09 Wanganui to Wellington
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RouteXpert Nick Carthew - (MRA Master)
Last edit: 08-03-2021
Route Summary
Route 09 of this tour of the North Island uses only bitumen roads as it travels to New Zealand's capital city of Wellington. The Landscape is a mixture of countryside, seascapes the city of Palmerston North and a few small towns. The road around the coast of the City of Wellington is delightful which is why I have awarded this route 4**** stars.
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Verdict
Duration
6h 38m
Mode of travel
Car or motorcycle
Distance
255.75 km
Countries
RP 18. Viewpoint at Mount Victoria looking out across Wellington and her Harbour.
RouteXpert Review
Route 09 of this tour of the North Island is all about travelling to the far south of North Island to visit New Zealand's capital city, Wellington.Leaving Wanganui with a full tank of fuel, State Highway 3 takes you to Palmerston North, a small but colourful city that is home to New Zealand All Blacks rugby museum. The New Zealand Rugby Museum became the first public museum devoted to rugby. The NZRM gallery was opened for visits in 1977. The NZRM is viewed as the leading sports museum in New Zealand, with a collection in excess of 40,000 items, world class displays and activities to inform you. There is a charge of NZ$12.50 for entry.
Travelling through Palmerston North means the route avoids a straight and flat section of State Highway 1 (SH1) and instead uses the more scenic, hilly and twisty SH57. You'll join the SH1 again at Levin where I have suggested a coffee stop. There is a nice section of SH1 that travels close to the coast that has magnificent views of the Tasman Sea. You'll then cross over Porirua Harbour leaving you just 15 minutes away from the capital.
Situated at the southern end of the North Island, Wellington, was recently named "the coolest little capital in the world" by Lonely Planet.
Surrounded by nature and fuelled by creative energy, Wellington is a compact city with a powerful mix of culture, history, nature and cuisine. Fuel your visit with strong coffee and world-class craft beer – Wellingtonians are masters of casual dining, with plenty of great restaurants, night markets and food trucks. I suggest that a two night stay would allow you to explore some of what Wellington has to offer.
Your arrival to the capital city is announced when you join the Wellington Urban Motorway on a flyover with exceptional views of Wellington Harbour, passing the ferry port to your right.
The ferry to Picton on South Island departs from here, you can take the ferry to explore South Island and use the South Island Tour routes within the RouteXpert Library as your guide. You might think that the North Island and South Island are identical in terms of landscape and climate, but things aren’t quite that simple. While both islands have a significant amount of coastline, farmland, and high terrain, the North and South Island are not identical. However, both islands are breathtaking – which if you know anything about New Zealand, shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Bluebridge ferry takes approximately 3½ hours to cross the Cook Straits and departs at: 02:30, 08:00, 13:30 and 20:45. The fare in 2021 NZ$108 return with a motorcycle.
Back to this route.
Having passed the ferry terminal, the route now travels through a tunnel then climbs to the top of Mt Victoria for some fantastic views across the City of Wellington and her harbour. A tradition of motorists beeping their horns as they drive through the Mount Victoria tunnel has become a city-wide superstition – and has also proved divisive. Many residents believe a jaunty toot – or, for some, blasting their horns for the tunnel’s entire 623-metre length – either wards off evil spirits, or acknowledges the memory of a teenage girl who was murdered and her body buried at the site a year before the tunnel was opened in 1931.
Join the magnificent coast road at RP 19 for 26 glorious kilometres of spectacular coastal scenery using the Great Harbour Way to travel around the eastern side of Wellington. I have suggested a lunch stop at Chocolate Fish Cafe looking out to Evans bay in Wellington Harbour. It may be a late lunch stop but the views and location are worth it.
At RP 25 you'll pass through a short tunnel under the runway of Wellington International Airport. Any aeroplane fans can get some close-up photos on the other side of the tunnel from the Wellington Airport Runway 34 lookout.
At RP 27 you will see a ships propeller from frigate F69, sunk offshore in 2005 as a dive site as part of the Taputeranga Marine Reserve.
From here you head for your accommodation. I have ended the route at the Harbour City Motor Inn. A reasonably priced motel that welcomes motorcycles. As you can imagine, being the capital city, Wellington has many choices and a full range of accommodation to suit all.
Enjoy.
RP 13. State Highway 1 as it runs along the coast heading for the City of Wellington.
RP 27. Propeller from HMNZS Wellington a frigate (F69) sunk at Houghton Bay for use as a marine reserve.
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Disclaimer
Use of this GPS route is at your own expense and risk. The route has been carefully composed and checked by a MyRoute-app accredited RouteXpert for use on TomTom, Garmin and MyRoute-app Navigation.
Changes may nevertheless have occurred due to changed circumstances, road diversions or seasonal closures. We therefore recommend checking each route before use.
Preferably use the route track in your navigation system. More information about the use of MyRoute-app can be found on the website under 'Community' or 'Academy'.
Changes may nevertheless have occurred due to changed circumstances, road diversions or seasonal closures. We therefore recommend checking each route before use.
Preferably use the route track in your navigation system. More information about the use of MyRoute-app can be found on the website under 'Community' or 'Academy'.
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