Wellington is the capital of New Zealand, which makes it the southernmost capital city in the world. It often gets the name of Windy Welly, and you will quickly understand why. The city is surrounded by mountains and located in a stunning bay, comprising a mere 200,000 inhabitants. Being quite small, you can easily walk everywhere and, as we’ve seen all over the country, Wellingtonians are very much into fitness and outdoors. If it wasn’t for some skyscrapers and businessman rushing around, you could easily forget you’re in a major city!
We’ve ended up staying in Wellington more time than we had anticipated since it was very rainy, and there are a lot of cool indoor stuff you can do there. Also, our next stop was the Abel Tasman, which we wanted to enjoy on a proper sunny day
1. Cuba Street
Being the most favorite street in town, Cuba Street attracts travelers and locals alike. You can easily spend a whole afternoon wandering around its trendy restaurants, hipster shops, and cool art galleries without getting bored. It has a fresh and vibrant energy, full of young people, art students, and street musicians.
2. climb mount victoria
It’s quite a place to see the sunrise or sunset as it offers 360-degree views of the city. You can take the 20 bus or, you can decide to drive there as you’ll find parking options at the top. However, we recommend you hike the 25 minutes trail to get there as it will feel much more rewarding. Choose a sunny and cloudless day for the best views.
3. Watch a rugby match
If you’re a Rugby lover, New Zealand will be a total paradise for you. There’s no shortage of All Black Stores, Rugby themed cafes, and you’ll notice the sport is king there being the great national pride. Watching a super rugby match was on top of our bucket list, since Tiago is a rugby player since the age of 6. While you don’t necessarily have to do it in Wellington, the city is the home of the famous Hurricanes, so we have planned our visit to catch a big game – Hurricanes vs Sharks. If you fancy sports in general, buy a ticket and experience the pulsing vibe of watching this game at the stadium.
4. Visit the Botanical garden
The right way to visit it is to take the unique cable car that goes up the hill and drops you off at the beautiful Botanical Garden entrance. From there, you have different types of trails with gorgeous native bush that will show you how Wellington looked like before humans turned it into a city. The garden has free entrance but as for the cable car ride, you’ll have to buy a ticket. However, you can buy just a one-way ticket and walk your way down back into downtown.
5. WETA WORKSHOP
If you’re a movie buff, you need to head to Miramar and spend some time at the Weta Workshop. Internationally recognized as one of the best in their field, this design studio creates everything you can imagine from customs to props and has collaborated with some huge movies like Avatar, King Kong, and of course, Lord of the Rings. It’s amazing to have the opportunity to see where the magic happens, and you’ll leave the site so inspired by the creative artists who work there and the immersive environment of movie-making.
Buy the tickets online and get there in time for your tour. We guarantee it will be a highlight of your time in Wellington.
6. Wharf area
By the end of Cuba street, you’ll get to the Wharf Area. The Wellington Waterfront was perfect to have some drinks before our rugby match, and it was packed with both teams supporters doing the same, which created a great vibe around it. If you’re curious about getting to know the insights of the history and culture of New Zeland, we can’t recommend Te Papa Museum high enough. This six-story building exhibits so much about the country that you won’t have the time to go through it all. Its renowned reputation is well deserved and even better news: it’s free! Last but not least, if you happen to be in town during the weekend, take a morning visit to the Harbourside Market. Besides being the place where locals go to grab some fresh products for the week ahead, there is also a food truck area that will satisfy your cravings.
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