Where to unwind near Viaduct Harbour

Most Aucklanders have one mental image of the Viaduct, and it involves a Friday night, a queue, and somebody's work drinks. Which is a shame, because the same square kilometre on a weekday afternoon is one of the calmer places in the central city — flat, walkable, mostly water, and with very little happening.

Here is how to spend a slow half-day around the harbour, from the spa that has been on Customs Street West watching it all go past.

Start with the water, not the shops

The loop worth walking is short. From the Viaduct basin, cross the Te Wero Island lifting bridge into Wynyard Quarter, follow the boardwalk round past Silo Park, and come back along the North Wharf side. Twenty-five minutes at a normal pace, and an hour if you do it properly, which means stopping.

It is flat the whole way, there is water on at least one side of you at all times, and there are more benches than people use. On a weekday afternoon you will have long stretches of it to yourself.

The quiet corners

• The eastern edge of Silo Park — looking back at the city rather than at the harbour. Best light in the late afternoon.
• The Karanga Plaza steps down to the water in Wynyard Quarter — sitting height, facing the boats.
• Princes Wharf, walking east — the ferry terminal end is busier, but the walk itself is short and the view of Rangitoto opens up as you go.
• The Viaduct basin itself, mid-afternoon — the boats, the reflections, and none of the evening noise.

None of this is a secret. It is simply a part of Auckland most people only visit after dark.

"Guests walk here from three streets away and arrive completely wound up. The ones who come the long way round, along the water, arrive different."

Siri therapist team

Where the massage fits

Our Viaduct spa is at 1B/124 Customs Street West, a few minutes from the basin, open seven days, 10.00am to 8.00pm. Two ways to build the afternoon:

1. Walk first, treatment second. The better order for a long booking. Twenty minutes on the boardwalk, then 90 minutes of aromatherapy massage at $165 or hot stone at $175. You arrive already settled, and you go home rather than back out.
2. Treatment first, walk second. Better for a shorter booking — a 60-minute Swedish massage at $115, then the loop at a much slower pace than you would normally walk it. The walk becomes part of the treatment.

The 90-minute version, if you only have a lunch hour

A 30-minute back and shoulder massage at $65, then twenty minutes on a bench by the water without your phone, then back to the office. It sounds slight. It changes an afternoon.

Traditional Thai massage is the other good lunch-hour option, because it is done clothed and you leave with no oil on your skin.

When to avoid the area

Honestly: Friday and Saturday evenings, big event nights at the stadium or the harbour, and the days around New Year. The Viaduct is excellent at being busy, and if what you want is calm, come on a weekday or a Sunday morning. Our 10.00am to midday slots are the quietest of the week.

If the answer is that you want somewhere genuinely quiet rather than centrally quiet, that is what our St Heliers branch is for — the eastern bays do slow considerably better than the city ever will.

The practical bit

• Siri Thai Spa Viaduct — 1B/124 Customs Street West, Auckland 1010 · 027-722-6564 · open 7 days, 10.00am – 8.00pm
• Quietest times — weekday mornings and early afternoons
• Best walk — Viaduct basin → Te Wero Island bridge → Wynyard boardwalk → Silo Park → back
• Best booking for this afternoon — 60 or 90 minutes, see the full price list

Common questions