Motat (Auckland's Museum of Transport and Technology) might just be the most reliable place for school holiday fun.
Motat (Auckland's Museum of Transport and Technology) might just be the most reliable place for school holiday fun.
This weekend, our guide to Auckland arts, culture and events, is particularly whānau-focused. The school holidays have quietly crept up on parents and caregivers and jump-scared them into either scrambling for entertainment options or scrambling for childcare solutions. We’ve collated a list of our top picks for school holiday activities across the city, plus one or two just for grown-ups.
1) Motat: Search and Rescue
Motat (the Museum of Transport and Technology) might just be the most reliable place for school holiday fun. It’s an easy outing for parents – there’s parking up at the Aviation Hall, then you can take a fun tram ride, complete with dapper ticket handlers, down to the main site on Great North Rd – and there’s always something new for the kids to discover and learn. The theme for the holiday activities this April is Search and Rescue. Visitors will learn about the science of survival, navigation and outdoor safety as well as having a go at Morse code, geocaching and an ultraviolet hide and seek. On Easter Sunday, if you’d like to distract your little chocolate fiends from their loot, Motat is hosting a Live Day with an emergency first response theme. There will be local community heroes, Motat’s collection of historical emergency service vehicles, steam train rides and blacksmith demonstrations.
When: April 12 - 27 (Motat Live Day, April 20).
Where: Motat, 805 Great North Rd, Western Springs, Auckland.
Price: Usual Motat entry fees apply.School teachers and support staff can enter for free throughout April and NZ Emergency and Defence Services personnel and their families get free entry from April 19 - 27.
2) Downtown Market
A trip into town should be on everyone’s school holiday bingo card.
Start the school hols off with something that’s a bit for the kids and a bit for you. The General Collective is joining forces with the Britomart Market this weekend for a two-day market extravaganza. A trip into town should be on everyone’s school holiday bingo card (sadly the trains are down for maintenance so a bus is your best option). The CBD is a pretty big adventure for tamariki. This weekend, when you arrive downtown, you’ll step out into a bustling market with great food, locally made crafts, fashion, art and homewares. Britomart’s regular market kicks off at 8am in Takutai Square as usual, with the General Collective joining the party at 10am in Te Komititanga. It’s multi-generational entertainment and a great place to do a spot of ethical retail therapy.
When: April 12 and 13, 8am and 10am – 2pm.
Where: Takutai Square (Britomart Market) and Te Komititanga (General Collective), Auckland Central.
Silly Qs is a simple card game that makes you ponder some curly questions. Photo / Dane Wetton
Not an event but certainly a way to keep the kiddos entertained these holidays, Silly Qs is a new family game that will have adults embracing their silly side and everyone giggling. Made here in Aotearoa by some child development experts, Silly Qs is a simple card game that makes you ponder some curly questions and has everyone performing some ridiculous tasks like wrapping someone in toilet paper in 30 seconds or running a relay around the room. It’s a great way for you to show your kids – especially during the holidays – that you’re not always a nag, you’re actually quite a fun human. It’s best suited to primary-aged children but anyone willing to be silly will enjoy it.
A brand new bookshop is opening in Remuera and it’s got a titillating twist.
We’re sneaking in just one event this weekend that’s very much not for the kids. On Saturday, a brand new bookshop is opening in Remuera and it’s got a titillating twist: it’s romance-themed. Enamoured Books is Tāmaki Makaurau’s first romance-dedicated bookshop and is a sanctuary of sexy, scintillating, seductive reads where romance lovers can settle in, get a drink and a snack and shamelessly enjoy some smut or romantasy or historical romance and more. It’s bringing back the bookshops of yore, the ones that rom-com characters used to own. It’s a great place for some quiet self-care or make it the locale of your next book club meet-up. Saturday’s opening day is going to be a celebration with complimentary drinks by The Better Drinks Co, Kensal flowers, music and giveaways. Grab a fellow romance reader and check out your new favourite literary hang-out spot.
Let your kids unleash their most creative selves these holidays.
Let the kids unleash their most creative selves these holidays with a trip to Wētā Workshop for a crafting workshop inspired by A Minecraft Movie, which was filmed right here in Aotearoa. Children will spend an hour learning how to sculpt their own animals to take home. It’s best suited for kids 6-13 years and can be done on its own or make a day of it and add in a Wētā Workshop Unleashed tour and get to see how the sausage is made – so to speak – in the world of special effects and movie making. If you’re heading to the capital these holidays there are workshops at Wēta headquarters too, but in the age-old art of leatherwork.
Price: Tickets $29 for workshop only; $45 for workshop and tour. Visit wetaworkshop.com for more information and to book.
6) Midtown Street Party
This Thursday’s street party presents an opportunity for a wee night-time adventure for the whole whānau. Photo / Auckland Council
The Midtown street parties have been such a success, they’re now a regular event. On the third Thursday of every month, the centre of town really comes to life. With the evenings getting darker, this Thursday’s street party presents an opportunity for a wee night-time adventure for the whole whānau. There’ll be live performing arts, live painting, street art and installations, great food, and the opportunity for some late-night shopping. Strand Arcade becomes the hub for the evening, with Auckland Zinefest taking up residence in Shop 21, where you can create your own badge or block-printed patch. DJ Grantis will be spinning tracks, and there will be artists at work, an exhibition, eateries, and more. Over at Elliott Stables, singer-songwriter Manuela will be performing, followed by acoustic duo Jack and Jenna. At Atrium on Elliott, you can catch Mark “MC Slave” Williams and Chef’s Kiss. And there’s much, much more to see and do throughout the evening. Embrace the opportunity for a cheeky school holiday late night and bring the tamariki into town for dinner with a side of arts and culture.
When: April 17, 5pm - 8pm.
Where: Elliott St, Elliott Stables, The Strand Arcade, Darby St, Durham Lane West and Airedale St, Midtown, Auckland Central.
Price: Free.
7) Pacific Fest and Blues v Moana Pasifika
Pacific Fest and Blues v Moana Pasifika aim to recognise the deep ties Blues Rugby has with the Pasifika community in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. Photo / Tane Wolfgramm, The Blues
Even if you or your little people aren’t true rugby heads, the vibe at Eden Park on Saturday is going to be super festive and fun for everyone. On the field, the Blues are taking on Moana Pasifika in the late afternoon, and off the field – in the Eden Park Outer Oval – there’s a Pacific Festival happening throughout the day. The event aims to recognise the deep ties the Blues rugby side have with the Pasifika community in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. There will be Pasifika food, market stalls, community activities, and live performances by Swiss, Wayno, Folau, Irene Folau, Junior Soqeta, DJ Yzur, and school groups as well. The festival kicks off at 10am, with the Blues v Moana Pasifika game starting at 4.35pm, and the women closing out the night with the final of Super Rugby Aupiki between the nib Blues and Matatū at 7.05pm. The festival is completely free – and if ever there’s a time to take advantage of free entertainment, it’s during the school holidays, when there are many hours to fill and many ways to go broke filling them.
When: April 12, 10am – 3pm (festival); 4.35pm Blues v Moana Pasifika; 7.05pm nib Blues v Matatū.
Where: Eden Park, Reimers Rd, Kingsland, Auckland.
Price: Festival free; tickets start at $10 for kids and $19 for adults, both games included, from blues.flicket.co.nz.
8) Bloodsuckers and The Great Kimberly Wilderness
The Great Kimberley Wilderness is a 35-minute VR documentary, narrated by Luke Hemsworth.
The April school holidays herald the final two weeks of Auckland Museum’s Bloodsuckers: Legends to Leeches exhibition. Just as the juicy title suggests, the exhibition is all about blood-feeding creatures and takes a socio-scientific approach, incorporating natural history with mythology. Immersive and interactive, visitors get to delve into the science and stories of real-world blood guzzlers like mosquitoes and ticks, as well as blood-hungry mythical characters like vampires. Now on the home stretch, the museum is offering visitors a buy-one-get-one-free deal on tickets. But wait, there’s more! They’re also launching a brand-new virtual reality experience this Saturday, which will run throughout the holidays. The Great Kimberley Wilderness is a 35-minute VR documentary, narrated by Luke Hemsworth, that explores the incredible landscapes of the Kimberley region in Western Australia, including the King George Falls, Purnululu National Park, and the Devonian Reef. Terms like awe-inspiring and breathtaking come to mind.
Price: Adults $22; children 5-15, $11; under 5 free; family (2 adults, 2 children) $59; students & seniors $20; free for museum members.
The Great Kimberley Wilderness
When: April 12 - 27, sessions 9.30am, 10.45am, 12pm, 2.15pm, 3.30pm and Twilight Tuesdays (during holidays only) 5.30pm, 6.30pm, 7.30pm.
Price: Adults $16; concession $14; children 5-15, $12; family (2 adults, 2 children) $50. Recommended for 8 years and older. Tickets from aucklandmuseum.com.
A wide range of activities is happening over the next 10 days as part of EcoFest.
Guided bike rides, weaving workshops, working bees, citizen science events, eco markets and even a salad-growing workshop are among the wide range of activities happening over the next 10 days as part of EcoFest. A month-long celebration of sustainable living, this collaboration between several eco-minded organisations is entering its final stretch – so get your fill now, connect with like-minded people, and get the young uns on board to help make this city even better and more beautiful. This weekend alone, there’s an Easter market, a zero-waste sale, a herbal balm-making workshop, a whānau fun day at the Botanical Gardens, and many more ways to feel good about being part of Auckland’s sustainable future.
Where: Various locations in Tāmaki Makaurau. Visit ecofest.org.nz for more information.
10) Further Afield: Lindt in Queenstown
A new Lindt chocolate paradise just opened in Queenstown. If you take your kids there you'll get a mega-load of parental brownie points. Photo / James Allan Photography
This school holiday treat is for those lucky ducks who are heading to the South Island for an autumn getaway. Last weekend, a new Lindt chocolate paradise opened in Queenstown and if you take your kids there, you’ll get a mega-load of parental brownie points. Like its counterpart in Auckland’s Manawa Bay, the store has a LINDOR pick-and-mix station, Crema Gelata Ice Cream and hot or chilled chocolate drinks made from Switzerland’s finest. If QTown is on your flight path these holidays, we can’t imagine a better place to get your Easter chocolate fix.
