Wellington Travel Guides (Updated September 2026)

Perfect timing for pick up ready to find. Friendly guide, knowledgeable & a bit of an actor himself[entertaining]. The tour guide at Weta Workshop was 2nd to none, Taylor- thank you for a fabulous experience. Magic memories.

My husband and I booked the Kapiti Island Rangatira Experience Day Trip. The communication from Kapiti Island Nature Tours in the lead-up to the day was fantastic. On the day, the lady (maybe Paula?) who checked us in was friendly and helpful, and then Tamihana, our guide, was awesome at getting us through the preparation for the trip. The ferry left on time, and the second guy (sorry didn't catch his name) on the ferry was also super friendly and informative. Once on the island, we enjoyed the info about what birds we could expect to see and info about the various walks that are available (as well as a safety briefing). The walk itself was awesome. We took the Wilkinson's track to the summit and then did the lower loop walk after that. It was a pretty overcast day, so the views weren't as good as I would imagine they are on a clear day; however, still absolutely stunning. The time on the island was perfect (not too short so you were rushing, but not too long that you were waiting for ages at the end). Once again, the ferry came at the planned time, and we got back as expected. Everything was well organised and managed from start to finish, and the welcoming and passionate staff made the experience even more enjoyable. We will definitely be back again and will challenge ourselves with the Trig Track next time. 😀

Comfortable enjoyable cruise ride. Good informative great crew and music Beautiful views and history about Wellington Saw a seal and lucky we got a nice day except the wind .. I recommend it !!

The tour was a perfect way to experience the Martinborough region of New Zealand. At the end of the day I had learned so much about the area, and it's history from our guide, Stephen. And more knowledgeable about the wines of the regions from visits to three wineries.

Brief insight into the workings of Weta

We done both the Wellington and Auckland tours and they were fantastic, everyone we had were amazing and passionate about what they do, really good getting able to see how special effects are done from start to finish

It was great, a beautiful harbour..

A superb trip - Joseph our guide was entertaining and full of local knowledge and ensured we had a fantastic day. The vineyards we visited were excellent, very welcoming and thanks to Joseph many of the owners came to say hello - an extra bonus. Great wines. Highly recommend.

Our overnight trip to Kapiti Island was a an incredible experience. The wonderful team looking after us were welcoming, friendly, knowledgeable and made our stay easy and enjoyable. The accommodation was comfortable and food was amazing. It was interesting finding out about the history of the Island and the wildlife, and we got to see a kiwi on our night excursion which was a special moment. The birdlife was amazing around the lodge and around the walking tracks. It was a fabulous weekend and we would thoroughly recommend. Thank you so much to our lovely hosts. Nga mihi nui

Would highly recommend this tour! Saw so much fantastic wildlife and our guide Johnny was incredible and so knowledgeable.

Such a great experience! Our guide was super enthusiastic and knowledgeable and took time to look around the exhibits. The bus driver gave us a great little tour around Wellington too. Would’ve been good to be able to take some more photos (wasn’t allowed in most areas) but to be honest - the memories are in our heads!

We spent the day with Nathan, a local Wellingtonian. It was our good fortune to be the only people on the tour (4 people) which meant we got some personalised flexibility in our itinerary. Nathan took great care of the family members with mobility limitations and gave me extra time at the WETA shop because he knew I was a LOTR fan. We had a guided tour of Te Papa built into our day and Nathan gave us extra time to go through the Gallipoli exhibition afterwards (honestly its a must see!) We all agreed it was a fantastic experience. I booked through Cool Destinations and Nathan is part of Ka Rawe Tours - highly recommend. 5/5 in all aspects.

I came into Te Papa to check out the new Whakairo (carving) exhibition on the weekend and it was an amazing exhibit made even better by the knowledge and passion of the Te Papa staff.By chance I struck up a conversation with one of the staff (Robbie from Kāi Tahu/ Kāti Māmoe - please excuse me if I misremembered his name). He was so helpful and knowledgeable about the exhibit.As a wāhine Māori it gave me so much peace and comfort to meet staff who truely value our taonga and share their stories with the respect and appreciation they deserve.I had intended to briefly look at the exhibit but after an amazing and insightful kōrero from Robbie I stayed twice as long to enjoy the taonga. I’ve now encouraged my friends and whānau to come along and see it themselves.Thank you Robbie for sharing the kōrero of these taonga with me, your passion and aroha translated into your kōrero. You are a great kaitiaki of these taonga and an amazing reflection of Te Papa and its values.

I love char! She's so nice and had a cute Scottish throwing axe ❤️❤️ she's the best 💯

Had such fun, great family event. Enjoyed by all is us, Joe was a great axepert!

We had an absolutely fantastic Zealandia by Night experience on Monday and couldn't recommend it highly enough to fellow nature lovers.Our guide, Ash, was incredible. Her storytelling ability is second to none, bringing the history and wildlife of Zealandia to life, while her knowledge of the sanctuary's fauna was genuinely mind-blowing.We were incredibly fortunate with our sightings, including a male little spotted kiwi busily foraging for bugs, a baby tuatara, and a fully grown female giant wētā, along with plenty of other fascinating nocturnal creatures.The evening began with a highly engaging and informative presentation in the Visitor Centre, including a captivating film exploring the natural history of Aotearoa New Zealand. The tour itself was beautifully paced and packed with fascinating insights, and it concluded perfectly with a freshly brewed pot of kawakawa tea.A wonderful experience from start to finish. Highly recommended for anyone who loves New Zealand's wildlife and wants to experience the ngahere after dark!