October 21 – October 22 : Wellington

New Zealand’s capital is home to about 215,000 people, or a little above 400,000 if you count the larger metropolitan area. That is, of course, a very small population for a capital, especially compared to the 1.7 million people that live in New Zealand’s largest city, Auckland. Despite this, Wellington has a vibrant touch, nice lively streets, and an overall inviting allure. There are two board game cafés with regular events, which is my personal way of measuring how exciting a city is 😂

Moving around Wellington by car was, of course, a little more challenging than driving the endless empty roads of the South Island. It was no big deal though; traffic was very manageable, and the biggest challenge was finding reasonable parking. Street parking in the city center is free from 8 pm to 8 am, and I eventually found a small public lot where parking costs about 5 AUD per hour. Since I also used the car to move around (parking in the suburbs is actually free all day), it ended up being quite affordable. Wellington, as described above, is a relatively small city, and even without a car, it could easily be explored on foot. That being said, the WETA studios are about 5 km from the center, and since I had the luxury of a car… why not use it?

As for accommodation, I stayed again in the Haka Hostel, which I had grown so fond of. I booked a bed in a 2-bed room and was lucky enough that nobody booked the other bed during the 2 nights I stayed there, so I essentially had a private room.

• Mount Victoria Lookout – Hike or drive up this small hill in the middle of the city for panoramic views of the city and harbor. There are no less than 3 filming locations in the forests of this hill too ! Among them the iconic scene from Fellowship of the Ring where the hobbits hide from a Nazgul under a tree.
• Te Papa Museum – Explore New Zealand’s national museum with interactive exhibits on history, culture, and natural heritage. The museum is very interactive and among many interesting things it features a small house in which earthquakes are simulated. Highly recommended
• Wellington Cable Car – Ride the cable car from Lambton Quay to Kelburn for views and access to the Botanic Gardens.
• Weta Workshop – Visit the world-famous studio for tours showcasing movie magic from The Lord of the Rings and more. The tour takes 90 minutes and should be booked a day in advance—or later on the same day, but don’t expect to join a tour just on arrival. Seeing behind the scenes and getting a glimpse of how the magic is created was highly interesting and entertaining. Pictures were mostly forbidden during the tour, as Weta does not hold the copyright over most of the items they crafted for movies. During the tour, we also had the chance to meet two of the artists working there, and it was allowed to take pictures in their respective workshops. I got to hold an original sword that was used in the movie—yay!
• Cuba Street – Stroll down this vibrant street filled with cafes, street art, and boutique shops.
• Beef Wellington – Some pubs and restaurants try to sell (overpriced) Beef Wellington as the local dish for tourists, but it is, in fact, named after a British general and has no connection at all to New Zealand’s capital. Don’t fall for the tourist trap!

Enjoy LOTR locations and maybe a bit of Wellington too :