Wellington: The love child of Melbourne and San Francisco is better than ever

Dubbed the love child of San Francisco and Melbourne, this city just over the ditch is a standout for many — and not just because of its craft beer scene.

With Australia’s international border ban being lifted this week, the first signs of travel normality are making a slow return.

The easing of quarantine, dubbed a “game changer” by the travel industry, essentially means double-vaccinated Australian citizens and permanent residents can come and go from NSW, Victoria and the ACT without having to enter any form of quarantine when they reach our shores.

The excitement around the borders reopening throws me back to the window in April when the much anticipated trans-Tasman travel bubble opened to all of Australia, and the first taste of travelling with a passport made a welcome return following a year of Australia’s international travel ban.

This city over the ditch is a spot you need to check out when restrictions allow. So pack your GoPro, because a stay here is action packed.

Stepping on board that plane bound for Wellington had a completely different feel to it. Tears had already started for some passengers who were finally seeing loved ones, while others were taking the opportunity to see a different city to their own.

Wellington has always had a certain appeal. Just over three hours from Sydney, the city (as the locals put it) is like a love child between Melbourne and San Francisco.

Trendy alleyways, a thriving craft beer (and coffee) scene all while being surrounded by waterfront walks and bike trails — this capital city offers a refreshing adventure stepping out of lockdown.

Whether you’re in for a city escape, reconnecting with nature, a weekend of wine or perhaps all three — this is the ultimate guide to how to spend a long weekend in New Zealand’s capital:

STAY

QT Wellington: If you want to be in the centre of town, but also have the views that stretch right across Oriental Bay, the boutique hotel vibe of QT Wellington is where it’s at.

QT Hotel Wellington.

Dark and moody with a great little bar in the foyer, this hotel plays as the perfect retreat when you want to escape the city, sit back with a cocktail and take in the Te Aro precinct.

QT Hotel Wellington is the perfect base for your city stay.

The lobby lounge is decked out in New Zealand art to fringe the bar area, making it feel like you’re in a gallery of sorts. And the best bit is the art doesn’t just stick to the lobby – it flows through corridors, elevator and even into your room.

Hippopotamus at QT Wellington is a stunning space to grab a drink.

Sitting nice and central so you’re in walking distance to the shops that line Cuba street and the cheap eats along Eva Street, it’s the perfect base for your city stay.

EAT

Charley Noble: Keep your eyes peeled during a moody dinner at this popular politician hangout. A favourite spot for Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, the dimly lit restaurant Charley Noble restaurant in Post Office Square showcases wood-fired cooking, local ingredients, natural wine and craft beers.

A delicious dish from Charley Noble in Wellington.

Wellington, New Zealand – Charley Noble restaurant

It’s the perfect spot for lovers of seafood and smokey meats, with some of the highlights being freshly shucked oysters and the house gin-cured salmon.

For meat-connoisseurs, the Zesti wood fired char grill and rotisserie (the first of its kind in New Zealand) serves up organic cuts of aged, pasture fed and grain-fed beef.

If you’re dining alone, grab a seat by the bar over a booth so you can experience the kitchen first hand as the eatery has an open to view kitchen where people can see their food being prepared from their dining table.

Martinborough Hotel: The perfect country pub vibe for a drink, feed or overnight stay — Martinborough Hotel is the perfect spot for all three.

The Martinborough Hotel, New Zealand. Picture: Jet Productions

Martinborough is one of New Zealand’s best bicycle wine touring destinations, making a stay at the pub a perfect place to grab a wine map and embark on a bike tour around the more than 20 vineyards dotted around the region.

The village around the hotel has boutique stores, cafes and restaurants and a craft brewery — but the best spot to park yourself for lunch or dinner is Union Square.

Union Square is the best spot in Martinborough for dinner.

The bistro-style restaurant is at the bottom of Martinborough Hotel and uses incredible produce and products, including award-winning olive oil and cheese, grown and made in the region.

Instead of driving home, splash out on a room at the hotel — which offers stunningly designed boutique accommodation. Located on the doorstep to everything Martinborough and the South Wairarapa has to offer, you won’t find a better place to rest your head.

The rooms are quaint and comfortable.

DRINK

Poppies Winery: A scenic one hour drive from Wellington, a trip to the Martinborough wine region is an absolute must. The greater Wairarapa wine region produces a range of varieties, with standouts within the region being pinot noir, sauvignon blanc as well as Chardonnay, Syrah and dessert wines.

You can enjoy a platter and some wine surrounded by the vineyards.

The winery is known for simple and stunning food and incredible wines.

The region and quaint country town of Martinborough boasts some of New Zealand’s most iconic and sought after producers, with Poppies topping my list.

A must-visit destination for all wine-lovers, Poppies Martinborough will sweep you away with simple and stunning food and incredible wines served among the vines. Husband and wife owners Shayne and Poppy of Poppies Martinborough have achieved the perfect atmosphere for a long lunch. The boutique wine producers have chose to stay small and do what they do well, rather than grow to meet increasing demand, turn into a commercial production and lose the heart of where they started.

Poppies Windery is a must visit.

The platters are fresh and delicious, and the wine is crisp and light and perfect to enjoy as a first stop while exploring the picturesque region.

Craft Beer ToursNZ: What better way to experience Wellington than to have an axe in one hand followed by an ale or two in the other afterwards.

Start your experience at Sweet Axe for a unique experience that will have you coming back for more.

Grab an axe and learn how to throw in this Wellington tour.

The axe-throwing two hour session starts with an "Axpert" who will show each participant the best throwing technique, tips and tricks. The best bit is there’s team games involved, and no axe-throwing experience required!

Then, put your beer goggles on for Craft Beer Tours NZ — the most comprehensive craft beer tour in the city.

Sip and learn how some of the best craft beer in Wellington is brewed.

Your guide (hopefully you get Mike) will take you on a behind-the-scenes craft beer tour to two of Wellington’s finest breweries where you’ll enjoy no fewer than eight beers and an awesome VIP experience with dedicated brewery crew at each location.

Garage Room Tap Room, Wellington, New Zealand.

Craft Beer Tours NZ is the ultimate way to taste some of the best beers in Wellington

We visited Gragae Project (which had some amazing XPA’s, even enjoyed by a non-beer drinker) and Fortune Favours (a great brewery if you’re keen to bring your four-legged friend along for the ride).

EXPLORE:

Mount Victoria Lookout: This is a nice quick stop as soon as you touch down in Wellington, especially if you want a stellar view and just get a general lay of the land of the city.

Head to the top of Mount Victoria (with on foot or by car) which sits 196 metres above the city, which has stunning panoramic views of Wellington city, harbour and hills.

The view from Mt Victoria in Wellington is the perfect place to catch the sunset.

If it’s a nice day and you have some time to kill, take a picnic with you and settle in on the hillside and relax while watching ferries and cruise ships sail into the harbour and planes fly in and out overhead. Mt Vic (as the locals call it) is also one of the best spots in the city for taking in a sunrise or sunset.

E-Bike to Pencarrow Lighthouse Jump on an early East By West ferry from Queens Wharf to Days Bay for the ultimate bike riding adventure near the city.

The 20-minute journey to Days Bay will give you the ultimate view back to the city from the water, so have your camera ready.

The bike tour to Pencarrow Lighthouse

Wildfinder is where you’ll pick up an e-bike from, and your self-guided tour to out to Pencarrow Lighthouse begins.

The Pencarrow Lighthouse was New Zealand’s first permanent lighthouse and was run by New Zealand’s only female lighthouse-keeper, Mary Jane Bennett, who took over the post for 10 years – when her husband George, the former keeper, tragically passed away.

Scenic view and seaside landscape with lighthouse at Pencarrow Head, Wellington.

She lived alone with her six children in this rugged and spectacular coastline from 1855 to 1865.

Exploring the trails to the lighthouse on a super easy-to-ride e-bike makes taking in all the views (and friend goat locals you will spot along the way) a dream.

Zealandia: Immerse yourself in prehistoric nature at this natural wonderland just minute from Wellington’s CBD.

The award-winning Zealandia is a stunning eco-attraction, where visitors can step back 1,000 years to the ‘day before humans arrived’ in The Exhibition, and discover Zealandia’s story, 80 million years in the making. This wonderland is a photographer’s dream, so make sure you have your GoPro handy to make the visit a memorable one.

Zealandia is known at Earth’s hidden continent.

Dubbed the earth’s hidden continent, Zealandia allows you to explore at your own pace or be led by a guide.

During the day, walk among rare birds like hihi, kākāriki and takahē. While at night, take a guided tour through the world’s first fully-fenced urban ecp-sanctuary, and search for thousands of glow worms and over 150 kiwi roaming free.

Zealandia from the air, New Zealand. Picture: Rob Suisted

Zealandia’s mission to create the valley back into the way it was before the arrival of humans.

MUST VISIT:

Te Papa: You can’t really visit Wellington without a few hours walking around New Zealand’s national museum.

From toddlers through to school-age and even adults, you will be in awe of all the features within Te Papa.

Te Papa, Wellington, is a natural museum not to miss.

Immerse yourself in a room of colour, or hear extraordinary stories from young refugees. The highlight is the Gallipoli exhibition, which tells the story of the Gallipoli campaign in World War I through the eyes and words of eight ordinary New Zealanders who found themselves in extraordinary circumstances.

Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War exhibition is in conjunction with the creative artistry of Weta Workshop to tell a story of each man, in a presentation that’s captured frozen in a moment of time on a monumental scale 2.4 times human size.

Gallipoli: The Scale of our War exhibition at Te Papa Tongarewa in Wellington, New Zealand. Image via WellingtonNZ.com

The giant sculptures took a staggering 24,000 hours to create, and is an experience not worth missing.

This journalist travelled to Wellington as a guest of Wellington Tourism and Air New Zealand.