Auckland has realised it sits on a harbour and has an amazing skyline, so in the last few years, many of its hotels have put rooftop bars on top!
Only three of them are open seven days (I guess that’s population for you), but these seven rooftop bars in Auckland’s coolest hotels, and one beside a hotel, are worth your next girls’ night out.
In no particular order, here are my picks for the best 7 rooftop bars to head to for golden hour, an after dinner tipple, or anything in between really…
Haven't got time to finish this post now?
Save it for later and I'll email it to you!
Queens Rooftop & Wine Shop
This is my fave at the moment. Location is (just about) everything, and this one sits at #1 Queen Street, overlooking the entire harbour. It’s connected to Commercial Bay and the IHG hotel down there, opposite the Ferry Building.
Come for a cocktail, stay for the oysters and caviar (you can also get less salubrious dishes!). Suffice to say, small plates in the late afternoon sun as it sinks down over the Auckland Harbour Bridge in the west is pretty sublime.
Open 7 days
Bar Albert
You could be anywhere in the world up here on the rooftop of voco by IHG. The playlist created a downtown Los Angeles rooftop kind of vibe.
The mixologist was from Seattle and had invented locally named cocktails. They’ll set you back about $25 each, but the views across the city and water could be downtown San Francisco or even one of London’s rooftop bars if you imagined the Waitemata Harbour as the Thames.
There is an indoor and outdoor seated area, a look-through gas fire, lounge chairs in small clusters, high tables with a couple of stools at each, or if you get here early enough, low tables with seats facing that view.
To your left the Sky Tower looms and you look down over all the “skyscrapers” dotted around the city. Hotel guests get first preference, but you don’t have to be a guest to go to Bar Albert, although staff do have to swipe you up, so it would pay to book a table ahead.
Open Tuesday to Saturday from 4pm.
Check out room rates at Voco by IHG here >
QT Rooftop Bar
My next favourite rooftop bar, after Queens, is the top of the QT Hotel in Viaduct Harbour. Another quite new hotel, this was not seconded as an MIQ hotel, so was our only fancy bar for a couple of years, and also has a great vibe.
In fact so fancy, the hotel has won awards for its Nick Graham design drawing inspiration from the oyster. You’ll find fabulous pearl artwork in the wallpaper everywhere from the rooms to the hallways to the bathrooms and even the lifts.
This bar is on the 6th floor, not as high as the others, but it’s fabulous sitting outside up here in the sun. There is also a restaurant on this level and high tables for bar snacks and more. Down on the ground floor, their award-winning Esther restaurant is an Auckland favourite too.
Open 7 days. Monday to Thursday from 3pm. Friday to Sunday from noon.
Check out room rates to stay at QT Auckland here >
AKA Rooftop
Auckland’s newest rooftop bar and restaurant is on the 15th floor of the brand new Radisson Red Hotel on Lorne Street.
The former office tower is now a hotel, parallel to Queen Street (in fact there is an escalator entrance from Queen Street). I met my mother-in-law there for a drink on her birthday, and just got there in time for sunset.
270˚ city views including the spike of the Sky Tower, and across to Newmarket. The kitchen serves pan-Asian dishes. It’s not a waterfront setting, but would be a great spot for a private event, or especially if you’re staying in the hotel.
Open 7 days
Check out room rates for Radisson Red >
Hi-SO Rooftop Bar
The rooftop on the 15th floor of SO Auckland, down in the Britomart neighbourhood.
I’ve been to a few private events up here on top of SO by Sofitel, and your views start from the eastern most beaches with an outdoor veranda and sweep round to the western sunset from inside.
You’ll find DJs mixing tracks and mixologists shaking your drinks with a full program of events to keep you coming back and a menu that includes sharing boards and hot and cold finger food small plates.
Open Tuesday to Saturday from 3pm.
Check out room rates at SO / Auckland here >
The Churchill
On the 20th floor of Four Points by Sheraton on Queen Street, The Churchill is in another hotel that Aucklanders are now able to let loose in.
It’s actually not that easy to find the main entrance, which is not on Queen Street, but around the building on Mayoral Drive. If you come by taxi it’s a nice entrance, but if you’re walking around the building like I did for a lunch meting in the ground floor restaurant (the food was outstanding by the way), you’ll walk past closed down businesses that are still waiting for a post-Covid recovery.
The Churchill offers nearly 200 gins in a Winston Churchill-themed cocktail menu and a shared small-plates menu.
Open Tuesday to Saturday from 4pm.
Sunset Bar
The bar on the top floor of the Sudima Hotel does what it says on the box. It’s faces the sunset and is another great spot for a rooftop tipple with friends.
The hotel opened in July 2022, and the 10th floor Sunset bar has a 70s vibe in its retro decor and pastel colours with a west facing terrace for those who can nab an outdoor seat.
They have a large list of local and international wines, local beers and an Asian-inspired cocktail list with their in-house DJ spinning a bit of disco and house music.
This will be the venue for my next girls’ night, I’ve decided. The menu is inspired by Mumbai street food with things like poppadoms and whipped avocado, masala fries and grated parmesan and lamb skewers with Clevedon buffalo curd.
Open Wednesday to Saturday from 4pm, Sunday from 2pm.
Check out rates at Sudima Hotel here >
If you’re in Auckland midweek, check out the beauty school in Newmarket for free massages and facials.
If you’re planning a visit to Auckland, take a scroll through my post on the best things to do here in my home town!