Plan Your Visit | Whakaritea tō haerenga

We suggest you arrive at the theatre 45 minutes prior to the start of the show. This will allow you plenty of time to scan in, visit the bar, grab a drink or treat yourself to ice cream and find your seat ready to enjoy the show. 

Venue foyers and theatre bars are generally open 60 minutes before a performance is scheduled to begin. 

If you're driving to the venue, be sure to allow plenty of extra time for parking. 

To plan your trip to a venue via public transport you can use Auckland Transport’s journey planner. 

If you’re driving to the venue, you can find more info on your parking options here. 

If you plan to park in the Civic car park, we recommend you use the Civic car park lift located nearest to the Auckland Town Hall on Greys Ave. 

Please note that Auckland Transport have turned the section of Queen St both ways between Rutland and Wellesley Streets into an Essential Vehicle Area, (also known as an EVA) and it is permanently closed to all private motor vehicles including taxis and ride-share vehicles such as Uber. 

Accessing Queen Street

If you are heading to the central city, free bike parking is available on Queen Street, right next to Aotea Square. 

For more details about each venue and where they are located, please visit the individual webpages: Aotea – Te Pokapū | Aotea Centre, Aotea Square, Auckland Town Hall, The Civic, Bruce Mason Centre, Queens Wharf, Mt Smart Stadium, North Harbour Stadium, Western Springs Stadium. 

The majority of performances and events at Auckland Live venues have a strict latecomers' policy (also referred to as lockout/delayed admittance policy) to ensure that the performance isn’t disturbed or for safety reasons. 

If you are running late, you will be admitted at the first suitable break in the performance, as determined by the promoter of the event or performing arts company. In some cases, the first suitable break may be the interval. 

Our staff on the night will do all they can to ensure you are able to enter the performance as soon as possible.

There are several transport projects in development around Aotea Arts Quarter as the city prepares for the City Rail Link (CRL) and the new Aotea Station.  

This includes changes to Wellesley Street for improved bus access and a people focused midtown.  

Please note that Auckland Transport has permanently closed the section of Queen St both ways between Wakefield and Wellesley Streets to private motor vehicles including taxis and ride-share vehicles such as Uber.

We encourage you to factor in extra travel time if you are driving into the city or consider, where possible, taking public transport. You can plan your public transport journey in advance here

For updates, parking, and bus information download the Auckland Transport app here

You may be able to leave your coat, bag and/or umbrella at the venue coat check. 

Coat check is available on an event-by-event basis at the Aotea Centre (at Stalls level on the ground floor), The Civic, Auckland Town Hall and the Bruce Mason Centre. To see if coat check is available, ask any of our front of house staff upon arrival at the venue.  

In most theatre performances you aren’t permitted to take photos during the show. You’re welcome to take photos in the foyer or in the auditorium before the show or during interval. 

If you are seen taking photos when it isn’t permitted, you will be asked to stop. 

For some performances, promoters are happy for you to take photos. The audience will advised of this prior to the event, or there will be signs by the auditorium entrances. Please do not use flash or block other peoples’ views of the stage with your camera or phone. 

For professional quality cameras, a media pass is generally required – photographers can apply for these via the promoter of the show. 

We ask that you turn your mobile phone off during performances. 

Switching a phone to silent may eliminate noise, but the light or vibrations from your phone are likely to be a distraction to other audience members. 

Door and seat numbers are printed on your ticket. Ushers will help you to your seat. 

No hot food or hot drinks are allowed inside the theatre. A range of cold beverages and snacks are available at the venue and these can be taken into the theatre.

If you are taking a beverage into the theatre, you will be given a shatterproof glass, which is reusable and eco-friendly. 

Snacks and drinks can be purchased at the venue before the show. To speed up our food and beverage service and avoid queues, we have moved to cashless transactions. 

For other options and more information about restaurants nearby, check out our Eating and Drinking page. 

To ensure your time in our venues is spent with your friends & whānau and enjoying the show we are now cashless in all our bars, cafes and box office.  Going cashless means, we can speed up our customer service and avoid patrons waiting in queues. Thank you for your ongoing support and feel free to contact us at feedback@aucklandlive.co.nz – if you require any further information.

• Be assured, we follow the strictest hygiene standards and protocols as the health and wellbeing of our visitors and team are central to our welcome and manaakitanga.
• Cleaning of our venues, public bathrooms, and spaces remains a high priority and will take place regularly in line with our enhanced on-site hygiene and safety measures. 
• If you would like to wear a mask while visiting us and attending an event or café in our venues, you are welcome to do so.
• We ask that you and your guests make a reasonable assessment of your health status before attending our venue or the event. If you are feeling unwell, please stay at home.  

You can take an Accessibility Virtual Tour of The Civic, Auckland Town Hall, Aotea Centre and Bruce Mason Centre. 

Visit our accessibility webpage for more information about our services. 

Auckland Live have partnered with Plug to ensure our audience’s phones are fully charged up. 

The Plug charger device is located at the main entrance, opposite the Box office, Level 3 of the Aotea Centre.

Please follow the easy instructions on the screen to charge up your phone and its free!

This innovative solution ensures our audiences can stay connected , access essential apps, and utilise ride-sharing services with peace of mind.  

Terms and Conditions of Use

Ticketmaster is our exclusive ticketing agent for the following venues - Auckland Town Hall, The Civic, Aotea Square, Aotea Centre and Bruce Mason Centre. For more information, visit our Tickets and Seating page. 

When you buy tickets online to a show in one of our venues, choose Mobile delivery at check-out to access your tickets directly through your Ticketmaster account on your mobile phone.

You can also forward your mobile ticket(s) to friends and family, from your Ticketmaster account to theirs, in a transaction that’s both safe and secure. When you get to the show, your digital tickets are saved in your account, ready to be scanned by our ushers.

Learn more about mobile tickets here.