Walking tours
Ariki Brightwell, who is a kaiārahi (guide) for Te Wharewaka, says there are “layers of history hidden beneath the city”. A two-hour Hidden Māori Treasures tour takes you right into these fascinating layers to a part of central Wellington that many locals don’t even know about.
You’ll head to the Te Aro Pā (Māori village) where whareponga (sleeping huts) were unearthed and learn about Māori culture and hear stories the people who lived here, and even visit an excavation site that’s not open to the public. This unique piece of history right under your feet tells the stories of how Wellington developed and became the city it is today.
If you’re short on time, a one hour City to Sea tour will have you seeing Wellington from an all-new perspective. You’ll hear how the great Polynesian explorer ‘Kupe arrived in Áotearoa New Zealand, the story of the taniwha (water monsters) that shaped the harbour the city is built around, and find out how Māori culture influences modern day life in Wellington.