The fourth and final eBike tour in New Zealand was in the busy city of Auckland. At first glance its appears strangled by freeways and highways, but when you go beyond the city skyline you find Auckland’s real charms.

I took a four-hour hire on a front-hub drive Sprint eBike, but soon learned that New Zealand has a different legal definition of an eBike. I discovered that the Sprint was a throttle-activated electric bike rather than an electric-assisted bike. I will make sure that never happens again. The bike could reach 35 kph with just a twist of the throttle, unlike the Category I eBikes in Australia that require pedalling and are limited to 25kph. In half a day of riding, I had practically no exercise at all.

The city traffic makes it unsafe for bicycles, but efforts are underway to make Auckland more bike friendly. This newly-opened and very colourful path is great but far too short.

Unlike the city retail zone, Auckland’s harbourside perimeter and suburbs are both beautiful, accessible, and bike friendly. You can see Auckland city on the horizon, several beaches away.

The Auckland harbourside is lined with long and wide shared paths that seem to go on forever. Easily the best harbour views in New Zealand.