Come and celebrate Auckland’s heritage with a free boat tour of the port and harbour during Auckland Heritage Festival, courtesy of Ports of Auckland.
“Auckland’s history is intricately interwoven with its port and harbour and we are very pleased to once more offer Aucklanders a chance it experience it first hand on board the historic steam tug William C Daldy,” said Ports of Auckland Chief Executive Tony Gibson.
“The William C Daldy was one of our first tug boats, and worked ships on the Waitematā Harbour for over 40 years. She is a living piece of our history,” he said.
Tours will be held on Saturdays and Sundays for the duration of the festival - 28 September, 29 September, 5 October, 6 October, 12 October and 13 October. There will be four tours per day held at 9:30am, 11:30am, 1:30pm and 3:30pm.
These tours are always popular, so bookings are essential. To book, phone 0800 25 7678 (0800 AK PORT). Bookings open from 30 August 2013.
The family friendly tours include a detailed heritage commentary that will offer a unique insight into the history of the port and the city.
Land-lubbers who want to learn about the heritage of the waterfront can follow the Red Fence Heritage Walk in your own time. Brochures can be picked up from the Voyager New Zealand Maritime Museum, which is the start point of the walk.
ENDS
Ports of Auckland Ltd is New Zealand’s most important port, handling over 800,000 TEU (1 TEU is equal to a standandar 20-foot container), more than 1,500 ship calls and 3.8 m tonnes of break-bulk (non-containerised) cargo per annum. It is New Zealand’s leading import port and a key partner to export and import industries, as well as New Zealand’s premier cruise port and vehicle import gateway. Ports of Auckland is 100%-owned by Auckland Council Investments Ltd.
The William C Daldy is a 126 ft, coal-fired steam tug, built in Scotland for the Auckland Harbour Board in 1935. After an 82 day delivery voyage to New Zealand, the tug began handling ships on the Waitematā Harbour in 1936. Following a 41 year career, the vessel was retired in 1977 as one of the last working coal-fired tugs in the world. Thanks to the efforts of The William C Daldy Preservation Society, the tug is still active on the Auckland Harbour. See www.daldy.com for more information.
The Auckland Heritage Festival, delivered by Auckland Council, will run from 28 September to 13 October 2013. The two-week festival, comprising more than 100 events encompassing art, architecture, fashion, music, ecology and sociology, is a chance for Aucklanders to embrace and discover everything that is unique about their city. This year the festival has three theme - Auckland’s waterways – land and sea, Celebrating our heritage and Learning and encouragement. For more information and a full event programme visit http://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz.
