I know if you don\u2019t live anywhere near New Zealand, a weekend getaway to Wellington sounds ridiculous. But if you find yourself on holiday or visiting family in Middle Earth, you must make time in your schedule for \u2018Windy Welly.\u2019 With beautiful cafes, amazing nightlife and wonderful theatres, Wellington has proven itself as a cosmopolitan city amongst the big names of its neighbours Sydney and Melbourne. It\u2019s the tiniest big city, but it packs a big punch. Just pack an umbrella just in case!<\/p>\n
Top experiences in Wellington:<\/strong><\/p>\n The most impressive and cultural highlight in the city is the free Te Papa Museum. Located on the water, this beautiful museum showcases the origins of New Zealand, most importantly the Maori (indigenous) people of the country. Exhibits change regularly, but every time I\u2019ve been there, they were interactive and impressive. Definitely worth a visit.<\/p>\n Located in an alley next to a chocolate factory, Red Rabbit Coffee Co. is literally a whole in the wall. Serving up some delicious coffees, this cute shop is always busy. But some don\u2019t even come for the coffee, they come for their desserts. The Salted Caramel cookie is so addicting; they usually sell out within the first couple hours of operation. If you go, snag them all. Trust me.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not talking about the actual library. Although Wellington\u2019s library is very impressive and has a great caf\u00e9 inside, I\u2019m talking about a secret bar called The Library. It\u2019s so secret to visitors that the front door is often missed as it\u2019s just a basic door to a building. But walk up the flight of stairs and knock on the door and you\u2019re transported into what seems like someone\u2019s private library. With leather clad booths and chairs and bookshelves lining the walls, this place is heaven for anyone who loves to read. Add the dim lights and fantastic cocktails and you\u2019ll wish they never close.<\/p>\n Across the street from The Library is a tiny Italian restaurant called Napoli that makes some of the best pizza on earth. All the staff are Italian and the chef hails from Napoli himself. And you can tell. Simple ingredients and beautiful flavours. It\u2019s always full even for lunch so make sure to book ahead. Lunch time also offers great specials and it\u2019s easier to beat the crowd. So keep that an option.<\/p>\n This movie theatre is home to Wellington\u2019s International Film Festival every year and is one of the last mega screens in existence. Built in 1924, the theatre is old and beautiful and transports you back to the golden years of film with stadium seating and velvet curtains. It\u2019s also where they premiered The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, as both trilogies were made in New Zealand. They play a wide variety of movies from international blockbusters to indie films to local productions. Their most popular event is when they play Rocky Horror Picture Show and the entire town shows up dressed in character to have a crazy night in the theatre.<\/p>\n Weta is the production company behind all of Sir Peter Jackson\u2019s mega hits like King Kong, Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit. You can head to their headquarters in the suburb of Miramar to visit their Weta shop. Here you can see many of the props, costumes, and models used in all the movies. They even have a mini theatre for you to watch a feature on the company and see exactly what they do. For huge movie buffs, this is heaven on earth.<\/p>\n Wellington is small but bursting with culture, art and coffee! Take a walking tour to see all the beautiful art around the city, shop in local boutiques, sample the amazing menus, and pop in to one of the many local bookstores. There\u2019s so much to see and do in Wellington that\u2019s so positively itself that even a weekend is too short. But walking along the waterfront you really get a feel of this vibrant city. It\u2019s full of activity considering it\u2019s one of the worst places for weather! But don\u2019t let that keep you away. This city is a must!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I know if you don\u2019t live anywhere near New Zealand, a weekend getaway to Wellington sounds ridiculous. But if you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[152],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-travel-talk"],"yoast_head":"\nTe Papa Museum<\/h4>\n
Coffee at Red Rabbit Coffee Co.<\/h4>\n
Drinks at the Library<\/h4>\n
Traditional Pizza at Napoli<\/h4>\n
Catch a movie at Embassy Theatre<\/h4>\n
Check out Weta<\/h4>\n
Take a walking tour<\/h4>\n