Where Are The Best Beaches In Wellington, New Zealand?
Wellington’s coastline boasts lots of calm harbour bays and family-friendly stretches right in the city. Beyond, however, spread across the Kapiti Coast, Wellington city, Lower Hutt, and the Wairarapa, you have some of the best beaches in the country here:
Best Beaches on the Kapiti Coast
⛱️ Ōtaki Beach
Ōtaki Beach is wild, not too busy, scenic, and close to the village of Ōtaki – the gateway into the Tararua Ranges.
⛱️ Te Horo Beach
Te Horo Beach is a really great surfing spot, no matter your level.
⛱️ Peka Peka Beach
Peka Peka Beach typically boasts the biggest waves for surfers along this stretch of coastline and is a great surfing hotspot.
⛱️ Waikanae Beach
The adjacent estuary at Waikanae Beach is a prime bird watching location.
⛱️ Paraparaumu Beach
Being a West Coast beach, you get great sunsets at Paraparaumu Beach – and right there in the foreground, views of Kapiti Island, one of our bird sanctuaries.
⛱️ Raumati Beach
Raumati Beach is calm and safe, a great location for families, and in close proximity to Wellington city – a forty minute drive.
⛱️ Paekākāriki Beach
Some would say the best beach on the Kapiti Coast is Paekākāriki Beach! From Paekākāriki you can access the Paekākāriki Escarpment Track – otherwise known as the Stairway to Heaven.
Best Beaches south of Kapiti
⛱️ Titahi Bay
Titahi Bay has caves and fossils, and is lined by colourful boat sheds, which make for cute photos.
⛱️ Makara Beach
Makara Beach: it’a wild, windy and western – a great little escape not far from Wellington city.
Best Beaches in Wellington City
⛱️ Red Rocks Beach
Red Rocks Beach is home to a seal colony, and you’ll see them in winter!
⛱️ Ōwhiro Bay
You can access the route out to the Pariwhero Red Rocks from Ōwhiro Bay , the namesake for neighbouring Red Rocks Beach.
⛱️ Island Bay Beach
Island Bay Beach is a good swimming beach and has a floating pontoon that swimmers like to head out to and jump off.
⛱️ Houghton Bay
Houghton Bay is a dog beach, and dogs are free to run around off lead.
⛱️ Princess Beach
Go, Because: There’s a marine reserve here and SCUBA divers will find lots beneath the surface!
⛱️ Lyall Bay Beach
Go, Because: Lyall Bay Beach’s proximity to Wellington Airport means you can do a bit of plane spotting from the beach itself!
⛱️ Seatoun Beach
Seatoun Beach has calm water so is a great, swimmable city beach.
⛱️ Scorching Bay Beach
People love Scorching Bay Beach for its calm waters, suitability for swimming, and proximity to the city centre.
⛱️ Freyberg Beach (Oriental Bay)
Freyberg Beach, part of the famous centrally located Oriental Bay, is loved for its soft sand, calm water, central city location often associated with the colourful bikes you can hire to ride the length of it.
Best Beaches in Lower Hutt
⛱️ Petone Beach
Petone Beach is just a really scenic, safe beach with great views over the Wellington Harbour that locals love.
⛱️ Days Bay
Days Bay is a great day trip across the harbour from Wellington CBD, a sheltered and safe swimming beach that is popular for good reason.
⛱️ Rona Bay Beach
Like other Eastbourne beaches, Rona Bay Beach is calm, serene, scenic, and has off lead areas for dogs.
⛱️ Eastbourne Beach
Eastbourne Beach: it’s picturesque, you can get there from the CBD via ferry, and you can even see the South Island from here if the weather is clear!
Best Beaches in the Wairarapa
⛱️ Castlepoint Beach
Castlepoint Beach is home to the Castlepoint Lighthouse, quite an impressive one with dramatic scenery behind it. There’s also a lagoon here where there is safe swimming.
⛱️ Riversdale Beach
Riversdale Beach is a great all rounder – people love to swim here, fish here, and snorkel here, too.
⛱️ White Rock Beach
White Rock Beach’s namesake is the steep white rock that juts up from the sand – quite a pretty sight, and climbable too, if you are careful.
⛱️ Cape Palliser Beach
At Cape Palliser Beach you’ll find one of the largest seal colonies in the country, as well as the beautiful, iconic old lighthouse – a great photography spot, indeed.
⛱️ Ocean Beach
Ocean Beach is a rugged and remote spot, very scenic, with dramatic landscapes.
Whether you’re chasing surf, seals, sheltered swimming spots, or dramatic coastal scenery, Wellington has a beach for you. It’s a region where you can go from city waterfront strolls to remote, windswept coastlines in no time — exactly what makes it so special.