The city offers excellent shopping, galleries and museums; it has a university and provides a multicultural environment characterized by a blend of European, Asian and Polynesian cultures, particularly on the busy and atmospheric Karangahape Road. There is also the distinctive Sky Tower, a casino with a glorious circular, glass viewing gallery at its bulbous summit.

The views of the city, its beaches and the mountains, the coast and sea beyond are stunning. It is also possible for the particularly brave tourist to abseil down the side of the building to the street, a drop of over 100m (328ft). An exploration of at least one of the stunning golden-sand islands of the Hauraki Gulf, accessible by ferries from Waitamata Harbour and also visible from the Sky Tower, is highly recommended. Most of the city center is walkable but the outlying suburbs of Devonport, Herne Bay, Parnell and Ponsonby (with their attractive eateries and well-reputed fashion industry) are brought within easy reach by a reliable public bus network and taxi system.