The Wētā Cave shop is a must-see for film buffs and lovers of cool stuff. See authentic Wētā-designed collectibles, prop replicas, books, jewellery, art prints, gifts, apparel and movie memorabilia.

• Entry to the Wētā Cave, including our documentary and mini-museum, is FREE.

• Incredible artefacts from the world of film – The Weta Cave boasts a range of high-end sculptures, prop replicas, art prints and apparel designed by Weta artists. 

• Exclusive behind-the-scenes documentary – Screening every 30 minutes.

• Miniature props showcase - a mini-museum displaying Wētā Workshop artefacts from films we’ve worked on.

• Unique photo opportunities – Looking for a fantastical photo to celebrate your visit? While our tour spaces don’t allow photography, the Wētā Cave is the perfect selfie spot.

• Book guided tours and hands-on workshops directly - However, we strongly recommend booking online in advance. Our tours frequently sell out, particularly during peak season (Oct-April).

Our tours depart from the Wētā Cave at 1 Weka Street, Miramar, Wellington. 
Miramar is located a 15-20min drive from Wellington city center.

• Book a tour with return transfers: Many of our tours include guided return transfers from the Wellington city i-SITE 

• Drive and Park: On-street parking is free but limited. Please allow ample time to find a car park.

• Public transport: Catch the 18e bus to stop 6240 on Darlington Road. From there it’s a short stroll to the Wētā Cave.  

Mount Victoria provides stunning 360 degree views of Wellington City, the harbour and the ocean to the south. Car and bus access is via Alexandra Road, while walking tracks lead from Oriental Parade and Majoribanks Street.

Legend has it that Wellington harbour, originally a land-locked lake, was home to two large and very active taniwha (sea monsters). One taniwha forged a passage to the open sea creating the entrance to the harbour. The second, named Whataitai, tried a different route, became stranded and died. It is believed that Tangi-te keo (Mt Victoria) was named after the soul of Whataitai.

Mount Victoria is part of the Wellington Town Belt, land set aside in 1841 by the colonial New Zealand Company for a "public recreation ground for the inhabitants of Wellington". It's a great place for walking, jogging and mountain biking.

Explore the Parliament buildings, learn about the Parliamentary process in New Zealand, and find out how you can participate in our democracy. Along the way, you will see some of the many artworks and objects from the Parliamentary Collection, and get to know the details behind the iconic architecture.

Please note, some of the stops on the tour route may be changed or closed at short notice, including the debating chamber on days that the house is sitting.

We recommend booking all of our tours in advance, as numbers are strictly limited for each tour. If you do not book in advance, we will not be able to guarantee your place on a tour.

Please note, all bags, coats, phones, cameras and other electronic devices must be left in secure storage in the Visitor Centre before each tour begins. Visitor Centre staff will help you store your belongings, and return them to you at the end of your tour. These items cannot be taken on tour.

Introducing Parliament tour – 60 minutes

The Introducing Parliament tour is our regular daily tour, taking place on the hour each hour between 10am and 4pm. It is a great way to learn about our parliamentary processes and New Zealand’s history while looking through our iconic buildings.

This guided tour will take you to the following locations where possible:

Banquet Hall
Beehive Theatrette
Parliamentary House
Debating Chamber
Legislative Council Chamber (LCC)
Grand Hall
Parliamentary Library
Walk through the Galleria
Select Committee Rooms
The Base Isolators

Highlights of Parliament tour – 30 minutes

The 30 minute Highlights of Parliament tour gives you a short overview of the key spaces within Parliament where the democratic process happens. Where possible, this tour gives visitors access to the debating chamber where the House of Representatives meets.

This guided tour will take you to the following locations where possible:

Theatrette\\
Debating Chamber
Select Committee Rooms

Kids in the House tour – 45 minutes

The 45 minute “Kids in the House” tour runs during the school holidays and is a fun, interactive, tour designed specifically to engage our younger visitors (5 to 12 years old).

Children taking a tour will also receive a free ‘Passport to Parliament’ booklet as part of the experience. As they make their way around the Parliament buildings they can track their progress with stickers and get their passports stamped with an official Beehive stamp when they return to the Visitor Centre.

The guided tour will visit the following locations, where possible:

Debating Chamber
Legislative Council Chamber (LCC)
Grand Hall
Parliament House Foyer
Speaker’s Corridor
Parliamentary Library
Galleria
Select Committee Room
Beehive Theatrette
Banquet Hall

Art Tours – 90 minutes

This 90 minute tour showcases the art and objects from the Parliamentary Collection that are on display across the precinct. Tour highlights include visits to themed Select Committee rooms, along with the Speaker’s Lounge and Dining Room. If you have ever wanted to know more about some of the most iconic art and objects from the collection, then this is the tour for you.

Self-Guide Outdoor Tour

Discover the fascinating history of our grounds and buildings on a self-guided outdoor tour. The map covers everything from the history of the buildings, to prominent figures from our political past, and even a buried time capsule!

At a leisurely pace the tour takes up to 40 minutes.

The tour’s a great activity for the summer months, and it’s a great alternative if you don’t have enough time or have time to fill before the regular tour starts.Collect your free map from the Tour desk in the Visitor Centre, and roam the grounds at your own pace to complete the route

A garden of national and historic significance

Welcome to Wellington Botanic Garden! With 25 hectares of beautiful garden and 150 years of history, we have been recognised as a Garden of National Significance by the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture, as well as an important Heritage Area by Historic Places Trust.

A series of international and native collections

The Wellington Botanic Garden is a series of curated collections designed and cared for by our on-the-ground team of dedicated staff.

We have an amazing range of beautiful, botanical plant species to see from all over the world as well as collections that pay tribute to New Zealand's natural heritage.

There’s always something new in bloom!

This area has a play area with a slide in the form of a lighthouse, and swings. Has tiered amphitheatre-style seating area for picnics and small outdoor events, and hosts the following artworks:

• • Albatross sculpture (Tanya Ashken)
  • Fruits of the Garden sculpture (Paul Dibble)
  • Water Whirler sculpture (Len Lye)
  • Sundial (Charles Stone)

Accessibility: The park is flat.

Dogs: Dogs must be kept on a leash, except for the children’s play area where they are not allowed at all.

History:  Completed in the late 1980s, Frank Kitts Park was one of the first areas of the waterfront to be developed. 

The design of the park was heavily influenced by the annual street car race that ran through the area at that time. The seaside promenade was the start grid for the race and is the reason why the promenade is flanked by a high wall on its city side – to ensure spectator safety.

The park was named after the city’s mayor Sir Francis Joseph Kitts.

Frank Kitts Park playground

A new playground planned for Frank Kitts Park was put on hold in 2019 after construction tenders exceeded the projects $2 million budget. Councillors recently voted to proceed with the project to replace the playground.

Some of the playground equipment is nearing the end of its usable life.  The Council is reviewing the playground project to ensure it can be built within an acceptable budget while still allowing for any future development of Frank Kitts Park.

A new timeline for the playground construction project is yet to be confirmed, however construction work is expected to get underway in the 2021/22 financial year.

Wellington Underground Market and Frank Kitts Car Park

A Detailed Seismic Assessment has identified that the building is earthquake-prone.

The assessment by Holmes Consulting was done as part of the Council’s review into the resilience of its buildings. It identified two significant structural weaknesses in the car park’s roof and issues with the seismic performance of the reclaimed ground under the car park. 

The car park building is listed as quake-prone, and the Council is required to remedy the situation by 2034. 

The Underground Market was unable to keep operating in the car park after March 14 2020 because it attracts large numbers of shoppers and stallholders.

In July 2021, the contract with Wilson Parking ceased and the car park closed. Council officers are now considering options for the car park building. Options will take into consideration the short and long term plans for the park.

Frank Kitts Park and the retailers operating in small shops on the Whairepo Lagoon and harbour frontages of the car park building remain open.

A report on options and issues relating to redeveloping Frank Kitts Park, including the car park will be prepared for the Mayor and Councillors.

Did you know that only a 15-minute drive away from Wellington you can go on a beautiful coastal walk, find 200 million years of old red rocks, and spot SEALS.

Isn’t New Zealand just amazing?

Hiking to the red rocks in Wellington is honestly one of my favorite things to do in New Zealand, so it’s only right to dedicate a full blog post to this amazing little walk. I’ll start this blog post by giving you all the necessary information about how to get to the Red Rocks from Wellington, and how to behave around the seals. And then I’ll of course share my own experience from the red rocks walk.

Don’t try to go close to the seals. Seriously, they can get quite aggressive if they feel scared or intimidated. And why make them feel that way in the first place? I mean, the rocks and the sea are their home, and you’re the intruder. So just watch them from a safe distance.

Along the walk, we saw signs about how to act around seals. I think the most important rule I found was, “Never come between the seal and the ocean”.

The ocean is the seal’s escape route, if you block it, it might get aggressive. So please, just keep you distance from the beach, and both you and the seal will have a good time.

And lastly, of course you shouldn’t try to feed them or anything like that. I’ve seen so many humans try to feed wild animals, and while it might feel like a great experience, it’s not really good for the eco-system. The seals can catch their own fishies, mate!

Explore regenerating bush in Polhill Reserve and take in the best views of the city.

This route is popular with mountain bikers, runners – and a healthy spillover of native birds from the nearby Zealandia sanctuary thanks to the work of community volunteers trapping introduced predators. 

Where to start the walk

From the top of Aro Street at the Polhill Reserve entrance follow the blue markers with wind turbine symbol along trails called Transient, Sawmill, Fenceline and Windmill to get to the Brooklyn Wind Turbine.

Follow the same route back or plan another route using the webmap which shows other trails in the area. Just off the trail are the Brooklyn Gun Emplacements.

Starting at Simla Crescent the walk goes along the Northern Walkway up to the top of Mount Kaukau where there are picnic areas. At the summit, you go onto the Skyline Walkway and come back down behind Khandallah Pool.

Start at Simla Crescent Khandallah. Follow the Northern Walkway from the entrance to Khandallah Park to the summit of Mt Kaukau. Continue all the way to the top. There are picnic areas and seats on the way up.

At the summit, the Northern Walkway joins the Skyline Walkway. You will now be walking on a 4WD track towards Sirsi Terrace. Stay on the 4WD track until you come to a sign pointing to the swimming pool.

Head back into the pines down a flight of steps. This track will take you back to the parking area behind the Khandallah Swimming Pool in Woodmancote Road.

Walk past the playground in the park and take the walkway to Clark Street. From the car park in Clark Street follow the signs back into the bush and returning to Simla Crescent.

Directions to Mount Kaukau Summit direct

The most direct route to Mount Kaukau Summit is to start at Simla Crescent entrance and take first main trail on the left as marked. The track follows main ridge to summit. Allow around 35 minutes to get to the summit or an hour return.

The Ōtari-Wilton's Bush plant collections contain about 1,200 species, hybrids and cultivars. The collections include plants from New Zealand's mainland and off-shore islands.   

Almost all the plants have been grown from cuttings or seeds collected from their original habitats. The collection has the following roles:

• Conservation: Seedlings of threatened species are raised and either kept in the gardens as a conservation measure or returned to the wild in plant conservation recovery programmes. 

• Research: Scientists use the plant collections for studying plant ecology, economic potential, and classification. 

• Education: Plants are labelled to help visitors learn about their names and characteristics. 

• Recreation: Ōtari-Wilton's Bush is a great place for locals and tourists to escape urban life and appreciate New Zealand's unique flora. 

The plant collections were started in 1926 by eminent New Zealand botanist Dr Leonard Cockayne. He aimed to set up a collection of solely New Zealand native plants, displayed in family groups or as re-created ecosystems representing different areas of New Zealand.

Wellington Museum shares the fascinating stories of the Wellington region. All housed within the beautiful 1892 heritage building designed by leading architect Frederick de Jersey Clere.

One of Wellington's best-loved and best-known streets, Cuba Street is one of those places where everyone is welcome and feels at home. 

It's the home of the high/low: dine out on delicious $10 dumplings or a divine degustation at renowned restaurant, Logan Brown; see the Bucket Fountain and street art or cutting-edge contemporary art at one of the street's art galleries. Wellington's home of the unexpected, the quirky, the alternative and the fun – there's always something new to discover on Cuba Street.

Wander down Wellington's most colourful street and discover quirky cafés, vintage clothing, record stores, art galleries and get splashed by the famous Bucket Fountain. It takes a special kind of city to rock a fountain made from buckets, but Wellington isn't your run-of-the-mill kind of city. You'll find the Bucket Fountain on Cuba Street where the sight and sound of the brightly coloured buckets filling with water and surprise splashing people walking by is an essential Wellington experience. The Bucket Fountain was installed in 1969 and was originally called the Water Mobile until its current and much apter name took hold.

Oriental Bay is a bay and suburb of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. Noted for being both a popular beach and a luxurious centre of affluence in the city, it is located close to the Central Business District on Wellington Harbour.

It has the closest beach to the central city and is thus a common destination for locals, who swarm here especially in the warmer months (December to March). Painted Ladies and other historic houses, such as those in distinctly Wellingtonian streamline moderne style, are prominent alongside and up into the hills that face the bay. Situated against the northern slope of Moutn Victoria, the suburb lies 1.5 kilometres southeast of the city centre, at the start of a coastal route which continues past Hataitai around Evans Bay. Originally named Duppa Bay, after its sole original resident George Duppa, in 1843 it was rechristened after one of the first ships to bring settlers to Wellington- the Oriental. Originally described as a remote "dreary-looking spot" of rocks lying between cliffs and the sea used primarily for quarantining foreigners, it has undergone considerable renovation since colonisation's early stages. Many landmarks were built over the 20th century, such as the grand streamlined moderne houses like the Olympus building and the Anscombe Apartments, and the modernist Freyburg Pool built in the 1960s (which jets out onto the harbour and is named about Lord Freyburg, who adored the beach as a young man). However, the beach's greatest renovation came in 2004, when 22,000 tonnes of sand was shipped especially from Golden Bay to rebuild the beach, which had become worn down over many years.

In the summer months, Oriental Bay becomes a hive of activity. The beach seems covered with swimmers, party goers and families. The Carter Fountain is a distinctive feature in the Bay, as is the wooden barge which is often covered in swimmers. A small section of the bay that lies beside Freyberg pool is known as Freyberg Bay, after Lord Freyberg.

Visit New Zealands' national tattoo museum, or mokomuseum. See a range of native tottoos, their history and the meanings behind the tattoos. 

Open daily from 12pm, explore the paintings, drawings, posters, photographs, advertisements and even carvings that might collectively be described as tattoo ephemera or memorabilia. This is a small but unique museum to showcase the detailed tattoo history in New Zealand and beautiful artworks in New Zealand and overseas. There is a tattoo studio inside the museum with the tattoo artists being available to provide tattoo service upon request. The staff there are very friendly, knowledgeable and passionate about tattoo art. This is a special place for you to visit.