It's another epic week of cool things to do in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, and I'm ready to live it up.

But as per usual, if you're otherwise preoccupied for these first five days, then check out what’s on this weekend with my scientifically proven selection of the very best things to fill your weekend with.

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Jump to: 

• Don't Miss
• Free And Budget-Friendly Events
• Food And Drink Events
• Arts And Culture 
• Gigs & Live Music
• Rainy Day Activities 
• Coming Soon

Don’t Miss

 

Free & Budget-Friendly Events

Zone Bowling Wairau Singles Night: Swap Lanes

Every Tuesday, 'Til 16 September | Zone Bowling Wairau | $

Image credit: Zone Bowling Alley Wairau | Supplied

I said it before, and I'll say it again: 2025 is the year for ditching the swipes. "But what instead???", you yell from the pitched roofs of Auckland's multitudinous suburbs. "Alas, whither do we take our dates?!" How about Zone Bowling's new singles night: Swap Lanes. Yep, a classic in the realm of budding love—let Zone play cupid and watch the sparks fly between the guide rails (I promise I use them too).

The best part? It's just $29.99 for a 1-hour Swap Lane Bowling session with 5-frame games, a drink, and fries. P.S. There's a themed night on the second Tuesday (2 September), which will be Rainbow Lanes, for the queer community. 'Cause the only thing sexier than nailing a strike in front of your date, is doing so while wearing a rainbow leotard. But make sure ya book!

Say Seeya To Lunchtime Doom Scrolling

Fridays | Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki | Free

Image credit: Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki | website

Say seeya to the scroll and instead drop into a BYO drawing session every Friday at Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki. Find a stool and gander at the life model, with artist and observational drawing tutor, Heyes Johnson, ready to lend a hand. Open to everyone of all skill levels, but don't be late—spaces are fairly sought after.

Waitakere Table Tennis Association Club Nights

Fridays | Glen Eden Recreation Centre | Various Pricings

Image credit: Katja Anokhina

Let's start things off with something out of left field, 'cause why not? The Waitakere Table Tennis Association have switched to Friday nights for Club Night, and for just a meagre $25 annual membership, you can join in on the action. The Red Rackets (yes, I made up the name myself) showdown weekly from 6.30pm over eight tables, but numbers are capped for each night, so lock in your spot now if you want to become champion.

Food And Drink Events

Checks Downtown x Popeye Chicken Collab

5 September | Checks Downtown | $$-$$$

Image credit: Popeyes x Checks Downtown | Supplied

Popeyes Famous Louisiana Chicken are teaming up with the cool Kiwi fashion label Checks Downtown for this slick new drop. Every piece of their streetwear from this collab comes embedded with a QR code to get you a free Popeyes chicken sammie and exclusive collab-only frozen soda. Head to flagship store Checks Downtown on Friday 5 September from 10am in Tāmaki Makaurau for this exclusive merch release, or jump online for the rest of Aotearoa. -Vicki Young

Norma Taps' Bottomless Dining

Fridays & Saturdays | Norma Taps | $$

Image credit: Norma Taps | Instagram

Fridays and Saturdays at Norma Taps meant two things: heaps of pizza and heaps of beverages. Across two hours either day, every week, binge out on your favourite pie and sink back a few cold ones to pair. When ya done? You're more than ready for the rest of the weekend, I'd say.

Arts And Culture

MARY: The Birth of Frankenstein

'Til 7 September | ASB Waterfront Theatre | $$

Image credit: Andi Crown | Instagram

Step into the dark, wicked world of MARY: The Birth of Frankenstein, a gripping reimagining of the night Mary Shelley penned her iconic novel. Unsettling, lust-drenched, and utterly captivating. It's the latest in a series of damn good shoes down at ASB Waterfront Theatre, and it's once again thanks to the very great Auckland Theatre Company.

Gigs & Live Music

 

Rainy Day Activities

Upcycled Leather jewellery

6 September | Titirangi Community House | $$

We know what's hiding in your closet. Deep down in that one dark, devilish corner—it's that leather jacket you spent a bucket on one time, with hopes of entering your edgy era. Well, this neat wee workshop at Titrangi Community house is offering a very convenient way to escape long-term buyer's remorse. On 6 September, you can give old leather a brand-new life with a hands-on, eco-friendly session learning to transform discarded leather into stunning, one-of-a-kind jewellery—from earrings to pendants.

Coming Soon

Ethel & Bethel’s Comedy Bingo Night—Fundraiser For The Kidney Society

12 September | Freemans Bay Community Hall | $$

Image credit: Ethel And Bethel | Instagram

Something about 'R18 Bingo Night' just gets me hyped. Maybe it's my competitive side, or maybe I just love taking seemingly innocuous events to the extreme—like that one mishap I had with Pin the Tail at my nephew's fifth birthday. Anyway... Ethel & Bethel's Comedy Bingo Night in September has me genuinely intrigued. It's a night with a mission—raising $30,000 to support people with kidney disease, with every ticket making a real difference. Beyond their sharp wit and chaotic energy, prizes, drinks, snacks, and a fair bit of community-inspired chaos await. No door sales, so grab your tickets now.

Winetopia Tickets

3-4 October | Viaduct Events Centre | $$

Top-shelf wines without the pomp and elitism? I'm sick to death of bending down to the bottom shelves of the supermarket wine section for $11 worth of cat p*ss. It hurts my back, my taste buds and my pride. That's why I'm very much fizzed for this year's Winetopia, celebrating a decade of providing exactly what the first sentence asks for. It ain't 'til October, but securing tickets for the big ten-oh is essential.

Cirque du Soleil: Corteo

30 Oct-2 November | Spark Arena | $$$

Image credit: Cirque du Soleil | Maja Prgomet

Cirque du Soleil is returning to Aotearoa this October, with the Auckland debut of Corteo. Directed by Daniele Finzi Pasca, Corteo is a festive parade imagined from a clown’s perspective, set on a double-sided stage. Expect grace, power, and comedy played out in a liminal space between heaven and earth. Tickets are live.

TIRI: TE ARAROA WOMAN FAR WALKING

4-23 Nov | ASB Waterfront Theatre, Parnell Village | $$

Closing out the 2025 season is TIRI: TE ARAROA WOMAN FAR WALKING, a groundbreaking adaptation of Witi Ihimaera’s epic tale. For the very first time, the play will be performed in both English and te reo Māori. Directed by Katie Wolfe and starring Miriama McDowell, this two-part production follows Tiri Mahana, a 185-year-old matriarch, from the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi to modern-day Aotearoa.

RÜFÜS DU SOL

29 November | The Outer Fields, Western Springs | $$$

Image credit: RÜFÜS DU SOL | Instagram

The most mind-bending, dimension-transcending electro experience known to humankind—RÜFÜS DU SOL—will light up the expansive Outer Fields of Western Springs this November. The Australian purveyors of electronic music-meets-legendary-lights-extravaganza-times-unholy-soundscapes are just too good not to feature. So here's a very, very early heads up that they're coming to town.

Not in Auckland? Check out what's on in Christchurch, Wellington, and Queenstown this year.

Main image credit: Konrad Rolf.

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