Auckland Ferry Terminal

Convenient coffee options!
Nice, compact ferry terminal with extremely helpful staff and an excellent snack bar/​coffee bar just before you board the ferries.

Heading to Devonport? Waiheke? Half Moon Bay? Great Barrier Island (on the holiday weekends in the summer)? Well this is the place to go!
The old ferry building is a historic building and houses the best gelato shop in Auckland and the newly opened Botswana Butchery. If travelling to Waiheke on holiday weekend, make sure to get there early as the ferry can be quite crowded or even sell out!

The Auckland Ferry Terminal is one of those places that you forget how awesome it looks It’s not until I’m walking along the road and see a tourist taking a photo of it, that I also look up and remember how cool it is.
I don’t spend a lot of time in the Terminal, mostly just walking in and out, but it really is a nice place to be. Obviously it’s right on the water, which makes it s nice place to enjoy your lunch while waiting or just to hang out if you’re a bit early. The staff have recently improved the way they let you in and out which makes for an efficient trip.
There is an ice cream store, sushi place and a café, and also some pretty suave restaurants a bit further along which have really lovely places to sit and watch people come to and fro.
The building is one of Auckland’s oldest and really is architecturally beautiful.
It does it’s job well, is a pleasant place and looks good.

I’ve taken my fair share of ferries all over the world, from the famous Staten Island ferry in New York, to the infamous Star Ferries in Hong Kong. I’ve seen the good, the bad and the downright horrible. I’m not mentioning names, but anyone ever visiting Brindisi will know what I mean.
Most ferry terminals look like decrepit bus stations; filled with drunks, women of ill repute and other lawyers. But Auckland is different. The Auckland Ferry Terminal is an advertisement for the city, it is the place people see on their day out and about, and whether they’re heading to Devonport or Rangitoto, it always leaves an impression.
I like it, because it is easy to understand, and easy to operate, plus you can get city info, a good coffee and a place to sit, all within fifteen meters from where you’re boarding your ferry. That’s not bad at all.

I used to live in Devonport for a while and would commute from Devonport to the city on a daily basis. If you’re just using the ferry in normal times the ferry building is pretty sufficient. Within the gates there are plenty of seats, a few vending machines and a coffee place. However, there were a few times where I would have to catch one of the late ferries and have to wait over 30 minutes for the ferry to come. In times like those I wish there was something more to the place, maybe a TV or a late-​night coffee place… But maybe I’m just being picky. Overall it’s perfectly sufficient and although I would be waiting there for quite a long time, I never felt unsafe. And I suppose that’s all we should expect from a ferry terminal after all!

A charming little place to kick start a great day out on the water. You can relax with a nice coffee or ice cream in Valentinos Gelato and watch the people come and go while waiting for your boat. Even if you don’t plan on taking a ferry, it’s a nice place to come to have a coffee and look out at the water. There are several good options for a day out — Devonport, Rangitoto and Waiheke. Devonport is a lovely town which I always thought has an English feel to it. Rangitoto is nice for a hike and there are beautiful 360 degree views of Auckland harbour. (Make sure you bring some water as there are no shops on Rangitoto). Waiheke is my personal favourite. It’s not cheap to get here ($ 35) but it’s a great day out. You can browse at the lovely shops in Oneroa and sunbathe down at the beach. If you bring your car, you can travel inland to one of Waiheke’s wineries. It’s only a short ferry ride away but you have the feeling you’re a million miles from Auckland when you are chilling in Waiheke.

The Auckland Ferry Terminal was built in 1912 and holds a Category I New Zealand Historic Places rating. Designed in Edwardian Baroque style, the building is absolutely beautiful and well-​known by all Aucklanders, regardless of whether they have ever caught a ferry.
Even if the architecture wasn’t as stunning as it is, the building is hard to miss due to its burnt orange coloured exterior. It grabs your attention — though this is probably handy for tourists when it comes to locating the building!
The location of the Ferry Terminal is between two of Auckland’s main wharfs, so is perfectly situated for commuters, as ferries to Devonport, Northcote Point, Waiheke and other nearby destinations depart frequently.
Tip: Not only does it serve as a ferry terminal it also houses the Botswana Butchery, a successful restaurant from Queenstown, as well as café’s such as Seattle coffee.

I am not ashamed to say that I am absolutely mad on boats. So the Downtown Ferry Terminal for me is pretty much heaven on earth. You can sit down in the sun at one of the many café’s and restaurants lining the waterfront down in the terminal with a coffee or ice cream or whatever takes your fancy, kick your feet up and watch the boats come in and amuse yourself by charting the process of all the little Aucklander’s doing their mad dashes to wherever they are going (Aucklander’s love to power-​walk, I know not why).
Or if you actually have somewhere to be, this is a great place to base your travels auckland-​wide from. The ferry services are fast and efficient and go to places such as Rangitoto Island, Waiheke, Devonport etc.
The Ferry terminal staff here are also really friendly and helpful and always have a smile on hand, which is great because it can be a stressful situation catching public transport on time if you are new to the city or if you are just always late like myself.
While most ferry operations have been moved to the new building, the older building is constructed in a really beautiful old Edwardian Baroque style and actually has a category one classification with the New Zealand Historic places Trust (for all you historic preservation buffs out there) and is definitely worth a gander.