Devonport

Devonport sits on the North Shore directly opposite downtown Auckland and the ferry across takes twelve minutes, which makes it the easiest half-day trip in the city. The village kept its late nineteenth-century main street - wooden shopfronts, two surviving picture theatres, bookshops and cafes - because the North Shore's growth went elsewhere after the harbour bridge opened in 1959. Two volcanic cones stand behind it. Mount Victoria, a twenty-minute walk up, gives the classic view back across the harbour to the city and out to Rangitoto. North Head, the other, is honeycombed with tunnels, gun emplacements and magazines dug from the 1880s onward against a feared Russian attack and extended in both world wars; the tunnels are open, unlit in places and free to explore with a torch. There has been a naval base here since 1841, now the main base of the Royal New Zealand Navy, and the naval museum is on the waterfront.

History

Around 40,000 years ago Devonport was three volcanic islands, and the earliest evidence of Māori settlement dates from the mid-14th century. A signal station went up on Mount Victoria in 1841, giving the settlement its first name, Flagstaff, the naval base was set up the same year, and the Calliope Dock, opened on 16 February 1888, was then the largest dock in the southern hemisphere (Wikipedia, Devonport, New Zealand).

What to look for

• The ferry crossing - twelve minutes, with the city skyline behind.
• Mount Victoria - the classic view back over the harbour.
• North Head tunnels - free to explore, unlit in places.
• The Victorian main street - wooden shopfronts and old cinemas.

When to go

Any season; the ferry runs every half hour. Sunset from Mount Victoria is the local favourite. Take a torch for the North Head tunnels.

Practical notes

The tunnels are dark, low and wet in places - a phone light is barely adequate. It is a residential suburb, so it is quiet in the evening. The ferry is the cost; everything else is free.

Nearby

Auckland city is across the water; Takapuna and the North Shore beaches are north.

Key facts