Auckland's main visitor centre , 287 Queen St (daily 9am-5pm; tel 09/979 2333, fax 979 2334, www.aucklandnz.com , reservations@aucklandnz.com ), though often crowded, is fairly efficient at booking and organizing pretty much anything you might want to do in New Zealand. It is often easier to get attention at the second visitor centre on the wharf close to the Maritime Museum, Viaduct Basin (daily 9am-5pm), which shares the same contact details as the former and is equally well stocked with leaflets from around the country.

Both visitor centres, as well as booking agents, hotels and hostels, stock a number of advertisement-heavy free publications ; the best of which are the quarterlies, the Auckland A - Z Visitors Guide and the Auckland What's On . Both have sketch maps that are adequate for most purposes, or you could splash out on Wises' Greater Auckland fold-out sheet ($10).

The compact Department of Conservation (DOC) office , in the Ferry Building at 99 Quay St (tel 09/379 6476, fax 379 3609, jhart@doc.govt.nz ; Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, plus Nov to mid-March Sat & Sun 10am-3pm), stocks DOC material for the whole country but specializes in the Auckland and Hauraki Gulf region.