Wellington photos

About Wellington

Photos of Wellington showing you New Zealand’s capital city from coast to mountains.

Wellington is the capital of New Zealand and the second largest city in the country. The city is centered around a spectacular harbor with suburbs extending up and over surrounding hills.  There are two coastlines here, the south coast and the western coastline. There are also two harbors, Wellington Harbour and Porirua Harbour.

Inland, the city was built atop hills, providing many scenic lookouts affording countless views over the city, harbor, mountains, and coast. The most popular is Mount Victoria which provides a 360 degree vista. The top of the Botanic Gardens near the city center is home to another popular lookout. Just take the cable car from Lambton Quay, the busiest shopping street in the city and be whisked high above the city.

The city center is built on a small stretch of reclaimed flat land that straddles the harbor. Because of its small size, the CBD is compact and built up. This makes it easy to walk around and see many attractions side by side. For a start, you could visit any number of great cafes that serve up some of the best coffee around. You are spoiled for choice with so many cafes and restaurants in a city where coffee is a religion. Or visit Te Papa – a museum done Kiwi style and like no other in the world. Oriental Bay is a popular beach near the city center with a golden sand beach and accompanying cafes and restaurants. There are some great walks here too.

Close by is Courtney Place which is packed with nightclubs and eateries. But for something really funky, visit Cuba Street in the older part of the city which has many cafes, restaurants, quirky shops and a strong bohemian culture.

Near Wellington

Attractions further afield are plenty. You could drive to scenic Miramar Peninsula to the famous Chocolate Fish Cafe. Nearby is Park Road Post Production and Weta Cave where movies like Avatar and the Hobbit were made. Further out is Seatoun, a beautiful seaside suburb and Scorching Bay which might just be the best natural harbor beach in the city. If you want to make it a round trip, you could then drive along the rugged south coast and admire coastal views of the Cook Straight and see the towering mountains of the nearby South Island.

For earlier photos of Wellington, visit Virtual New Zealand.