In the central Auckland suburbs there's really only a choice of two football clubs and Three Kings…read moreUnited is probably the biggest. When your kid decides they want to play soccer it's a whole new world and although this is our second year I still found registration a bit of a nightmare. Still, once you're in the club and assigned a team it can really take over your Winter. The club allocates teams, organises games, tournaments, fundraising and all other manner of administration that no doubt goes into running an organisation as large as this. It's also primarily volunteers who make things happen and once you've gotten used to the early starts it's a lovely community to be a part of.

This park has netball courts and a large football / rugby field…read more Some of the cleaner public facilities I've encountered. Club rooms are run by the Ellerslie Eagels and there is a small kiddies playground at the Amy St side . The overall maintenance of grounds is really good , I always see council staff working here . A good flat outdoor space .

This is one of the most beautiful green spaces I've ever seen in my life. I thoroughly enjoyed…read morewandering through the grounds of the domain. Especially the greenhouses. I wanted to stay in those spaces, smell all the flowers, touch all the plants, and pick some of the very ripe fruits and vegetables. I admit to smelling some flowers and touching a few plants, but no fruits or veggies were at risk. Highly recommend the Auckland Domain if you are in Auckland. It's free, beautiful, and walking it is great exercise. It's made of win.

Green lawns, ball fields, gazebos with live music, clean public restrooms, unique trees & shrubs,…read moreendless trails with lots of benches & a very nice day. I loved the trees, I expected to see a Hobbit crawl out. We were walking to the museum & then back to our hotel. We passed pristine rolling hills, a bowling center, tennis center, Olympic aquatic center .... Many were biking, walking, jogging and enjoying the green space. There is a botanic garden near the museum.

This is more of a private squash club, where you have to become a member to be able to play, and…read moreI'm pretty sure it costs quite a bit for a yearly membership. I used to come here a lot when someone I knew (I'd call her a friend but she sucks now, but that's not the squash club's fault) had a membership. The good thing about places like this is that you can come here as often as you want, whenever you want. We used to come play for hours and hours and play really late at night, which was cool when we got bored and couldn't think of anything better to do. The only reason I don't really rate this place is because the squash courts are dark and concrete like and just make me feel horribly depressed. They need a makeover. The lady who worked the front desk wasn't nice. None of the other members would talk to you. Ugh.

This must surely be one of Auckland's most sprawling parks. It's MASSIVE. However you feel about…read moreKeith Hay and his conservative Christian politics (although non-Aucklanders may have never heard of him), this big green space is pretty cool. It is home to two of Auckland's most iconic amateur sports clubs Three Kings United Football and TriStar Gymnastics. It is also where you'll find Cameron Pool, the Eden Roskill Cricket Club and Akarana Golf Course, as well as several playgrounds and some nice paths and wide open spaces to walk the dog or just get some outdoor exercise. The playing fields must be some of the most well used in the city as they are totally swarmed on Saturday mornings for the TKU soccer games. There's even a regular sausage sizzle, coffee van and merchandise stand. I always think we are so lucky in Auckland to have so much greenery and Keith Hay Park is a great example of this.

Keith Hay park played a massive part in my life when I first moved to Auckland. It was adjoined to…read moremy intermediate school (Waikowhai Intermediate,) as well as across the road from Roskill Grammar. Keith Hay Park played host to many memorable games of soccer for me over the years - I remember doing the Wynton Rufer academy and failing to do 15 juggles continually, while getting watched by the whole course. A little bit embarassing. Keith Hay Park is huge - if i remember correctly there are 15 full sized soccer piches on it, as well as a few cricket pitches and batting nets. It also serves as a home for Cameron Pools and the gymnastic centre, so it really serves as a centrepiece, one size fits all sporting destination.

Glenfield Activzone is home to the only skating rink on the North Shore. There's a track big enough…read moreto play a game of roller hockey, and there's a huge room full of rental roller blades and roller skates for learn to skate classes and public skates on the weekends. My roller derby team trains here twice a week as well and the management cut us a really good deal for hourly hireage. The floor is skate court, which can be pretty noisy when we're trying to coach, but the floor is always clean and easy to skate on. The staff that are there just to be on the desk while we skate are really nice and good at helping us, particularly when one of our more absent-minded skaters forgets their helmet.

Generally one of the better places in Auckland to learn to skate or hone one's skills. Floor is…read moresadly only plastic tile, which is fine for inlines, but somewhat less than ideal for quads. That said, it's usually clean, well maintained, nicely large and unlike Auckland's other roller rink it's *perfectly* level. The floor being not the fastest in the world makes it easier to learn to skate on than many alternatives. Hire equipment looks serviceable. Good hockey inlines and generic "browny" quads. Crowdedness varies from nearly totally deserted to a rather hectic free-for-all. People playing impromptu hockey etc during public sessions. Luck of the draw, but school holidays are always busier of course. Music is usually either a local radio station or Pandora. Always modern pop, but usually it's fine to skate/dance to if that's your thing. Staff are invariably friendly, helpful and open to suggestions. But occasionally they've roped off 70% of rink during public sessions for special purposes. My suggestion is if you turn up and they've done this, tell the staff it's not acceptable and walk straight out again and go to Skateland instead (or go ice skating). Also, if they have a hockey tournament on (some long weekends and end of school holidays), they'll simply cancel the public skating sessions without any signs or notification on their (generally useless) website. Would pay to ring first on these weekends.

PRSC is an odd Papatoetoe institution - part of the community's landscape for decades, PRSC has…read moretaught legions of people to skate, play roller hockey and roller derby. The oddity of PRSC stems from the fact that it is incredibly hard to find - tucked in behind a line of trees in a New World carpark, many people have no idea that this place actually exists. A number of sports clubs hold practices at PRSC, but there are also opportunities for beginner skaters to give it a go at public skate sessions on Thursday nights and Sunday afternoons. But be warned, this is no frills skating at its best - PRSC features an old dusty floor, rickety tables and walls that can do with a lick of paint. If you can see through the age of the place, you'll have fun.

I play indoor netball here and everything is well organised. Once you've set up your team you can…read morepay your fee weekly or in a lump sum. Then you show up, put on clean bibs that you don't even have to wash yourself afterwards and play some sweet netball (sweet? I totally mean sweaty) with a referee that has also been organised for you. Basically you can just turn up and play! There are tables, chairs and a couple of couches to hang out at before your game or collapse into afterwards. There are toilets in the building as well. Conveniently located across the road is a park with courts if you want to practice/warm-up before the game, although there are only baskethall hoops and it's often very busy with others playing social sports and families hanging out.

Indoor Netball is not just for girls. No, no, no. It's fierce, fast and even at social level, super…read morecompetitive. I play in a mixed team once a week at Balmoral and love it. The competition is well graded, usually the games are very close. They are well organised, everything runs extremely smoothly. I can't even moan about the refs, they are focused (which isn't always the case with social sport) and fair. It's not too expensive, and it's a really fun way to break up the week while getting a mega fitness kick. The Balmoral courts are small and the venue has a laid back community feel

This is a neat place to go to for an after-work drink…read more The Oakroom has recently had a facelift and has a cosy feel. Rohini and Corey are great hosts and the small team of staff are always friendly, chatty and sincere. There's a gastropub style menu; food and drinks are good value. It's also a good spot for a private function with good catering options.

My friend held her 21st party here last night and when I arrived I instantly wanted to have mine…read morehere. It's a lovely looking bar I think it must be quite new because all the furniture looked that way. Not the place itself though, it was really classy but rustic with mood lighting and lots of seats which I love, too many places don't offer enough seating and everyone just has to stand around. Their outside deck area was where we spent most of our night, they had outdoor tables and stools as well as a more comfy option...the outdoor sofa. They had two tv screens which she used to display pictures all evening. The bartender was pleasant and friendly and everyone looked like they had the best night.