20 Sights in Wellington, New Zealand (with Map and Images)
Legend
Welcome to your journey through the most beautiful sights in Wellington, New Zealand! Whether you want to discover the city's historical treasures or experience its modern highlights, you'll find everything your heart desires here. Be inspired by our selection and plan your unforgettable adventure in Wellington. Dive into the diversity of this fascinating city and discover everything it has to offer.
Sightseeing Tours in WellingtonActivities in Wellington
The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. Usually known as Te Papa, it opened in 1998 after the merging of the National Museum of New Zealand and the National Art Gallery. An average of more than 1.1 million people visit every year, making it the 58th-most-visited art gallery in the world in 2023. Te Papa operates under a bicultural philosophy, and emphasises the living stories behind its cultural treasures.
2. Wellington
HMNZS Wellington was a Leander-class frigate of the Royal Navy and the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). Originally commissioned in 1969 for the Royal Navy as HMS Bacchante, she joined the RNZN in 1982. She was decommissioned in 1999 and sunk in 2005.
3. Wellington Botanic Garden
Wellington Botanic Garden ki Paekākā is a botanical garden close to central Wellington in New Zealand. It covers 25 ha of land in a valley between Thorndon and Kelburn, with Glenmore Street as a boundary along the valley floor. One of the access points is from the top of the Wellington Cable Car. The garden is managed by Wellington City Council, and features protected native forest, conifers, plant collections and seasonal displays and an extensive rose garden. It is classified as a Garden of National Significance by the New Zealand Gardens Trust. In 2004 it was listed as a historic area by Heritage New Zealand. Large sculptures and carvings are located throughout the garden.
4. Kaukau
Mount Kaukau is a large hill in the northern suburbs of Wellington, New Zealand near Johnsonville, Khandallah and Ngaio. The summit is 445 m (1,460 ft) above sea level and is the most visible high point in the Wellington landscape further accentuated by Wellington's main television transmitter mast, which stands 122 m (400 ft) from the summit. The city, harbour and the Remutaka and Tararua Ranges can be seen from the summit. On a clear day Mount Tapuae-o-Uenuku and the Kaikōura Ranges in the South Island may be seen, whilst northwest is the Porirua Basin and the Tasman Sea.
5. St James Theatre
The St. James Theatre is a large proscenium stage theatre in central Wellington, New Zealand, and home to the Royal New Zealand Ballet. The building was designed in 1912 by New Zealand-born theatre designer Henry Eli White. It is located on Courtenay Place, the main street of Wellington's entertainment district, opposite the Reading Cinema complex.
6. BATS Theatre
BATS Theatre is a theatre venue in Wellington, New Zealand. Initially founded as the Bats Theatre Company in 1976, then established in its current form in 1989. BATS Theatre has seen the development of many performing arts talents of New Zealand.
7. Kaiwharawhara
Kaiwharawhara railway station, a former railway station on the North Island Main Trunk and the Wairarapa Line in Wellington in New Zealand, closed in 2013. It was the first station north of Wellington, serving the early suburb of Kaiwharawhara. Prior to its closure it was served by trains operated by Tranz Metro as part of the Metlink network on the Melling Line, the Hutt Valley Line and the Kapiti Line.
8. Nairn Street Colonial Cottage
Nairn Street Cottage is Wellington's oldest original cottage. It was originally built by the Wallis family, who lived in the cottage for three generations. Tours of the cottage are available to hear about these early British colonists and their descendants, and the garden is open daily during daylight hours. Nairn Street Cottage is classified as a Category 1 Historic Place by Heritage New Zealand.
9. Michael Fowler Centre
The Michael Fowler Centre is a concert hall and convention centre in Wellington, New Zealand. It was constructed on reclaimed land next to Civic Square, and is the pre-eminent concert site in central Wellington.
10. Waitangi Park
Waitangi Park is a remodelled recreational space in Te Aro, Wellington, New Zealand, that was opened in 2006. It lies near Te Papa, Former Post and Telegraph Building and Courtenay Place. The facility includes a waka-launching area, a children's playground, a skateboard zone, and a large grassy space.
11. Te Ahumairangi Hill
Te Ahumairangi Hill is a hill running for over 100 hectares through the Town Belt of Wellington, New Zealand. It was renamed Te Ahumairangi Hill as part of the Port Nicholson Block Claims Settlement Act 2009. The suburb of Wadestown lies to the north, with Wilton, and Northland to the west and south-west. Te Ahumairangi lies within Thorndon which continues to its south-east.
12. Hannah Playhouse
The Hannah Playhouse is a theatre venue situated on the corner of Courtenay Place and Cambridge Terrace in central Wellington, New Zealand. The Hannah Playhouse was given by Sheilah Winn and named after her grandfather, Robert Hannah, a very successful businessman. It was carefully designed and built to house Downstage Theatre.
13. Goldie's Brae
Goldie's Brae is a historic building in Wadestown, Wellington, New Zealand classified as a "Category I" historic place by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. It is considered remarkable for its relatively new construction material, concrete, and its eccentricity of design. It was designed by its original owner Dr Alexander Johnston, the Provincial Surgeon of Wellington.
14. Public Trust Building
The Public Trust Office Building is an office building in central Wellington, New Zealand, completed in 1908. It is the only (surviving) building "made of a true New Zealand granite – from Tonga Bay in north-west Nelson." It is also believed to be New Zealand's first steel-framed office building.
15. Turnbull House
Turnbull House is a historic building in Wellington, New Zealand. It was built in 1915 as the residence of Alexander Turnbull and to house his private library, later bequeathed to New Zealand as the Alexander Turnbull Library. It is listed by Heritage New Zealand as a Category 1 Historic Place. Turnbull House is situated across the road from The Beehive, and is now completely surrounded by the much larger buildings which form New Zealand's Parliamentary Precinct, including Bowen House, the Treasury Building, Parliament House and The Beehive.
16. Circa Theatre
Circa Theatre is a professional theatre company in Wellington, New Zealand, that was established in 1976. They present a number of plays each year in their two auditoriums, and have a unique partnership and funding model with incoming shows underpinned with a cooperative principle.
17. Carter Fountain
The Carter Fountain is a distinctive feature 150 metres (490 ft) out in Wellington Harbour from Oriental Bay. Installed in 1973, it was named in memory of the parents of its donor Hugh Carter, who drowned only days after the fountain's inauguration.
18. Thomas King Observatory
The Thomas King Observatory stands at the top of the Botanic Garden in Wellington, New Zealand, as part of the Carter Observatory. In the past it has housed research, preservation of heritage, education and promotion of astronomy to the public.
19. Saint Mary of the Angels
St Mary of the Angels is a Catholic church on the corner of Boulcott Street and O'Reily Avenue in Wellington, New Zealand. It is the parish church for Wellington Central and one of the major churches of the city. The Marist Fathers have provided clergy for St Mary of the Angels since 1874 in succession to its founding and long-serving parish priest, the Capuchin Franciscan, Father Jeremiah O'Reily. The church was used by Archbishop O'Shea as his pro-cathedral (1936–1954). It was the site of the funeral of Suzanne Aubert in 1926 and is well known for its church music tradition.
20. Brooklyn War Memorial
Brooklyn is a suburb of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand, under the governance of Wellington City Council. It lies 3 km south of Wellington's central business district on the eastern slopes of the hills above Happy Valley. It is located to the south of Aro Valley and Highbury, west of Mount Cook, north of Vogeltown, Mornington and Ōwhiro Bay and east of Kowhai Park, Panorama Heights, Mitcheltown and Karori.
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Disclaimer Please be aware of your surroundings and do not enter private property. We are not liable for any damages that occur during the tours.