Aotea Square | Aotea – Te Papa Tū Wātea

You'll find Aotea Square on Queen Street adjacent to the historic Auckland Town Hall (301 – 317 Queen Street) and the Aotea Centre.

Most events in Aotea Square are free, so you don’t need to buy tickets. For ticketed shows like those in the Auckland Arts Festival's Spiegeltent or the Ice Rink, a temporary box office is usually set up in the Square for you to book and/or collect tickets.

Seating depends on the event but is usually on deckchairs, beanbags and other outdoor furniture.

The Civic Car Park is a short distance from Aotea Square, Aotea Centre, The Civic and Auckland Town Hall, as well as other Aotea Arts Quarter venues, making it a great option for attending shows and events.

From 28 May 2024:
Cash payments are no longer available for Auckland Transport car parks, including The Civic Car Park. 

To save queuing after your event, prepay for your parking at the pay machines from 6pm weekdays, or anytime Saturday and Sunday. 

You can also pay when you're ready to leave through the AT Park app.
As there is no internet reception in the underground car park, finish the parking session in-app prior to entering the car park to leave.

Mobility parking:
During standard hours, the first 2 hours of mobility parking are free with usual rates applied afterwards. After 6pm and on weekends, mobility parking is free. Take your mobility card and entry ticket to a pay machine, and press the help button. There are 20 mobility parking spots available, with locations as below:

• Level 1 opposite Aotea Centre entry doors - 5x spaces, numbers 244 -248
• Level 1 opposite Aotea Centre entry doors (next to the yellow booth) 4x spaces, numbers 207 - 210
• Level 1 Town Hall corner 1x large space, number 271
• Level 1 Sky Metro corner 5x spaces, numbers 9-13
• Level 2 Town Hall corner 2x spaces
• Level 3 Town Hall corner 3x spaces

Information to note:

• Vehicle height clearance is 2.08m 
• The car park is underground, but well lit
• Lift access is available from Aotea Square to all levels 
• There are 6 electric vehicle charge points, located on level 1 
• For more information about the car park, visit the Auckland Transport website

It is important, however, to remember that sometimes all our venues are filled with events. Make sure you have a backup parking plan. 

As of July 2021, paper tickets are no longer required at The Civic Carpark. When you drive in, your licence plate number will be scanned and the gate will open. Once you're ready to leave, you can pay by entering your licence plate number via the AT Park app (note, you may need to make payment prior to entering the underground area to remain in range of cell phone service). If you don't have the app, you can pay via a payment machine by inputing your licence plate number. Once your payment has been made, simply drive straight out. 

Visit our Parking and Transport page for more information.

There are several cafes around Aotea Square, including our own container pop-up Container in the Square Cafe and The Terrace Cafe. The Terrace Cafe is open Monday to Friday, serving Caffe L’Affare coffee, tea, and a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic cold drinks, as well as tasty café food from the cabinet, and gourmet pizzas.

Many other eateries are just a short walk away. During events like Auckland Live Summer in the Square, food trucks often set up shop in the Square serving tasty street food.

Visit our Eating and Drinking page for more information.

Aotea Square is a large outdoor space. As such it is easy to access for wheelchairs, however does not have a hearing aid loop.

Visit our Accessibility page for more information.

We commission regular accessibility assessments of all our venues and events from Be. Lab, who have been our accessibility advisors since 2012.