These hilly, 25-hectare botanic gardens can be effortlessly visited via the Wellington Cable Car (nice bit of planning, eh?), although there are several other entrances hidden in the hillsides. The gardens boast a tract of original native forest, the beaut Lady Norwood Rose Garden, 25,000 spring tulips and various international plant collections. Add in fountains, a playground, sculptures, a duck pond, cafe, the Space Place observatory and the small-but-nifty Cable Car Museum and you’ve a busy day out.
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Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¼´Ê±¿ª½±'s must-see attractions
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For an imaginative, interactive experience of Wellington’s social and maritime history, head to this bewitching little museum, inside an 1892 bond store…
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This groundbreaking ecosanctuary is nooked into a valley in the hills about 2km west of downtown Wellington. Living wild within the fenced, predator-free…
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The city's most impressive viewpoint is atop 196m-high Mt Victoria (Matairangi), east of the city centre. You can take bus 20 most of the way up, but the…
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New Zealand's national museum is hard to miss, taking up a sizeable chunk of the Wellington waterfront. ‘Te Papa Tongarewa’ loosely translates as …
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Academy Award–winning special-effects and props company Weta Workshop has been responsible for bringing the likes of The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit,…
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New Zealand might be a young country but it has one of the oldest continuously functioning parliaments in the world and has chalked up more than its share…
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Housed in the monumental old library in Civic Sq (the new library is next door), Wellington’s much-loved City Gallery does a cracking job of securing…
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Standing like giant organ pipes, these 'hoodoos' were formed by rain washing silt and sand away, exposing the underlying bedrock. It's an eerie landscape,…
Nearby Wellington attractions
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Inside the Carter Observatory at the top of the Botanic Gardens, this full-dome planetarium offers space-themed multimedia shows and stargazing sessions…
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The small-but-nifty Cable Car Museum tells the history of the Wellington cable car, arcing back to when it was built in 1902. Take the cable car back down…
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There's a terrific vantage point at the top of Wellington's cable car tracks. Ride up the hill, ogle the view over the city and Cook Strait, then wander…
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Lost beneath a canopy of oak and pohutukawa, between freeway off-ramps and apartment towers, this fabulously dank and atmospheric remnant dates back to…
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One of Wellington’s big-ticket attractions is the little red cable car that clanks up the slope from Lambton Quay to Kelburn. At the top are the…
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Closed for seismic strengthening and restoration from 2013 to 2017, this pretty Catholic parish church is looking downright heavenly. Built in 1922, it…
7. New Zealand Portrait Gallery
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Housed in a heritage red-brick warehouse on the waterfront, this estimable gallery presents a diverse range of NZ portraiture and caricature from its own…
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The showcase of the esteemed New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts (founded 1882), the Academy Galleries presents frequently changing exhibitions by NZ artists…