New Zealand’s capital – Wellington – is located in the south tip of the North Island. The city with less than half million inhabitants is neither the biggest one in the country, nor the first city to fly to when coming from abroad (highly probable). However, it’s a place with a lot of charm, good vibes and culture all around, so skipping it would be a shame :)
Our favorite activities
The reason why we decided to start our New Zealand trip here was very poetic – a bachelor party of our friend living here! Since we had to fly across the globe to come to the party, even Mia was allowed to attend. But we did other stuff here and spent several joyful days.
Visiting Te Papa Museum
It’s true we aren’t huge fans of any museums, but this one is really awesome and definitely worth visiting. We even managed to visit it twice during our three-day stay in the capital. After several hours’ long first visit we were so overwhelmed by all the information about the history of New Zealand, Maori culture and mythology (especially stories about Maui – it’s so complicated!) and all the interactive stuff they have here that we needed a break. On the other hand, we didn’t want to miss the parts with modern art and a special exhibition about the battle of Gallipoli, so we came back on our last day.
Did you know that Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, i.e. ANZAC, served in the WWI (above mentioned Gallipoli was their first operation) and the ANZAC day – 25th April – is a national remembrance day of all their soldiers who served and died in wars? The symbol of that day is a red poppy and since we arrived in this part of the world shortly before, we could see it almost everywhere. We realized that we had no clue about New Zealand participating in the World Wars and felt a bit guilty for being so ignorant. But that’s exactly one of the best things when travelling – you learn so much about other countries, cultures or history that you just can’t possibly be so egocentric anymore.
We learned so much in Te Papa and definitely felt way better intellectually equipped for our next journey. Hence, we can highly recommend this activity in Wellington. And some practical info – Te Papa – the New Zealand’s National Museum (merged some time ago with the National Art Gallery) is open daily and the entrance is free.
Climbing to the Kelburn lookout
When we come to a foreign city, usually one of the first things we have to do (because of Mia’s obsession) is finding a tower or hill or some place with a view. And getting up there! Since Wellington is quite a hilly city, there are several options. The easiest and closest place to where we stayed is located at the Wellington Botanic Garden – Kelburn lookout.
There are essentially two options for getting to the lookout – you can either take an old but well renovated Wellington Cable Car from Lambton Quay and experience a short and classy upward journey the same way locals used to from 1902 until 1978, or you can do your regular walk/bike/car/bus/Uber… Two tickets please!
There is so much greenery up there, with the city spread below, mountain ranges posing in the background and the sea swooshing somewhere in the middle… And in regular intervals, The Relentless Red Rattler shows up in your photos to provide a colorful subject for your composition.
Walking along Wellington Waterfront and Wellington Harbor
We like cities and towns with a lot of public spaces, parks and promenades where people can meet and spend their free time together. Wellington has exactly that nice vibe with Wellington Waterfront full of interesting sculptures, places to sit, eat, grab a coffee or a local beer. Just walking, sitting, walking again, picnicking and observing life was time very well spent. Here are some pics from our daily walks in the city center, along the waterfront and the harbor.
Looking for some some street art
Wellington is full of street art visible on large walls and constructions as well as in smaller and hidden streets as on the pictures below taken just in the street where our hostel was. Don’t you also find it sympathetic when locals try to make their city look more welcoming, lively and colorful? We enjoyed strolling around and discovering various mural art pieces!
Library (the better kind)
Similarly to Te Papa Museum, we came twice to the Library as well. What educated and cultured individuals, right? Actually, we arranged our plans after the South Island circuit in a way we could spend an additional night in Wellington and celebrate Pepe’s birthday here. Yes, this Library is not just any library, it’s a hidden bar our transient local friend introduced us to and we had spent a substantial portion of his bachelor party in the beginning of our trip here.
The bartenders are super friendly and they make Probably the Best Espresso Martini Ever. Literally, check it out on their menu! We’ve tested all the bars visited since by asking for this drink, but so far nothing came close. If you want to spend a relaxing evening sipping your future favorite cocktail, have a fun chat and enjoy a really nice atmosphere, you know where to go.
How to get around
Wellington has an international airport, but there aren’t that many international flights apart from some to and from Australia. That means that you’ll probably arrive in Auckland first. Afterwards, you can take one of numerous daily flights, as we did. Or you somehow come down overland by a car or using the services of one of the bus operators.
From the Wellington airport you can either take a bus going to the city center, grab a taxi or one of the app based pick up services. While in the city we walked everywhere. It’s perfectly doable if you don’t live too far from the center. However, if you want to explore further areas or are just too tired to walk, you can use public transportation.
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