[jess]

Sorry if I missed this in a search but had no luck finding it...

My husband and I are going to Wellington in late April for a week (would be longer but we only get 2 weeks vac. for the year in the U.S.) :no

Besides checking shops for the prices of things and visiting nieghborhoods, does anyone have any advice on things to do that will help us get a little feel for what it's like to live there?

Also if anyone went and particularly liked their accomodations, that would be great to know too!

We are also visiting Circa Theatre and Downstage. (I work in theatre in marketing and internet services here in the U.S., so we're booking shows and asking both places if I may drop off a CV while I'm there.)

Last question -- We have our ITA, and it looks llike we will have everything necessary to return the app. by about the time we leave. We were thinking of mailing it shortly before we go visit, and just including a note in our cover letter with the dates we will be in NZ. Given the timings posted here, I doubt they would contact us in the first week anyway. Does that sound ok? Any possible reason to wait until we return to mail it?

Thanks for any help!! :smile

Jessica

[paulwardle]

Hi Jessica,
We lived in Wellington for all of 2003 & are returning there permanently in June.
We loved it, & have been to all the major cities in NZ & think its the best place to live.
Living there is great, depending on where you are, you can feel really out of the city, but be only 10 or 15 minutes from work.
Its very hilly, so be prepared, but as a result, it gives itself a really great natural feel about it. The city centre (CBD) is easily manageable & can be walked across in 30-40 minutes & is only 100 yards in parts from the harbour.
As far as living there is concerned, there are a lot of different suburbs, some coastal, some not. The coastal ones, Lyall Bay (where we lived, huge bay, popular with surfers) Island Bay, Seatoun, evans bay & all around the eastern suburbs are more expensive than other areas. But then you can go further north of Wellington (porirua etc) & they're a bit cheaper & maybe 25 mins to the city by car, but i personally think they're a bit less attractive, but thats just me. I do think though that the eastern suburbs are a great place to live, self contained, quiet & still near the city
Wellington has loads of things for lifestyle depending on what you want, quiet beaches, a beach right near the city (oriental parade), kayaks, rollerbalding around the harbour, HUNDREDS of bars, cafes & restaurants, cinemas, theatres. Regarding that, the ones you mentioned are good but really small, there are others, St James is pretty big, Opera House is another big one, they're located right near Courtney Place so i doubt you'll miss them. There's also Te Papa museum (great place), try there too.
As far as hotels for your stay are concerned, theres lots to choose from from backpackers to mid range, self contained apartments to swanky hotels. When we first got there we stayed at the IBIS (not a million miles from train station & CBD), prices are OK & cheaper at weekends. Its a good location & you know what you're getting.
When we found a house to rent, we lived in Lyall Bay & paid $340 per week overlooking the beach for a two bedroomed cottage, fully furnished & all newly decorated, really really nice place on Queens Drive.
I could go on all day, what i'd suggest is get the usual tourist maps they give away of charge $1 for & maybe rent a car (cheap enough) & go round, chances are you wont get lost around Wellington.
Wellington is a great place, really great. Its got a nice feel to it, especially around the harbour, the suburbs are accesible for the city & some are absolutely stunning around the miramar peninsula.
people may try & recommend the Hutt valley, but i think its too far away for work every day & to travel into the city easily for leisure. As for tips on what its like to live there, dine out in the city, maybe near the harbour, have a walk around the parks & shops (manners mall etc) & relax, go surfing, even if you're rubbish, at Lyall Bay (hire boards from the store, really cheap) & on the weekend, go on the Wellesley boat trip on the harbour, it was $3 when we were there, really good trip, you get to see a few other areas too.......Wellington is an amazing place to live.
Hope this helps

[RoadRunner]

Hi Jessica,
We stayed at the Hotel Wellington in February for just over a week. It's in a great location (top of Cuba St.) and relatively inexpensive (US$99/night). Lots of restaurants are within easy walking distance (Cuba St. Courtnay Pl, etc.). It's not posh by any means but a good base of operations. It's also easy to navigate to/from by car if you plan to do lots of exploring (like we did!). The only real negative is that there is no High-Speed Internet in the hotel room - they have two terminals in the lobby for NZ$1/15 minute intervals.

We did pretty much what it sounds like you are trying to do - explored neighborhoods, went to open houses, wandered the malls/stores, etc. We went all around the bays (like Paul describes - my husband LOVED Lyall Bay!), up to the Hutt Valley, Eastbourne, Parapara, etc.

You should have a blast! :yes

Feel free to PM me if you want more info.

RoadRunner

[zsj]

We arrived here at the start of Feb and I am still getting a feel for what it is like to live here! Definately hire a car for a couple of days and explore some of the suburbs. You can drive round welly using the suburbs - we did this in the first day and it decided for us where we wanted to live!

Depends what you are into - beaches/hiking/'culture' etc. Try doing some of the things you would fill your time with. We like the outdoors so have been mountain biking (Makara peak mountain bike park, can hire bikes), hiking (Otari-Wiltons bush, butterfly creek in Eastbounre/Days bay), go up to the windo turbine and mount Victoria lookout as they give you a really good birds eye view of welly and the suburbs so you can put things into place geographically.

Go up the coast - Whitby, Paraparaumou, see what it is like a little way out of welly.

Heaps to do, good luck for your week of cramming - no time for jetlag!

Sarah.

[heimatseeker]

Jessica,

agree with what everyone else has said. Another idea, since you want to find out what it's like to *live* here:

Visit stores and look at what's available and what things cost. Visit supermarkets or Moore Wilson on Tory Street for a bit more speciality grocery store (also good for liquor, kitchen/household, toys), or go to Freedom Furniture on Thorndon Quay to check out furniture prices; visit clothing stores around Lambdon Quay (what a chore :mrgreen: ) etc. - basically anything you'll expect to need once you are here. If you think you may want to use public transport for your daily commute, take a bus one day. All that should help you in getting a more complete picture of life in here.

Have fun - it's a great place!
cheers,
Sibylle

[jess]

Thanks for all the replies! This is helpful stuff, and as zsj says, there'll be plenty fo cramming to try to get it all in! (A little frightening since I have yet to get on a plane without getting horribly sick. And I've been on several planes - tho never for this long. A little nervous about being able to hit the ground running. :uhoh )

One thing - since these tickets are not cheap, and we need a good bit of money on hand to bring our 1932 house up to code for its very first sale, we were thinking of skimping and using public transport the entire time. I'm getting the impression that most of you would not suggest that? We read that public transport was pretty good and went into all of the suburbs that are close at hand. But would you say it's worth the couple hundred to rent the car?

I guess the bottom line is, is a rental car a luxury or almost a necessity for seeing the area in a week?

Thanks!
Jessica

[heimatseeker]

I guess it depends on how large an area you want to explore. When we moved here we knew we wanted to live in central Wellington, and even though we have a car, we rarely use it within the city and walk pretty much everywhere - shops, work, entertainment, restaurants, etc. We also did all our house scouting on foot.

Public transport is pretty good too; you can check out the bus and train schedule (http://busandtrainnetwork.gw.govt.nz/section10.php) here.

Why not skip the car rental for now, and if it turns out that you have a day or two planned where you do need one, just get it for that limited time?

[jess]

heimatseeker -

That sounds smart. I'm in neurotic planning mode, but as you said, if we want to we could rent a car midway through. I don't think we'd be looking as far out as Johnsonville or Hutt City (though I do need to make one run to Stokes Valley in Lower Hutt, but have the bus schedule for this). Assuming we can afford the apartment rental we'd like to be close in. I guess we'll plan on public transport for now, and see how it goes...

I do appreciate all the help!

If anyone else has advice, or if you lucky Wellingtonians think of anything else, please chime in. But thanks for all the good info here!!

Jessica

[zsj]

There are really cheap hire car places once you are here - we got one called rent a wreck i think and no it was not a wreck! Less than 30bucks a day and he came to pick my husband up to take him back to get the car. You could literally call a few places and hire one for 1 day. Yes public transport is good but sometimes, for that overall tour, you can't beat a car for a day! We have a car as we live in the suburbs with 2 small kids but in the week I barely use it, walk everywhere, train into the city, just use it for the weekly big shop and the 1 toddler play thing that is too far away.

Oh and one other thing - when you visit the shops and do the grocery shoppingetc. Don't convert it back to US currency it is very very misleading. We were converting back for the first month or so but the wage packet has forced us to look at it differently! On the whole, NZ wages are slightly on the low side in comparison to the cost of living. (BIG generalisation here but just don't fall into the trap!)

Enjoy!

Sarah.

[sarahw]

Hi Jess,

We've lived in Whitby (30 mins North of Welly) since the beginning of the year. All I can say is Welly is fab - we love it (and Whitby too but it depends what you're looking for in a suburb!).

We stayed in a fantastic B&B a couple of times called Frinton by the Sea in Eastbourne - the owners are lovely - but you will need a car to get there (or at least use the ferry from the city). I'd back up what the others are saying about renting a car - especially if you want to explore where you'd like to live. Exploring around Welly is certainly not walkable & there are several different train lines - you'll get a better feel from a car & can drop into places of interest.

Everyone has their own idea of which suburbs are nice & I think you'll only discover what you like on your own but its always good to have people on the forum to discuss the suburb with just incase there's something you don't know about that could potentially stop you moving there (we were absolutely convinced we wanted to live in Plimmerton - nice seaside village before we arrived - 1 month in a motel in Mana and we discovered that anywhere past the Paramata roundabout was an absolute traffic nightmare for getting home at night - so try out the 'trial' route to work & back in rush hour too!!!

suburb you choose will depend on how close to the centre & what type of a commute you want. Typically Kiwis don't like a very long commute here & think we're crazy living so far out of the city - we actually think its a really short commute compared with what we were used to in London so its all based on what you're happy with & used to. Also with regards to land - the further out of the city you go the bigger the garden you tend to get.

If you have (or are planning kids) its a good idea to get aquainted with which suburbs have good schools as sometimes you have to live in the 'zone' to get your kids in.

You should be OK for a week or so after you submit ITA but putting a covering note sounds a good idea (they also know you're going out to check things out which is good).

Would totally back up what Sarah says about not comparing prices for weekly shop. Everything seemed so cheap when we converted it from £££ but really its not as we aren't earning £££ any more!!

Good luck with the trip!!! :nice1

[ISan]

I will be in Wellington from November 17-29 this year for a similar fact finding mission. The info given so far is great, keep it coming.

Since I'll be going on my own I don't really want to stay in a hotel, and backpackers aren't my thing. I have been looking at homestays and found one with a former Dutch family in Paraparaumau. Hopefully staying with a local family will give me a better insight in life in NZ than staying in a hotel. I'd love to hear if anyone knows of good homestays somewhat closer to Wellington.

Ingrid

[sarahw]

Paraparaumu - nice beach! Did a beach clean-up there the other weekend. Only downside is that its an hour's journey to Welly (They have a good train line which runs 'till 2am & the journey is scenic along the coast but I'd try to get a bit closer to town).

The B&B homestay that I mentioned before in Eastbourne is really good.

http://www.frintonbythesea.co.nz/

I've also got the following websites for homestays around Welly but please note that none of these have been tested just done a search - the first one should be nice - is a stroll into the city (5 mins from where I work in Botanic Gardens)

http://babs.co.nz/gardenshomestay/ (heck just seen the price though!)

http://www.travelwise.co.nz/listings/Homestay_Wellington.html

http://www.kiwistays.com/wellington8.htm

http://www.bluecastle.co.nz/458-pics458_a.jpg.htm (this is probably too far out - its where we live which is a 30 min drive from the city & its not walkable to the train).

I've also got a website here: http://www.trademe.co.nz/Trade-me-property/index.htm

This is for rentals - I know someone else asked me about rentals & I'm so sorry I haven't had the chance to look until now (some of these do look a bit like motels & their definition of Wellington is a bit loose but...

Anyway all visitors to Welly - enjoy! Great place!

[miep]

Even if you don't like hostels I'm going to reccomend one anyway :mrgreen:
The YHA hostel is located in a former hotel, it has dorm style rooms but it also has double rooms with their own bathroom. We stayed there ages ago and thought it was a great deal; great location, good cooking facilities and a great supermarket just across the road. http://www.yha.co.nz/hostels-ind.asp?id=40
If you stay there in their most expensive option, $64 for a double room, you can spend the 40 odd $ you save on a car for a couple of days. I agree with some of the above posters, its worthwhile getting a car for 2 or 3 days. Public transport is ok but if you only have a week a car will be much more efficient. Pick up a real estate brochure and spend the weekend driving around all the houses that appeal to you, that way you'll get to see lots of suburbs and get a feel for the local real-estate speak, ie low maintenance garden = no garden etc.

Have fun!

:cheers Miep

[RoadRunner]

I appreciate that cost is a consideration but I truly don't see how you can really explore the area in such a short period (one week) without a car (for at least a couple of days).

Admittedly, we knew that we would not want to live in CBD, so we drove miles and miles (oops - kilometers and kilometers) each and every day driving to all of the different neighborhoods to get a sense fo the style of homes, going to new developments, open houses, shops, restaurants, etc.

We truly could not have seen or done as much (or felt as comfortable with our decision to move there) without having a car for our one-week recon trip.

But, if you truly want to focus on CBD (and intend to get around via mass transit once you've moved), then maybe not renting a car is a good option in your case...

Whatever you decide, good luck and best wishes!

RoadRunner

[ISan]

Hi Sarah and others, thanks for all the great info. I am indeed planning to rent a car for at least some of the days I'll be there. I agree that you need your own transportation if you want to get a feel for the place.

Ingrid

[dave k]

Besides checking shops for the prices of things and visiting nieghborhoods, does anyone have any advice on things to do that will help us get a little feel for what it's like to live there?

Jessica

Invest in a very high powered fan, set it up in your garden & have someone turn it on as soon as you step outside.
Ask them to repeat this at very random intervals.
Sit with your face really close to an electric fire for about half an hour. This will prepare you for how it feels when you get caught out on a sunny day without wearing sunscreen.
Drink five times more coffee than you would normally drink to prepare your body for the rigours of Wellington's cafe scene.
Every couple of months , have someone come round and shake your sofa while you're sitting on it. And maybe throw a few cups about.
Form a strong opinion about either the Te Aro bypass or the V8 Street Race proposals. Or how well the Hurricanes are doing. This will prepare you for almost any conversation.
Begin reading books about wind varieties. Every discussion of the weather will, at some point, refer to Southerlies, Nor'the Easterlies & so on.
Ask any neighbourhood cyclists to only ride their bikes on the busy pavements, not the road.
If you don't already, begin eating lots of Malaysian food.

Er....I'm sure I can think of lots more.

:smile

[jess]

Invest in a very high powered fan, set it up in your garden & have someone turn it on as soon as you step outside.
Ask them to repeat this at very random intervals.
:laugh


Yes, I hear quite a lot about the wind and the need for sunscreen. Having lost my mom to skin cancer, I was worried about the last one, though I do wear sunblock every day. But about the bicycles - here we have no paths for them; downtown they weave in and around traffic, often ignoring lights and stop signs, with no helmets!

-----------------


Thanks again for all this advice. Way better than the guidebooks. We will probably rent a car for part of the time. My husband hoped to save a little money there, but I think I'll bully him. ;)

I'm grateful for all the advice and looking forward to seeing the place firsthand!

Thanks,
Jessica

[sarahw]

DaveK - :laugh :laugh your advice on how to prepare for Wellington was great!!! I especially liked the bit about Southerlies & Northerlies - took us a while to understand what the heck people were talking about!

[dave k]

[quote].
:laugh

But about the bicycles - here we have no paths for them; downtown they weave in and around traffic, often ignoring lights and stop signs, with no helmets!

-----------------


Thanks,
Jessica



Oh...my point was that that's exactly what goes on here. All of the above. And they treat pavements (sidewalks, sorry roll: ) as cyclepaths full of inconvenient pedestrians. :smile

[Carol]

I saw an "inconvenient pedestrian" knocked over by a bike last night as she stepped out of the fish and chip shop.

It could have been Chloe (my 6 year old) as we were following her out......


:uhoh :uhoh

It took me ages to get used to the idea that a southerly was FREEZING!!!!
:laugh

[dave k]

I take my life in my hands on an almost daily basis walking through the Mt. Vic tunnel.

Jeeeeeezus!!!

It's a big, long, NOISY, fume-ridden road ,with a pedestrian walkway ...AND ...cycle route, about a metre and a half in width ( but it curves in -obviously- at one side ....so probably more like a metre in reality) that cuts through the hillside linking the town side of Wellington to Hataitai, Miramar, etc.,
It's also known as The Honking Tunnel cos motorists like to blart their car horns in there ( some outward reassurance that there are living people hurtling through a hillside wrapped inside metal boxes perhaps? I dunno...but it's bloody loud.)
So...deprived of most of your senses, you have to somehow anticipate a bike roaring past you from behind.
All the while imagining what would've happened if you'd just bent down to tie your shoelace or, I dunno, just stretched your arms out all of a sudden... :eek

Everyone seems to be in a helluva rush on the roads round Wellington, I've noticed. No doubt why the cyclist opt for the pavements.
But then that just the same problem on a different scale.

[jess]

HOTELS:

Now that I think we have our itenerary and car rental under control, I'm being a bit wishy washy on booking accommodations. So far folks have offered the following:

Frinton B&B
The Hotel Wellington
YHA Hostel

I've really been looking at Halswell Lodge too, because Lonely Planet likes them, and they are right where we would like to be - near theatres and Te Papa. But I saw a bad review of the place on TripAdvisor.com, so I'm not sure. Has anyone stayed at Halswell or have another comment good or bad about any Wellington hotel experience? We are looking to spend anywhere from cheap to $120 NZD per night. We'd like to be in the CBD. (Also I don't know if there's an age limit for staying in the hostel recommended above, but we're 35, no kids).

Thanks again!
Jessica

[miep]

Hi Jess,

Never heard of the Halswell so can't help you there.
The YHA doesn't have an age limit, my father in law stayed there and he's in his 70's. TBH we did move him to the hotel Wellington because there were no double rooms available in the YHA and he was sharing a 4 bed room with some japanese kids who wouldn't let him have a bottom bunk! The poor man was on the waiting list for a hip replacement, so much for respecting your elders!

As long as you can get a double room I would say the YHA has a slightly better location than the Wellington but both are within walking distance of everything. What would sway me are the cooking facilities in the YHA.

As for the b&b, I live in Eastbourne and can probably see the b&b from my window. It's a great location, being in Eastbourne will probably make you feel more like you're on holiday than staying in town would, but if you won't have a car the whole week getting back after a show will take you about an hour. During the day you can use the ferry (takes only 20 mins to town), about 15 mins walk from the b&b but after 6.30 pm you have to take a bus and after a certain time (I think 8pm) they don't do direct runs anymore and you have to change in Lower Hutt.

Have fun deciding!

:cheers Miep

[dave k]

I can highly recommend Base Backpackers in the very centre of town near Courtney Place.
My girlfriend & I stayed there in a really nice private double room with ensuite & t.v, etc. & amazing views over town & the harbour & it was about $80 per night. Worth checking out ...it's budget hotel quality, not scabby student traveller quality.

http://www.basebackpackers.com/wellington.htm

[coastcat]

There are two places we're considering staying at on our oft-delayed scouting trip. One is the Cambridge Hotel (http://www.cambridgehotel.co.nz/), which is by Courtenay Place. Double rooms are about NZ$100 a night. The other is a short-term apartment rental called Novella (http://www.writing.co.nz/apartment/index.htm). It's in Mt. Victoria, and goes for NZ$700 a week. It has one bedroom and a full kitchen, so you can test out cooking with NZ ingredients. :P However, there's no parking space with it.