Hotels in Wellington

Great down town shopping and easy to get around. Fantastic Te Papa Museum display ( Anzac section was very moving and well presented). Also, we enjoyed the War Museum (World War One exhibit) and Weta workshop. We enjoyed most eating experiences, especially Skopa (spelling??) Italian restaurant in Cuba St.which stayed open quite late. I think the look and feel of central Wellington is vey good and compares favourably with Christchurch (earthquake damaged, but central Christchurch pre quake was declining anyway) and Auckland The bus service was variable!! Industrial action on Thursday 14th January was not only frustrating but proved very expensive in taxi fares! One Karori service bus driver deliberately drove past our stop leaving my wife and I and a night shift worker stranded at 11.26pm!! The next bus was nearly 30 minutes after this time and we gave up and flagged a taxi at that point. This and the lack of some bus services on the 14th left a bad taste and was the worst part of our Wellington trip. I am sad because public transport should be a major asset of Wellington city and was something I remember as being better in the past. I do hope Wellington keeps the electric trolley buses!! The buses we did catch were good although the Airport Express bus is expensive compared to other services and we decided to taxi out which was only $9 dearer for two people and a lot more convenient. Overall, despite a few negatives, we love Wellington and would be keen to return for another visit. Our hotel (Astelia apartment hotel on Willis) was excellent value for money and very handy to all down town attractions. The Information Centre at Civic Square was excellent and the staff member serving us was great- very helpful. We hired a car for one day (Thrifty- Wakefield St?) and that was also good value.

Welligton is a very Compact and Walkable City. Remember it's a Harbour City too, so has some awesome views. The City has a very Alternative Cultural Vibe about it. You can wear anything here and still fit in........Funky Shoes, Coloured Hair to Tattoos. If you don't like too much walking, the Bus Transportation System is also a great way to get around. Get yourself a Snapper Card & leave the lose change for the Buskers. Don't forget about the Trains & Cook Strait Ferry, they are there to get you further & worth the adventure. Cuba Street, Courtney Place and the Waterfront are always favourites, plus Mt Victoria. Eating on the go all the time........Bakery & Sushi Food outlets are a great way to grab a bite. Remember most Sushi outlets will drop their prices late in the afternoon to clear their shelves. Food Courts in Courtney Place & Willis Street have just as good cuisine & variety. If you don't like walking up hills, take a bus ride or even better still, take a ride in the Cable Car and explore the Botanic Gardens. Then just meander on down the back streets and ally-ways back into the City Centre again. Fantastic Views on a good day or any day. Wellington can also have Windy Days as well, which puts the City in a whole new & exciting perspective. It just wants to lift you up and make you fly with the Seagulls, so just get out there and enjoy . No wonder they call Wellington "Wild at Heart"

Wellington is a great place to get around.. I had lived in Wellington back in the late nineties and going back now there have been a lot of changes.. more cafe's eateries bars.. Like they say it has more cafe's, Bar's than New York and that is amazing in its self for a small place.. We had two great day's of sunshine.. then the shitty windy rainy weather came on.. Oh well still easy to get around on public transport. And it cooled thing's down great.. New years eve we took a stroll up cuba st one of my old haunts. .found this great blues bar on the corner Vivian st..so we stayed there to see the new year in the Dj played some excellent tunes.. which was a plus.....Started off quite at first until the count down and the sky show was over then the town was buzzing. Stayed at the Bay Plazza Hotel, Oriental Parade.. which had Awesome Views of the Harbour.. Lovely helpful staff, Clean Hotel.. Great location.. Didn't really eat out as much in the restaurants.. As we had friends to catch up with and ate with them which was Awesome...Would have liked to have seen a bit more of the place especially up Mt Vic and the bay's, and the Garden's which would have been a bonus..plus the ride on the Tram up the hill to the Botanical restaurant and Gardens... But we ran out of time..

We were in Wellington for a soccer camp for our son, we spent some time in Island Bay, which felt like a resort town with lots of little boutiques. It was unusually sunny while we were there and typically windy! My partner and I took our oldest around Wellington during the week with no particular plans, just walking where we pleased. We visited Te Papa, and went to the Gallipoli exhibit, which was impressive. We also used Te Papa as our central, parking, meet up place. While walking around we stumbled across the National War Museum- this was every bit as good as the Te Papa Gallipoli exhibit (if not better) because we were taken through by a guide who gave lots of information about the Great War. We strolled the botanical gardens. Rode the cable car. Went shopping in town and it was very easy to catch the bus back to our hotel from town. The food was also fantastic. We visited a Wonton restuarant with homemade fresh wontons, lovely! We could have used more time to explore more of the walks and attended the theatre but it didn't happen this trip- we will be visiting again soon.

The waterfront is vibrant with lots always happening. The restaurants were great with excellent food and staff were efficient and helpful. We loved The Crab Shack & Chow and the Bangalore Polo Club was a good experience. Brunch at Thunderbird was delicious, you must try their milkshakes too. Columbus at Porirua also did a great brunch. The Gallipoli exhibition at Te Pa Pa was amazing as was the marae... St Pauls old cathedral was a beautiful building and just up Molesworth St from the Beehive then cut through one block.... Moore Wilson is always worth a visit. It is a great city to walk around and the walk around Oriental Bay and beyond is lovely. Even though we experienced one windy wet day it was not cold and the night time temperatures were much milder than Christchurch.

Not having a car I used day passes on both the Buses and trains and it was well worth doing so, it made getting around and visiting different locations easier and cheaper than it might otherwise have been. It was a great way to see around the city without having the hassle of driving and missing the views. A no guilt way to hop on and off busses and trains at a moments notice. Having a central city map is essential to begin with as it is easy to get confused. but a little time allows you to soon get a feel for where things are at and to then find your way about a little more easily! Te Papa, is a real asset not only to Wellington but to NZ as a whole and well worth visiting. The special exhibitions are great and well worth a viewing. The Dominion Museum up behind the new war memorial is also a great place to visit -especially while the Gallipoli exhibition is on. There were lots of out of the way food stalls and restaurants that had wonderful food and it was fun searching them out. All the traditional shopping locations are also available and looking out for unique shops to browse and shop in was fun, though did require some extra time - so do allow for that.