Discover Newmarket: Heritage, Art and Leisure

In Newmarket, history and art can be part of your travel plans just as much as entertainment and shopping. The Heritage Trail, galleries and studios showcase different cultural sides of the area; bowling, painting classes and other leisure activities offer a different focus. If you’re looking for a hotel in Newmarket, thinking about the activities you want to enjoy can help you decide which of the destination’s themes to explore.

History on the Newmarket Heritage Trail

The Newmarket Heritage Trail is a self-guided route through one of Auckland’s historic and vibrant neighbourhoods. Historical images, signage and stories in English and Te Reo Māori bring the history of Te Tī Tūtahi / Newmarket to life. Trail topics include significant Māori landmarks and early transport routes. This experience focuses on the history of the neighbourhood, rather than a single building or a particular era.

The way the history is presented may also help you choose what interests you: the trail combines images, signage and stories rather than relying on just one format. If you’re particularly interested in the area’s history, it offers a distinct theme to explore as part of your Newmarket travel plans.

Art, galleries and studios

Newmarket’s art venues each have a different profile. Railway Street Studios gives resident artists space to work and develop their artistic practice, and houses a collection of contemporary New Zealand artists. Sanderson Contemporary features local and international artists. ArtSelect Gallery exhibits and sells a diverse selection of high-quality artworks.

The Newmarket store of The Poi Room also has its own focus: it offers New Zealand-made art objects, artisan jewellery and contemporary wall art. The Poi Room also collaborates with and represents established and emerging artists.

This gives you several ways to explore art in Newmarket: contemporary New Zealand art at Railway Street Studios, local and international artists at Sanderson Contemporary, exhibited and purchasable works at ArtSelect, and artisan crafts and wall art at The Poi Room. Their distinct profiles can help you shape the cultural focus of your stay around your own interests.

Leisure, creativity and shopping

For group entertainment, Archie Brothers at Westfield Newmarket has eight bowling lanes, arcade and ticket games, and bumper cars. These three types of activities are distinct: you can consider bowling, arcade activities and bumper cars as separate leisure interests, without conflating them with the area’s historical or artistic focus.

If you’d like to get creative yourself, Newmarket offers Sip-and-Paint experiences with Pinot & Picasso Auckland CBD. The studio’s painting classes are suitable for beginners and experienced painters alike. This is a different kind of activity from visiting galleries and art collections: the focus here is on guided painting classes, while the art venues mentioned showcase artists and their work.

Westfield Newmarket is a modern shopping centre with international luxury brands, high-end and general retail stores, and department stores. Archie Brothers is also located in Westfield. This means you can consider shopping and the leisure activities available there as different interests when planning your time in Newmarket. The Olympic offers another sporting option: the gym has a group fitness studio, a small-group training area and a spin studio, as well as a fully equipped gym.

Restaurants and other points of reference

Arte della Pasta is an artisan Italian pasta restaurant and also a pasta school in Newmarket. The restaurant and pasta school are two sides of the same offering. Together with the cultural and leisure activities, they provide a range of themes to guide your travel plans.

As additional points of reference, Auckland Domain and Newmarket Park are each a ten-minute walk from Newmarket. Having the same stated walking time makes the two destinations easy to compare, while they remain separate places in your plans. You can decide whether to include these nearby destinations alongside the Heritage Trail, art, shopping or leisure activities.

Discover more destinations: Pukekohe, Orewa, Karaka, Whangaparaoa, Waiuku, Hunua, Wainui, Auckland.

Return to the main travel overview: Auckland.