West Auckland is under served with Hotels. There’s only three proper hotels in West Auckland, a scattering of small motels, and a few holiday homes for rent. Most visitors to Auckland stay in the CBD.
This is the nicest hotel in West Auckland. Built in the Waitakere Ranges looking back towards Auckland City it offer fabulous views of the city lights at night and a serene outlook of native bush during the day. Great for couples, this is a popular wedding venue.
Located midway down Hendersons infamous LIncoln Road (more fast food chains than any other road in NZ). This is a little better than a motel, but really suitable for business travelers who need to be out west or domestic families who need to stay in West Auckland. It’s handy to Trust Stadium and West Wave Aquatic centre so it’s a popular choice for athletes competing in those venues. If you’re a tourist visiting Auckland for the first time this isn’t the hotel I’d recommend. It does offer free parking which is great if your driving.
Quest Henderson offers a modern serviced apartment accommodation located a short walk from Henderson Shops. It’s also close to West Wave and Trust Arena. This is another great location for business travellers or families who need to stay in West Auckland. Clean, modern and spacious with cooking facilities in-room.
West Auckland was once an independent city called Waitakere before it was amalgamated into the Auckland super city. The area is huge essentially running from Avondale and Titirangi, west to Whatapu, PIha, and the other famed West Coast Beaches. North to Muriwai and East to Riverhead and Hobsonville. following the edge of the harbour back down to Avondale. The main population and shopping areas in West Auckland are centred on New Lynn and Henderson, but the population is growing fast with both high density infill housing and expansion of the city edge to the North West. The population is approximately 250,000 as of 2020. West Aucklanders are lovingly referred to as Westies by the rest of Auckland.
West Auckland includes the huge Waitakere Ranges Regional Park, famous for hiking, trail running and bird spotting. Auckland’s best surf beaches including PIha, Bethells Beach and Muriwai. And Woodhill Forest mountain bike park. Golf nerds will love Titirangi Golf Club, New Zealand’s only Alister MacKenzie designed course. There’s also an excellent links course at Muriwai that is playable in almost any weather. Bird nerds will also love the huge gannet colony at Muriwai.
Public Transport in West Auckland isn’t the best. The western train line goes from Auckland CBD through New Market then heads west all the way to Waitakere station. There’s a station in Henderson that will leave you with an 11 minute walk to Quest Henderson. There’s a network of buses but they are less frequent than you might like, especially on less popular routes. There’s also a ferry from West Harbour to the CBD, you can bus from Henderson to West Harbour.For more information on public transport in West Auckland try https://at.govt.nz/bus-train-ferry/timetables/ But West Auckland is really better if you have a car.
While West Auckland is known for its beer swilling bogan inhabitants, they also grow some excellent wines. There’s plenty of wineries well worth a visit. These include Babich Wines, Soljans Estate, and Coopers Creek to name a few. If you’re a wine buff then don’t skip the wineries of West Auckland. They are every bit as good as Waiheke Island.
If you’re looking for a luxury hotel in West Auckland then you are looking in the wrong place. Auckland’s luxury Accommodation is predominantly located in the central city and on Waiheke Island.