One in 3 New Zealanders live in Auckland and it is the fastest growing city in New Zealand.
Auckland has been compared to Sydney many times and this comparison is justified to a
point as both cities have and a superb harbour complete with beautiful beaches, a harbour
bridge, and there is even a North Shore on the other side of the bridge. But Auckland is
unique in many respects. One of the main geographical features in Auckland are the 40 or so
volcanic cones that are dotted in and around the city's suburbs. The most famous of these
volcanic cones is "One Tree Hill" made famous by the Rock Group U2 in their song with the
same name.
Auckland is also one of the biggest cities in the world in area, It is twice as big as London yet
there are just over 1 million people living there. The city is so spread out that it actually
reaches from the east coast to the west coast on a narrow strip of the North Island.
Auckland is the most popular gateway to New Zealand from overseas and travellers first view
from the plane window.
Auckland is called the "City of Sails" and boasts more boats per head of capita than any other
city in the world and currently holds the 2 most important yachting trophies, the Whitbread
Round the World Yacht Race and the America's Cup. The latter will be contested in
Auckland in the year 2000.
