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Are you searching for the best Wellington tours? Here's some of the most popular


Want to cut to the chase and find the best Wellington tours?

Look no further, we've got all the information you need.

Wellington's iconic cable car makes its way up Kelburn Hill - pic courtesy Ian Trafford

Wellington is New Zealand's Capital, and is built around a beautiful harbor.

With a strong artistic background, Wellington is recognized as the Nation's cultural hub, and also has a strong sporting focus.

Home to hundreds of cafes and restaurants, it's a food lovers paradise. And with many world class wineries nearby, it's a perfect holiday destination.

And of course, Wellington is also the departure and arrival point for the Interislander ferry between the North and South Islands.

What are the best things to see and do in Wellington?

As you can see here, there are a vast range of things to see and do, in and around Wellington.

But which are the best? Well, that's where we can assist.

We've listened to our customers, and factored in our own experiences, and have come up with a shortlist of our best Wellington tours.

All highly rated, these are the tours that our customers rave about.

So if your time in Wellington is limited, check out these great Wellington tours and activities now.




Here's our top Wellington tours


1) Te Papa, perhaps one of the World’s best museums?

Te Papa is something special.

Maori Meeting House inside Te Papa Wellington - pic courtesy Te Papa

Sitting next to the harbor and close to the central city area, New Zealand’s national museum is a wonderful smorgasboard of New Zealand culture, art, history and lifestyle.

It's a place where you can spend hours and hours, wandering through the exhibits, interacting with displays, and learning all about this amazing country.

Te Papa's charm spans generations, and age is no barrier to enjoyment here.

Te Papa Gallipoli The Scale of Our War exhibit - pic courtesy Te Papa

The "Mana Whenua" exhibit tells the story of the traditional Maori people. "Mountains to Sea" explores the vast variety of New Zealand's stunning landscapes, and "Golden Days" gives a quirky insight of what it means to be a New Zealander.

Perhaps one of the most sombre and inspiring exhibits is "Gallipoli: The scale of our war". Detailing New Zealand's involvement in the Gallipoli conflict in World War 1, the exhibit focuses on the lives of eight everyday New Zealander's who were caught up in the war. Bought to life with the help of the Weta Workshop, the display features incredibly detailed sculptures which took over twenty four thousand hours to create.

Te Papa is a must if you are visiting Wellington.

Here's a couple of comments from other visitors

Reviewed by: Matt R, October 2016

Great tour! Within one hour we saw the highlights of the museum and decided what we wanted to go back to. We checked out an exhibit we otherwise would not have seen and can't stop talking about it. Great way to see the museum if you're not all that into meandering on your own.

Reviewed by: d4fwilson, April 2016

We paid for a guided tour, and were glad we did, as our guide was very knowledgeable about Maori culture and the various exhibits. The Gallipoli exhibition was very moving, the bigger than life statues were truly realistic and the narrative very touching. We had three hours to spare, and could have kept looking about for another three hours. Excellent museum.

Guided tours are available and you can learn more about them by clicking on the button below.




2) And don't forget about "Wellywood"

"Wellywood" (Wellington) is the center of the nation's vibrant film industry.

Weta Caves workshops

And it's the home of the legendary film director Sir Peter Jackson (from Lord of the Rings), and his production house.

It was also the location for King Kong and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The Weta Cave museum showcases the amazing projects of Jackson and his equally talented partners Jamie Selkirk, Richard Taylor, and Tania Rodger.

More than twenty years of production is documented, with displays including numerous famous props and characters from their body of work.

The British newspaper The Guardian, gave the Weta workshop tours a World top 10 rating in 2016!

Here's what our visitors thought:

Reviewed by: Julie H, February 2016

Really great trip, our tour leader was very informative and really friendly, thank you Michael! I am not even a Lord of the Rings fan but found it really interesting, the girl at the studio who showed us around was great too, would thoroughly recommend it, thanks

Reviewed by: Lynette K, January 2016

This again had easy to follow instructions and a great guide was waiting to greet us. Loved the Weta Cave tour so interesting and the people were very friendly and informative we had a great day. thanks Lynette

Learn more about tours of this amazing attraction by clicking on the button below:




3) You must visit Zealandia if you are in Wellington

You have to come and see this unique eco-exhibition that documents the history of New Zealand’s wonderful wildlife.

Extinct Moa at Zealandia

Zealandia is only a few minutes from the Wellington central business district, and is made up of two main attractions.

Zealandia, The Exhibition, is an indoor exhibit, that takes you through time to learn about the evolution of New Zealand's wildlife. Here you can see life like recreations of the extinct giant moa, and Haast’s eagle.

They were huge!

Learn about the efforts of New Zealander's to preserve their special wildlife.

Outside, the very appropriately named Sanctuary Valley stretches over some five hundred and fifty acres, and is bounded by a predator proof barrier. This ensures that the native wildlife is able to thrive, unaffected by outside predators.

Rangers offer free talks, and point out some of the local birdlife including the takahe and hihi.

Do yourself a favor, and come and see Zealandia. You won't be disappointed.

Here's some customer reviews of this great tour

Reviewed by: Joseph W, Australia, January 2014

This was good value. The museum had an excellent display of NZ flora and fauna and the walk around the park very interesting.The free shuttle there and back made it an excellent way of understanding NZ

Reviewed by: bknute72, United States of America, February 2016

This was a beautiful park to walk around and view the birds as well as the forest. We took the cable car up the mountain, then the free shuttle to the park. Spent a couple hours here, could have spent many more exploring all the trails. Well worth the money.

To read what other visitors thought about the tour, check availability, and make your bookings, just click on the button below:




4) Here's one for wine lovers

The Martinborough vinyards are located around 80 kilometers from Wellington.

Once a quiet backwater, Martinborough is now a thriving wine growing region, and is home to some of the best Pinot Noir in New Zealand.

Enjoying the a day out at Martinborough

Hotel pick up and drop off are included, together with a relaxing return train ride from Wellington to Featherston station, where you will meet your expert local guide.

Your tour then takes you to four of the region’s best boutique wineries, where you have a chance to mingle with the owners, sample some of their best wines, and learn about the history of the region.

Relax in the village with a delicious antipasto lunch (included in the tour cost), and if time allows, explore the local galleries and craft outlets.

Your day wraps up with a lovely cheese platter and coffee.

This full day tour is highly recommended, and the train journey is a great and unexpected feature.

Here are a couple of comments from other guests:

Reviewed by: Samantha H, September 2016

Would highly recommend this tour. Naomi was an amazing guide and made sure everything was perfect on the day. The wineries were amazing and the food was delicious. Great day out!

Reviewed by: Sandra O, March 2016

One of my favourite tours on this trip to NZ. A small group of 8 and an excellent guide. Tasted some very fine wines and made some new friends. Pretty perfect in my book

You can learn more about this great Martinborough wine tour by clicking on the button below:




5) Want to see the sights but not much time?

Then this great feature packed tour could be just what you are looking for, and is one of the highest rated of all Wellington tours.

Wellington City Sights and Coast Tour

The beauty of this tour is that it only last for two and a half hours. But in that time you get to see so much that you almost want to stay on the bus and see more!

Your tour takes you to some of Wellington’s most popular spots, like the Beehive (Parliament buildings) and the heritage listed Old St Paul’s Cathedral, which is constructed entirely of native New Zealand timbers.

Head up to Mt Victoria for awesome views across Wellington (we recommend the optional ride on Wellington's famous cable car), then visit some lovely coastal suburbs like Seatoun and Oriental Bay.

You will also have time to explore the Wellington Botanic Gardens. Sprawling over some twenty five hectares, you'll see the Begonia House and more than three thousand roses in the rose garden!

Learn about Wellington's history, and if you ask, your guide might even give you some insider tips about the best places to eat, or some special activities that you may not have known about.

This tour is a great introduction to the charms of Wellington.

Interested in what others thought? Here's a sample

Reviewed by: Martin W, March 2017

Very enjoyable and informative tour with our driver Todd. As we only had a day in Wellington the tour gave us an excellent overview of the city and it's surroundings. Short stops on route allowed us to explore and maximise the time we had.

Reviewed by: Methuen F, February 2017

Another great tour of the Wellington area we got to see plenty and our guide was polite and lovely! Not only is it inexpensive but it takes you around the entire city which is great for scouting out spots to walk to and check out later.

Find out more about this tour, and check availability. Just click on the button below:



We've only scratched the surface here. There are so many more great things to do here.

The Mountains to Sea exhibit at Te Papa - pic courtesy Te Papa

If you've enjoyed reading about our selection of the best Wellington tours, then maybe you would like to see what else is available?

With so much to see and do here, Wellington is a place where you can easily spend a week or so.

So grab a coffee, and have a look at the range of tours available.

To read reviews, check availability and prices, and to search a huge range of Wellington tours, just click HERE.

Of course if you have any questions about Wellington or New Zealand, don't hesitate to ask us.




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