Why Live Here?

Wellington Harbour - Te Whanganui-a-Tara - is a naturally beautiful and safe anchorage, providing shelter from the notoriously rough Cook Strait – the passage of water that separates New Zealand’s North and South Islands.

 

The geography of Wellington is perhaps its biggest asset, setting it apart from other New Zealand cities. It’s not the only harbour city in New Zealand, but it packs a lot of scenic punch into a small area.

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High-rise office glass reflects the inner harbour and buildings appear to rise directly out of the water. Meanwhile, an army of timber houses cling to the hills, marching in neat rows toward the central city. It’s easy to cast your eye from one of the many vantage points and savour the harbour capital as a complete, well-formed package.

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You may feel a breeze. This breeze won’t go away while you’re here. It’s likely to get stronger, perhaps even to gale force strength, maybe even making walking a challenge.  Cook Strait is nature’s perfect wind funnel. The wind is the burden that Wellington must bear for the visual beauty it’s been given.

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A true Wellingtonian puts on a warm coat and embraces it.  In city slogans and in a vast collection of wind-related sculpture strategically scattered about the city, Wellingtonians use the wind in creative and whimsical ways to teach and entertain. The local catch cry of ‘You can’t beat Wellington on a good day’, is still celebrated when the weather is fine and windless. On these days literally the whole city is out on the waterfront enjoying it.

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And what about the people of Wellington?

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Wellington will never rival London or New York due to its compact size, but in the last 20 years Wellington has been discovered by immigrants from all corners of the globe. Many of these came on the back of the exploding film industry, following the huge success Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies.  Wellington took off it’s grey Government overcoat. An influx of technology-savvy, artistic and entrepreneurial newcomers gave the city fresh ideas and vigor.

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Wellington has a compact, walkable, and village-like central city, hemmed in by the surrounding hills. Cafes, restaurants, cinema, parks, businesses, and residential apartments are concentrated into a dense and colourful palette. 

 

Wellington has kept many of its historic buildings from the late 1800s and early 1900s, converting them into apartments, cafes, and offices. A stroll across the city will reveal many interesting and attractive buildings that tell a fascinating story of the city’s historical development.

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By world standards Wellington is a very small city. Just 250,000 people populate the 51 suburbs we are about to describe.

 

It’s this compactness and walkability, aligned with natural beauty and diversity in culture and opinion, which combine to create the spirit of Wellington – an exciting place to call home.

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