Walks (James)
Easy walk: one of the easiest walks (and one of the nicest things to do in Wellington) is along Oriental Parade. You can start e.g. from Civic Square, then walk over the overpass and turn right. Walk by Te Papa (on your right) and keep hugging the shoreline. You can provision yourself with ice-cream at Bernie's, the little shop at the Freyburg recreation centre, or at a couple of little shops on the other side of the road. The point (where Oriental Parade turns into Evans Bay Parade) is a good place to turn around; if you turn around then and go back to Civic Square, the whole round trip will take 45 minutes to an hour. For a longer walk, just keep on walking along the shore of Evans Bay!
Slightly bigger walk: For a slightly bigger walk with more uphills, head up to Mount Victoria (the big hill you can see on your right from Oriental Parade). Just going up and down will take you 20 minutes, but there is a range of longer walks along the ridge of the hill - for a map and one option see here.
Pretty big walk: Wellington offers a lot of nice views of the harbour, but the best view of all is from 'the turbine' (a wind turbine at the top of a hill above Brooklyn). I did this walk recently from Aro Valley and it took me exactly 2 hours return - and be warned that it's uphill (or downhill) all the way! Go down Aro Street until you see the Polhill Reserve on your left. Here there are two paths: an obvious one to the left as you face the park, past the signs, and a more hidden-away one to the right. Take the one on the right: it gets you up the hill much quicker, and it's closed to mountain bikes, unlike the other one! Follow this path uphill for about forty minutes. You'll then be on some steep suburban roads, with pretty clear signage taking you up to the turbine. On a clear day you'll be able to see the entire harbour, Evans Bay, and Cook Strait, as well as the whole of Wellington spread out beneath you. Well worth the hike. There's a map of the Polhill Reserve here.
Zealandia (the Karori Sanctuary) (Jeff)
This is a pest-proof nature reserve that has become home to many endangered species of birds, such as kakas, hihis, kiwis and others (until humans came, New Zealand lacked most mammals and consequently many native birds are ill-equipped to deal with creatures like rats, stoats, or cats). There are also tuataras, even some babies. The grounds are extensive and a pleasure to walk. I especially recommend strolling along the dam and the suspension bridge. Before you enter the sanctuary itself, visit the Exhibition, which has several attractive features (and is very child-friendly). You may also want to visit the café (you can’t buy food inside the sanctuary). You can get there by taking the Cable Car to the top of the Botanic Gardens, where you will find a (free) van service. You can also walk to Zealandia from that point, but give yourself a half-hour to do so. Or you can go by taxi, which will not be expensive. More information here.
Cinemas and theatres (James and Art)
Wellington has a number of nice old-fashioned theatres and cinemas. For good independent live theatre, head to BATS at the far end of Courtenay Place or to Circa Theatre right across from the main entrance to Te Papa.
Two comfy little cinemas that show artsy movies are The Lighthouse off Cuba, at the top (far) end of Cuba Street, and The Paramount, in Courtney Place. The Embassy (left), at the very top of Courtney Place, which shows more blockbusters, is also a beautiful place, and is worth visiting just for the bar. The Ducks Deluxe coffee bar, immortalised in this video for the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra, is right next door.
A few other places... we'll be adding more, so watch this space!
Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand: among other things, the earthquake experience is well worth a visit
The Weta Cave and tours of Weta Workshop: for all those Lord of the Rings fans (you know you're out there)
Museum of City and Sea: an unexpectedly fascinating museum about Wellington's checkered history. The website doesn't give much away, but it's well worth a look.
The Carter Observatory (The Space Place): in the Botanical Gardens; still a working observatory, with some great exhibitions
On this page is some information about Wellington, and just a few ideas of how to spend your time if you can tear yourself away from our fascinating conference. We'll be adding to this, so please come back and check again, or ask us if you have any questions. If you're travelling with kids, Babette is more than happy to give advice and suggestions: email her at Babette.Puetz@vuw.ac.nz.
Getting around
Wellington is a compact city; the city centre is flat and most places are in walking distance. The main roads run into each other in a curve a couple of blocks back from the harbour: Lambton Quay and Willis Street form the main high street shopping area. Near the top of Willis, turn left into Manners Street: from here you have a choice of going down to Courtney Place (bars and restaurants) or turning to the right up Cuba Street (also bars and restaurants, but also shopping, with more quirky stores and fewer chains than Lambton and Willis). But if you don't want to walk, there's also a good bus network. Quite a lot of buses (for example the 1, 2, 6, and 11) go up Lambton Quay, along Willis Street, and down Courtney Place (i.e. more or less from one end of Wellington to the other). Pretty much the whole central city is in fare zone 1; the fare is $2. They'll all take cash, but don't offer them a large note - they may not have change. The website (fares, timetables, etc.) is here.
Weather
It's summer, but it's been fairly unpredictable. It's currently scheduled to be wet on Thursday and Friday, but fine either side of that - but that may change. Expect temperatures around 16-19 degrees, and bring a rainjacket! Umbrellas aren't useful: rain is often accompanied by strong wind, so your umbrella is likely to end up inside out.
Supermarkets
The closest is New World, inside Wellington Railway Station: turn right as you come out of Rydges, walk one block, and the railway station's across the road in front of you (an imposing Victoria affair with Doric columns and a rather nice coffered ceiling inside the foyer). There's also a smaller New World in Willis St and a small Countdown on Lambton Quay.
Bookshops
The best is Unity Books, in upper Willis Street, a wonderful independent bookstore which also does book launches and poetry readings. (They're also really good at figuring out which book you actually mean when you say 'I can't remember the author or the title, but it had a blue cover...') There are also a couple of excellent second hand bookshops: Arty Bees in Manners Street, and Pegasus in Left Bank off Cuba Mall. Closer to Rydges, but far less interesting, there's a big Whitcoulls on Lambton Quay. Vic Books is also good, if you make it up the hill to the university (and it has excellent coffee) - there's also a branch down at the university campus near the railway station, but it might be a construction site at the time of the conference.
The Cable Car and the Botanic Gardens (Diana)
The cable car runs every ten minutes from Lambton Quay up to the top of Kelburn hill. It's popular with kids, tourists (expect long queues if there's a cruise ship in town) and any university students who are too lazy to walk. Take it all the way to the top and you'll find good views over the city. You'll also find the Carter Observatory, and Wellington's pleasant botanical gardens, including lots of attractive paths (not all of them steep). There's a café in the huge rose garden, and from here you can also stroll back down to the city through the historic Bolton Street cemetery. More information here.
Mt Victoria from the harbour
The harbour from Mt Victoria
The cable car
A kaka (native parrot)
Te Papa
A tuatara in Zealandia
Zealandia
The Embassy theatre