Mount Eden — Maungawhau in Maori — is Auckland's highest volcanic cone at 196 metres, and the easiest to reach from the city. The crater at the top, called Te Ipu Kai a Mataaho, is sacred to Maori and you should not walk into it, but the rim gives 360-degree views across both the Waitemata and Manukau Harbours, out to Rangitoto Island and south to the Manukau Heads. At dusk the city lights up and the view becomes something else entirely.
The walk from the car park to the summit takes about fifteen minutes. The slopes are dotted with the remains of Maori earthworks — terracing, pits, and storage areas from the pa (fortified village) that once occupied the summit.