Wellington (New Zealand)
Cruise Port schedule, live map, terminals, news
Region
Australia - New Zealand - Pacific Ocean Islands
Local Time
2020-03-31 13:39
Address
CentrePort House, Harbour Quays, Wellington 6011, New Zealand
60°F 15.8°C
Gentle breeze4.4 m/s
61 °F / 17 °C 51 °F / 11 °C
Wellington Harbour cruise port is located on the southern tip of New Zealand's North Island. The harbour is among the world's best harbor waterways and is the center of an extinct, flooded volcano. Wellington is also known as "Windy City" as winds and fog are common for the region. Wellington is NZ's 3rd largest containership port and also has a large-capacity tanker terminal. The city is served by Wellington International Airport (aka Rongotai Airport, approx 3,5 ml / 5,5 km southeast from city centre) and also by Interislander ferries, with regularly scheduled daily crossings to Picton.
The port's cruise ship schedule lists major companies' vessels from the fleets of RCI (Royal Caribbean), Carnival Australia, Cunard (visiting on world cruises), P&O Australia, Celebrity, Holland America, Princess. The port benefits from the city's compact size, good infrastructure, popular among the day visitors activities and typical NZ vacation experiences on various shore excursions.
Port Wellington
CentrePort Wellington is jointly owned by Wellington Regional Council (77%) and Horizons Regional Council (23%). The port authority company also owns major inland freight hubs (New Plymouth, Palmerston North, Whanganui, Blenheim) allowing it to handle over 1/4 ( 27%) of NZ's domestic product, with reported over 14,000 shipping movements annually. Port's cruising season runs April through October.
Season 2017-2018 started with the RCI ship Radiance of the Seas - among the largest liners ever visiting Wellington NZ. The cruise port handled 82 ship calls and around 320,000 tourists (passengers and crew). This was a 12% increase over season 2016-2017 (with estimated USD 65,7 million added to the local economy). The 2017-18's inaugural calls were from NCL's Norwegian Jewel, Viking Ocean's Viking Sun and NYK Line's Asuka II.
For season 2018-2019, the port had booked 110 ship calls (estimated 320,000 passengers+crew), with scheduled inaugural visits by Norwegian Jewel (NCL), Viking Sun (Viking Ocean) and Asuka 2 (NYK Line). Port's schedule had 24 "two-ship" days. On March 16th, the port celebrated its 100th handled cruise ship call (by Golden Princess) made during 13-day NZ itinerary roundtrip from homeport Melbourne Australia.
For season 2019-2020 are already booked 120+ ship calls.
Wellington cruise terminal
Wellington cruise port has 3 main docking piers – Aotea Quay (largest), Queens Wharf and Overseas Terminal (smallest). For arriving cruise passengers, the port authority provides free shuttle bus service running between the terminal and downtown Wellington. Taxis are also available as an alternative transportation.
Aotea Quay Terminal
The port's most booked by cruise ships passenger terminal is Aotea Quay Terminal as it has capacity to handle larger vessels. The terminal is located between Inter-Island Ferry Terminal and the port's train station (approx 5 min walking distance). The station complex has cafes, small shops and bus terminal serving the line to the city.
The city center is less than 1,5 ml (2,5 km) from the terminal, or approx 25 min walking distance (8 min drive by car or bus). The nearest shopping complex (on Lambton Quay) is approx 1 ml (2 km) away. The airport is located approx 6 ml (10 km) from the cruise terminal. Aotea Quay is also close to Westpac Stadium (aka Cake Tin).
Queens Wharf Terminal
Queens Wharf is the closest to the city center cruise terminal (0,6 ml / 1 km away) but it can serve smaller vessels. The nearest shopping area (Lambton Quay) is at 10 min walking distance, and the airport is around 2,5 km (4 km) from the passenger terminal.
Overseas Terminal
This pier is very rarely used as it can handle only the smallest cruise ships.
Port Wellington cruise ship schedule shows timetable calendars of all arrival and departure dates by month. The port's schedule lists all ships (in links) with cruises going to or leaving from Wellington, New Zealand. To see the full itineraries (ports of call dates and arrival / departure times) and their lowest rates – just follow the corresponding ship-link.
| Day | Ship | Arrival | Departure |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 March, 2020 Sunday |  Sea Princess | 07:00 | 17:00 |
| 2 March, 2020 Monday |  Viking Orion | ||
| 2 March, 2020 Monday | Ruby Princess | 07:00 | 17:00 |
| 3 March, 2020 Tuesday |  Azamara Journey | 08:00 | 23:00 |
| 5 March, 2020 Thursday |  Ovation Of The Seas | 12:00 | 22:00 |
| 6 March, 2020 Friday |  Carnival Spirit | 08:00 | 17:00 |
| 8 March, 2020 Sunday |  ms Noordam | 09:00 | 18:00 |
| 9 March, 2020 Monday |  Seven Seas Navigator | 08:00 | 17:00 |
| 10 March, 2020 Tuesday | Viking Orion | ||
| 10 March, 2020 Tuesday |  MSC Magnifica | 07:00 | 14:00 |
| 11 March, 2020 Wednesday | Radiance Of The Seas | 07:00 | 16:00 |
| 12 March, 2020 Thursday | Azamara Journey | 11:00 | 23:00 |
| 14 March, 2020 Saturday | Ruby Princess | 08:00 | 18:00 |
| 16 March, 2020 Monday |  Pacific Adventure | 07:00 | 16:00 |
| 18 March, 2020 Wednesday |  Le Laperouse | ||
| 19 March, 2020 Thursday |  Queen Elizabeth | 08:00 | 18:00 |
| 20 March, 2020 Friday | Radiance Of The Seas | 08:00 | 18:00 |
| 22 March, 2020 Sunday | ms Noordam | 10:00 | 23:00 |
| 28 March, 2020 Saturday | Le Laperouse |
- Accidents
Radiance of the Seas Fuel Spill in Wellington NZ
Nearly 100 litres of diesel has spilled into Wellington Harbour while Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas ship was taking on fuel. According to...
November 26, 2019 - Accidents
Ovation of the Seas Stranded in Wellington Harbour
The largest cruise ship to Wellington NZ - Royal Caribbean's Ovation of the Seas, left the harbour after coming to halt due to an engine issue. ...
November 19, 2019 - Cruise Industry
Port of Wellington Expects Another Record-Breaking Cruise Season
As the last cruise ship of Wellington port's record-breaking season docks in the capital, 2020 numbers are expected to rise higher. Over 220,000...
April 24, 2019 - Cruise Industry
Wellington Geared Up for Biggest Cruise Season
Port Wellington is getting ready to receive tens of thousands more cruise ship passengers. Tuesday marks the beginning of the cruise season, which...
September 30, 2018 - Cruise Industry
Royal Caribbean Ship Marks End of Cruise Season in Wellington
About 166,000 cruise passengers poured US$59 million into Wellington during the past 7 months. The departure of Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the...
April 24, 2018 - show more news