the 2021 America's Cup.The club was established in 1871 in Auckland with the name of the "Auckland Yacht Club". Its name was changed to "Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron" when it was granted royal patronage in 1902.It is located in Westhaven Marina, Auckland, close to the Auckland Harbour Bridge facing on to the Waitemata Harbour and Hauraki Gulf. The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron is one of the main members of the International Council of Yacht Clubs.

Herne Bay is an affluent suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located on the southwestern shore of the Waitematā Harbour to the west of the Auckland Harbour Bridge. It is known for its extensive harbour views, marine villas and Edwardian age homes. Herne Bay has been a prosperous area since the 1850s due to its outlook over the Waitemata Harbour. It continues to be an exclusive suburb, as it ranked as the most expensive suburb in New Zealand in 2015. In 2021 it again topped rankings of the most expensive suburbs in New Zealand, with a median property value of $3.25 million. Herne Bay is under the local governance of Auckland Council.

The Auckland Harbour Bridge is an eight-lane motorway bridge over the Waitematā Harbour in Auckland, New Zealand. It joins St Marys Bay on the Auckland city side with Northcote on the North Shore side. It is part of State Highway 1 and the Auckland Northern Motorway. The bridge is operated by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA). It is the second-longest road bridge in New Zealand, and the longest in the North Island.The original inner four lanes, opened in 1959, are of box truss construction. Two lanes that were added to each side in 1968–1969 are of orthotropic box structure construction and are cantilevered off the original piers. The bridge is 1,020 m (3,348 ft) long, with a main span of 243.8 metres, rising 43.27 metres above high water, allowing ships access to the deepwater wharf at the Chelsea Sugar Refinery, one of the few such wharves west of the bridge. While often considered an Auckland icon, many see the construction of the bridge without walking, cycling, and rail facilities as a big oversight. In 2016, an add-on structure providing a walk-and-cycleway called SkyPath received Council funding approval and planning consent, but wasn't built. In 2021, a stand-alone walking and cycling bridge called the Northern Pathway was announced by the New Zealand Government, but also wasn't built.About 170,000 vehicles cross the bridge each day (as of 2019), including more than 1,000 buses, which carry 38% of all people crossing during the morning peak.

New Zealand Sugar Company Limited is a long-established business and landmark in Birkenhead, New Zealand, located on the northern shore of Auckland's Waitemata Harbour. The company is also known colloquially as "Chelsea Sugar", taking reference from the company's branded sugar "Chelsea", and the site is also colloquially known as the "Chelsea Sugar Refinery", or "sugar works". The refinery was established in 1884, and remains New Zealand's main source of sugar products (for both home use and for the food and beverage industry). This position remained even after New Zealand's deregulation opened the markets in the 1980s to foreign competition, and products are also exported overseas. The refinery also has one of Auckland's deepwater ports, with handysize ships importing raw sugar globally every six weeks.

The Hawke Scout hall is a building located on the edge of Coxs Bay, which is between the suburbs of Herne Bay and Westmere in Auckland, New Zealand. It is primarily used by Sea Scouts.

Coxs Bay or Opoututeka is a bay located in the Waitematā Harbour in the Auckland region of New Zealand. The settlements of Westmere and Herne Bay are adjacent suburbs to the south and north respectively. To the east lies Ponsonby and the south east the West Lynn Shops and Grey Lynn. The Bay is protected from the west by the end of one of the longest lava flows in the Auckland volcanic field, Te Tokoroa / Meola ReefThe first purchase of land by Europeans in Auckland was in 1840. The western boundary of this land was “the river called Opou” or Cox's Creek. It was soon after, in the early 1840s, that a couple called Cox started market gardening in the area. The district was then called Richmond. The “village of Richmond”, located between Edgars and Cox's Creek was divided into lots in 1859. The streets now known as Regina, Kingsley, Livingstone, Webber and Edgars were then laid out, and Logs for the early houses were floated up Cox's Creek and pit sawn on site.Industrial development in the area started with a brick factory in 1860 with products being shipped via Cox's Creek to Auckland. In 1899 Cashmore Brothers set up a steam-powered sawmill beside the creek below West End Road. The bay and creek were used for the transport of logs and timber. Despite strong protest by the growing local population, this mill operated until 1920 when it accidentally burnt down leaving sawdust and timber smouldering for over a year.After the sawmill burnt down, a causeway was created across the bay joining the new growing suburb of Westmere to Herne Bay and the city. Just after the causeway was built a Sea Scout Group established their headquarters on the edge of the bay, Hawke Sea Scout Hall was first built in 1928 and is still an important part of the local community and a significant building in the area.