Wellington Transportation

Getting There

By Air

Wellington International Airport Limited (WIAL) (+64 4 385 5100 / http://www.wellington-airport.co.nz) is one of New Zealand's three largest airports and is located around 8 kilometres south east of the city. The airport provides direct service and connections to domestic and international destinations from the following airlines: Air New Zealand (+64 4 388 9900 / http://www.airnz.co.nz) Air Pacific (+64 4 388 9900 / http://www.airpacific.com) Air Tahiti Nui (+64 9 308 3360) Freedom Air (0800 600 500 (from NZ only) / http://www.freedomair.co.nz) Origin Pacific (0800 302 302 / http://www.originpacific.co.nz) Pacific Blue (0800 67 00 00 / http://www.flypacificblue.com) Polynesian Airlines (0800 800 993 / http://www.polynesianairlines.com) Qantas Airways (+64 4 388 9900 / http://www.quantas.com) Royal Brunei Airlines (+64 9 302 1524 / http://www.bruneiair.com) Sounds Air (0800 505 005 / http://www.soundsair.com) Vincent Aviation (+64 4 388 8983 / http://www.vincentair.co.nz)

The Stagecoach Flyer offers (+64 4 801 7000 / http://www.stagecoach.co.nz/flyer) inexpensive and convenient express bus service that runs between the airport, Wellington City and the Hutt Valley. The bus stop is located on the southern end of the ground level.

Door-to-door shuttle services are located on the ground floor. Shuttle companies include:

Super Shuttle (0800 727 747) AP Shuttles (+64 4 939 9590) Safeway Taxis Ltd (+64 4 802 5111) Co-op Shuttles (+64 4 387 8787) Shuttles Ltd (+64 4 237 0793)

Taxi Companies

Taxis are located outside the ground floor entrance of the terminal. Average fare to Wellington's city centre is around NZUSD20. Taxi companies include: Wellington City Cabs Ltd (+64 4 388 8000) Wellington Combined Taxis Ltd (+64 4 384 4444)

Rental Car Companies

Avis (+64 4 802 1088 / http://www.avis.com) Budget (+64 4 388 0987 / http://www.budget.co.nz) Hertz (+64 4 388 7070 / http://www.hertz.com) Thrifty Car Rentals (+64 4 388 7070 / http://www.thrifty.com)

By Train

There is a wide range of Tranz Scenic Rail Routes from all major New Zealand cities. Wellington Railway Station is a two-minute walk from Downtown. Discounts and Best of New Zealand Passes are available (http://www.wellingtonnz.com/BookingsVisitorCentre/).

By Bus

InterCity Coachlines (+64 9 913 6100 / http://www.intercitycoach.co.nz) offers frequent daily coach service throughout all of New Zealand. The Wellington bus stops are located at the Railway Station on Platform 9, Wellington Airport, and at Cambridge Terrace in the City. By Car

All main roads throughout the North Island lead to Wellington.

By Ferry

Wellington is the departure and arrival point for ferries between the North and South Island. The InterIsland Line and Bluebridge Cook Strait Ferry cross the Cook Strait up to nine times daily.

Getting Around

The public transport system (0800 801 700 / http://busandtrainnetwork.gw.govt.nz) is easy and convenient with regular buses, ferries and trains running throughout the city and surrounding areas. Discounts and daily bus and train passes are available.

The Wellington Cable Car (+64 4 472 2199 / http://www.wellingtonnz.com/cablecar) is a unique way to get around the city and to the top of the Botanic Garden. Cars depart every 10 minutes M-F 7a-10p, Sa 8:30a-10p, Su 9a-10p. The Cable Car is one of Wellington's oldest and most popular tourist attractions.

Planning a Trip

Visitor Information

The Wellington i-SITE Visitor Centre, 101 Wakefield St., Civic Square (tel. 04/802-4860; fax 04/802-4863; www.wellingtonnz.com), is open Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 5:30pm (Tues till 5pm) and Saturday and Sunday from 9:30am to 4:30pm. It provides details of regional attractions and has the best range of free guides in the country. It also has a range of tiny pocket-size leaflets and cards on everything from transport systems to shopping, art, fashion, and free walking tours. Staff members can book accommodations and attractions, arrange transport, and sell stamps and phone cards. It also has an e-mail center and cafe.

For information on Lower and Upper Hutt areas, contact Hutt City i-SITE Visitor Centre, 25 Laings Rd., Lower Hutt (tel. 04/560-4715; fax 04/570-3374; www.huttvalleynz.com), or Upper Hutt i-SITE Visitor Centre, 84-90 Main St., Upper Hutt (tel. 04/527-2141; fax 04/527-9818; www.upperhuttcity.com).

The free weekly publications Capital Times and City Voice are available at the visitor centers and leading hotels and cafes. Both have details on local happenings. If you're a keen follower of the performing arts, check at the visitor center for availability of discounted day-of-performance tickets.

Tip: Public Relief -- Free public toilets are at 69 sites throughout the city. Staffed facilities are at the ANZ Building (at the corner of Lambton Quay and Featherston St.). You'll also find restrooms at all major attractions and several department stores.

Special Events

Wellington is home to the country's biggest cultural event, the biennial New Zealand International Arts Festival (tel. 04/473-0149; www.nzfestival.telecom.co.nz). It features international works and the best of New Zealand talent in everything from opera to jazz, dance to comedy. The next festival will be staged in February and March 2010. A major spinoff from the festival is the growth of the Wellington Fringe Festival (tel. 04/495-8015; www.fringe.org.nz), which is a completely separate event run at the same time. It's now an annual event celebrating offbeat productions and innovative art forms.

Summer City Festival (tel. 04/801-3500; www.wellington.govt.nz), staged during January and February each year, launches Wellington's events calendar with more than 70 free activities such as the Teddy Bears' Picnic, the Rock Barge Concert on Oriental Parade, a Pacific Islands Festival, and Summer Shakespeare in the Botanic Garden Dell. Montana World of Wearable Art (tel. 03/548-9299; www.worldofwearableart.com) is a theatrical costume spectacle not to be missed, now staged annually at the Events Centre Wellington in mid-September and early October. This 2-hour visual extravaganza attracts international entrants and sell-out audiences of over 22,000 -- not bad considering it started in Nelson in 1987 in a leaky tent with just 200 people watching. Montana Wellington International Jazz Festival (www.jazzfestival.co.nz) features a superb roster of national and international jazz musicians performing modern jazz through the classics (mid- to late Oct at various city locations).

Martinborough Country Fair (tel. 06/306-9043; www.martinboroughfair.org.nz) is a popular gathering of crafts artisans from around the country. Held the first Saturday in February and the first Saturday in March, it attracts about 30,000 visitors. Martinborough is about an hour's drive northeast of Wellington. Golden Shears (tel. 06/378-7373; www.goldenshears.co.nz) is a 3-day international shearing contest that includes wool handling and sheep and goat shearing. It's held in late February or early March in Masterton, 103km (64 miles) northeast of Wellington. In November, catch a special 50-minute festival train from Wellington to the Toast Martinborough Wine, Food & Music Festival (tel. 06/306-9183; www.toastmartinborough.co.nz). Shuttles run a continuous circuit within a 10km (6-mile) area of Martinborough's town square to Martinborough vineyards, where tastings take place with the winemakers.

Getting There

By Plane -- Wellington International Airport (www.wellingtonairport.co.nz), is 8km (5 miles) southeast of the city. The quickest route passes through Mount Victoria via a two-lane tunnel. A more circuitous, but more scenic, route travels via Oriental Parade. The trip usually takes 15 to 20 minutes, although it can exceed 30 minutes at peak traffic times.

Wellington Airport operates both international and domestic business from the same building. It is served by the following international airlines: Air New Zealand (tel. 0800/737-000 in NZ, or 04/388-9737; www.airnewzealand.com), British Airways (tel. 09/966-9777; www.ba.com), Lufthansa (tel. 0800/945-220 in NZ; www.lufthansa.com), Qantas Airways (tel. 0800/808-767; www.qantas.com), Singapore Airlines (tel. 0800/808-909; www.singaporeair.com), and Polynesian Blue (tel. 0800/670-000; www.polynesianblue.com).

The leading domestic airlines that fly into Wellington are Air New Zealand (tel. 0800/737-000; www.airnz.com), Jetstar (tel. 0800/800-995; www.jetstar.com), and Soundsair Ltd. (tel. 0800/505-505; www.soundsair.com). For arrival and departure information, call tel. 04/388-9900.

The Wellington Airport Visitor Information Centre (tel. 04/385-5123; fax 04/385-5137; www.wellingtonairport.co.nz) is on level one of the main terminal building. Staff members can assist with booking accommodations, TranzRail, Interislander ferries, and long-distance coaches. It's open daily from 7am to 8pm.

The terminal has nine cafes and restaurants in a large food hall that offer everything from pizza and pasta to wine and tapas. There are also car-rental desks, duty-free stores, gift shops, a Travelex Foreign Exchange service open during all international flight times, and ATMs. Coin-operated lockers can be found on the ground floor. Most retail outlets are open 6:30am to 7pm, some later. Duty-free stores are open for every international flight.

Super Shuttle (tel. 0800/748-885 in NZ or 04/472-9552; www.supershuttle.co.nz) operates between the airport, the city, and the railway station Monday through Friday. It costs NZ$15 per person. Several shuttle operators provide door-to-door service at higher fares.

The Airport Flyer, the GO Wellington airport express bus Metlink (tel. 0800/801-700 in NZ; www.airportflyer.co.nz), goes right into the inner city and then on to Waterloo Interchange in Lower Hutt. It operates every 20 minutes, 365 days a year from 5:30am to 8:20pm. An All Day Star Pass costs NZ$12 per person and gives unlimited all-day travel on all Flyer, GO Wellington, and Valley Flyer services. It's available from bus drivers. Single-ride tickets are also available. The trip from the airport to central-city stops takes about 45 minutes. A new fleet of buses comply with the latest European emission standard, Euro 5, which means exhaust emissions are up to 90% lower than the older buses. The buses also have air-conditioning, free Wi-Fi, and lowered floors for wheelchair access.

A taxi between the city center and the airport costs NZ$25 to NZ$50, depending on the destination. The fare to Lower Hutt is approximately NZ$60 to NZ$70. Taxi stands are directly outside the main terminal. If you have any problems with your taxi driver, call Wellington Airport Operation (tel. 04/385-5124).

By Train & Coach (Bus) -- Most long-distance trains depart from the Wellington Railway Station, on Waterloo Quay. For long-distance rail information, call tel. 0800/802-802 in New Zealand or 04/495-0775, or visit www.tranzscenic.co.nz. Most major hostels and hotels are within a short taxi ride of the station.

For coach information, call InterCity (tel. 09/623-1503; www.intercity.co.nz) or Newmans (tel. 09/623-1504; www.newmanscoach.co.nz). Both of these coach lines operate out of the railway station. Kiwi Experience (tel. 09/366-1665) and the Magic Travellers Network (tel. 09/358-5600) also stop in Wellington.

By Car -- Wellington is reached via highways 1 and 2. It's 195km (121 miles) from Wanganui (approx. 2 hr.); 460km (285 miles) from Rotorua (approx. 5 hr.); and 655km (406 miles) from Auckland (approx. 8 hr.). The motorway terminates right in the city.

By Ferry -- For information on the Interislander Wellington-Picton ferry, call tel. 0800/802-802 or check www.interislander.co.nz. Be aware that there are two ferry operators working between Wellington and Picton. The three Interislander ferries operate all year and take 3 hours to cross the strait. Strait Shipping Ltd., Waterloo Quay (tel. 0800/844-844 in NZ; www.bluebridge.co.nz), operates Bluebridge Cook Strait Ferry, traveling to Picton daily at 3am and 1pm, and Picton to Wellington daily at 8am and 7pm. There are no 3am or 8am sailings on Mondays. The Bluebridge trip is cheapest but it takes 3 hours 20 minutes. If you book either online you get the best fares -- especially if you book well ahead. Cook Strait can be notoriously rough in bad weather, so if you get seasick, take your medication.