The Landing Reserve is a park in Oteha, a residential pocket of Auckland's North Shore City, and holds a 4.1 Google rating from visitors. A neighbourhood reserve earns its keep in the small things: level paths for prams and slower walkers, enough open grass for a kickabout, and shade you can rely on in summer. Parks on the Shore fall under Auckland Council, so it pays to check the council's site for what is actually there — playgrounds, benches, toilets and dog access rules vary from reserve to reserve, and the dog rules especially are worth checking rather than guessing. Regulars tend to come early or late in the day, when the light is low and the grounds are quiet, and they know the smallest reserves often make the best shortcuts between streets. For Oteha locals, The Landing Reserve is the sort of handy green space that turns a suburb into a neighbourhood.