"Weather is atrocious" whilst proceeding to walk around peak winter in a T-shirt! 😂

I have many happy memories of living in Wellington, but it was the people which made the city a great place to live, not so much the infrastructure, and there was a good arty feeling about the place.

You know what's funny, I went to the top of te papa the other day and looked over the city and was like 'this is the most beautiful place in the world'... but seeing it here, god it looks rubbish on camera hahaha

I remember Wellington had a great vibe back in the early to mid 2000's back when the city hosted the Wellington 7's and Lord of the Rings premieres.

Courtney Place is the worst night out experience in the world. It’s the only place where they promote drinks and having a good time , then don’t let you have either and charge you a mortgage for it. So much potential, yet the law and the execution of how it’s applied in the bars is all wrong, and just sucks all the fun out and makes it benign. No wonder all the businesses struggle and go under.

Nation of debt slaves don't have time to walk around and bring the city to life...

I'd say Auckland City Central is finished. The City is no longer a bustling place since COVID-19 happened and it can feel quite seedy at times.

Wellington is shut on the weekend because you have to pay to park anywhere in the city centre... and not just pay... but pay the Hong Kong Millionaires Wilson Parking... So everyone leaves the city for nearby Lower Hutt or Porirua for shopping. Also Wellington is systematically removing all the carparks and replacing them with cycle lanes... which is great in fair weather.. if you don't have to take the kids to school, or drive a van, or truck or any vehicle needed to conduct business.. or want to arrive not dripping in sweat (and I'm a cyclist)... And certain streets they removed more than half the parks.. often leaving NO parking for shops like Takeaways that rely on people driving up ... and parking... And were a social society... but remove ALL the parks from one side of a road and half from the other (See Coutts St Rongotai) and you can no longer have visitors come to your house (as there is no parks for miles as all the airport fliers are taking what little free parks there are)... and all the little struggling business's with no off road parking suddenly not only have no staff parking, but no customer parking... (Lets see a cycle rock up to out shop with a 120kg piece of equipment to be fixed). And the roads are falling apart (because all the budget is gone putting in cycleways that often were completely unwanted by all, but somehow the council did a "Survey" that no one knows of anyone in the areas that participated... and the few that you can find.. were against it... yet the result is always.... 75% wanted "this"... And the sewer pipes are over 100 years old and falling apart (Yes this happened... Flowing raw sewerage in the middle of the city... Generally a Wellingtonian is laid back and friendly... so we just put up with huge potholes, water leaking from everywhere (There's a footpath in Island bay that has been running more than a burst garden hose of water from the middle, down the hill... that is now green and slippery from the 2 months it's been flowing... because they are too busy with road lines and another cycle lane (oh and they just put in the Rongotai cycle lane, loosing over half the car parks... when 500 meters (1-2 blocks) over, there was a cycle/pedestrian only lane running almost the full root of the new lane... And as a cyclist... the idiot that thought turning the cycle lane down a side road half way would "Make" cyclists like myself do more than the straight line till we need to turn... should see the West lane of Rongotai Rd cycleway that this year I have actually counted 2 cycles on it... East bound side.. sure... use it my self... West... Nope.. Just continue on Coutts or use the DEVOTED CYCLEWAY that was already there with community gardens and all... beautiful... Did I mention that I'm not so hot about cycleways even as a cyclist.. (Ok mainly on hills as my videos show... but guess how I get to the hills)... Then there's those road lines.... they keep changing.... and they don't remove the old lines... just paint them with tar... which #1 wears off... and #2... when it rains... (And we get our fair share of rain in the capital) look EXACTLY the same as the white lines... and at night... that means you drive into the middle or into a parked car because these false lines point you there... And in NZ, due to the sun angle and Tar... we get glare from the road surface (almost blinding)... and guess what... a white reflective line... and a black tar line... LOOK EXCATLY THE SAME when the sun is glaring off the tar around it... So... Yeah..... We'll cross the street to say hi to a complete stranger... and give you directions to anything anywhere... but maybe not so friendly if it turns out your a councillor... who Honestly... only joined the council for their own agenda... because face it... what SANE person would join a council for the money (just like politics)... You join to get something changed... and usually to suit you, not the majority...

I lived in NZ over threes years and I visited Wellington for three days back in 2013, I loved my time there, the time I’ve visited there, it was so windy, I still remember how crazy windy was. The waterfront is indeed beautiful. By the way, the flag in the first part is Sri Lanka. Greetings from Lima Peru.

Did you see the mayor of Wellington stumble out of one of those bars 😂

Welliington is my home town, once upon a time I worked in Courtney Place as a kid, it was a thriving and vibrant area back in 70s but today it looks run down and derelict.

Returned back home to NZ 3 months ago after spending 5 years abroad. WHAT'S HAPPENED TO OUR COUNTRY ? We've just sold our house & are leaving for good. NEW ZEALAND IS OVER RATED & FAR TOO EXPENSIVE. THE LOCAL PEOPLE IN NZ LOOK SOOO SAD & DEFEATED. Pick somewhere you've always dreamed of going, sell up, pack up the family & just do it... BETTER THAN SPENDING THE REST OF YOUR LIFE WONDERING. Bon Voyage.

I visited Wellington for the first time a few weeks ago. It was windy, rainy, cold, full of traffic jams (because of questionably designed roads), and I loved the city. People were friendly, beers were good, food was great, coffee was spectacular, waterfront was amazing, and stadium was excellent (football results not so much). We had a great evening at Thistle Inn chatting with locals and visitors alike. Got to get out of town and visit Martinborough as well as drove over to see Weta. Despite its faults, I miss Welly already. Keep sharing Curls-makes me remember the great time we had there!

9:46 "for all it's faults" LOL was that a pun on the fact that it's (supposedly) New Zealand's most earthquake prone city

The reason the north end of Lambton Quay is shut on weekends is because it mainly caters to Wellington's public servants who are not at work during weekends. Also, the waterfront is my favorite part of Wellington too, especially in summer when it is vibrant

Lmao we are from Boston, USA and we did a road trip from Auckland to Wellington and when we went it was packed with people. There was a Jimmy Beam Homegrown event in March 2023 which brought tons of people from all over NZ. Weather was amazing

Te Papa is one of the best museum's I have ever been to ... I highly recommend it if you are in Wellington!

One thing I love about Wellington is that you can walk around and you will see someone you now - just about always!

Wellington is a giant retirement village stuffed with retired public servants. Been there in 2001. Its so different when I visited last .

the city has had its run. Back before covid town was wonderful during the day even in winter. Now its like roadworks and vacant buildings

20yrs ago Wellington was at its peak. It is now a sad shadow of what it use to be. Same could be said about all of New Zealand.

Cool. Visited that museum back in 2019. Really great exhibitions. Greetings from Sweden

Oh, you won't believe how fantastic it is here! We've got the thrill of a scarce job market, rent that practically doubles as a luxury tax, the friendliest bunch of reserved folks you'll ever meet, and let's not forget the ever-surprising combo of windy chills and delayed services. What's not to love, right?

Lived there from 2009-2012 at the time it was the most exciting place in NZ without a doubt. But after visiting this year after 10 years in australia i couldnt believe how much things had changed. So much closed down. No nightlife. So sad.

I’ve visited and lived in many cities the world over, but Wellington is probably the most underrated city on earth. It’s not too big, not too small, just right. Great feel about it, friendly people. The weather is shit most times, but when it turns it on, it turns it on! Love love Wellington!

That was Absolutely Positively amazing

Good ol Windy Welly

Im from north africa ,been hoping to immigrate to NZ for 2 years now ,love the accent,the urbanism,the calm and the uniqueness of new zealand ❤

Great vid. I haven't been down there for a year or so and now you've made me miss it. 😁👌❤️

If Curls is saying things are a little bleak in places you know it's bad, he being such a champion of ESG. Wellington is the San Francisco of the Southern Hemisphere. Homeless sleeping in doorways, addicts bothering workers, enforced pedestrian zones inconveniencing people. It won't stop anytime soon because Wellington is populated by bureaucrats who earn enough to retreat every day at 5pm to their houses above the fray leaving the taxpayers to endure the effects of local and central government policies. Just keep pronouncing Maori well and everything will be alright. Nice to have known you, Wellington. Good luck.

Thank you for sharing! I’m grew up in Wellington and love it dearly. I’ve been away for almost a year now, and can’t wait to return. There is ALWAYS something happening, and easy enough to get out of town.

Reminds me of the San Francisco Bay Area, and a little bit of Portland as well (and, just like Wellington, those two places have lost much of their energy since covid via "WFH", leading to vacant office buildings and business closures in the downtown areas).

Thanks to you and people like you total respect and God bless always English man Curly living in New Zealand and other British Colonies very great educational videos all the time

As an Ozy I lived and worked in Wellington about the time of the Falklands War, At that time it was a beautifully spread out city with few high rise buildings. The Freiburg building (defence headquarters) had a sweeping lawn leading up to it & the offices had great views of the city. Now they built a high rise on that lawn and Freiburg sits in it's dark shadow. You could jog around the city in your lunch break and then go back to work. I cannot stand the unplanned mess & congestion they have made of it now.

Congratulations. I don't know nothing about Wellington, but when you show us the part of the Harbor for me was so amazing. In the next year i'll Go to NZ and i'll pass for Wellington. My english isn't not good but i love your way of speak 👍

I saw the museum when I was there 8 years ago it’s awesome! ❤🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Worked in Wellington a few years back, before COVID. Didn’t get to see much, flight out delayed due to wind. Would love to go back for another look, hopefully one day.

Wellington is pretty sweet. The hills are amazing and the bush walks are epic. Definitely a vibe there. Its not allways windy either. Wellingron has some nice varied weather and varied temperatures. Meanwhile in Auckland every summers day is in the mid 20s and sunny.... gets boring after a while lol.

If I had to guess, I'd say the mystery flag is that of Sri Lanka.

Even thou it’s lunch time and a week day lampton quay used to be a lot busier even at 8pm on a Monday night then what you just showed. Wellington city I feel used to hum more then Auckland during the week days.

Wellington's best kept secret: a constant flow of breathable fresh air.

I don’t live New Zealand but Wellington is my home and I love the city and will forever it is a little gem

mean video curls love ya bro cant wait to get that tat lol

Love your videos and stories 🙂

Not sure if i would want to live there but would definitely want to visit it a few times, it seems beautiful and a big change in pace from the U.S.

Its not dead, its just resting.

Cheers dude I am considering moving , still the research stage tho and tips would be cool .

Why do shops close on the weekends? Seems incredibly odd.

Chur bro, I liove WGTN.... nice video, i think to truly appreciate Wellington you need to go up both of its coasts, then you will understand it better :)

I liked Wellington if you go to the top of the town the views are fabulous. There was an organic store near to the hotel we stayed in. The musuem was really good. The weather so much like the UK. Nice property is expensive. I noticed the lack of motorways.

Gosh I worked in the city in 1995 and tried to avoid going down Lambton Quay during the day because it was so busy. It's sad to see less people there now. The world has changed.

The weather can be miserable. What other cities in NZ have more entertainment..Maybe Invercargill or Whangārei?

Yeah, they all can be found in Brisbane Australia, mate.

Fun fact : at 41° 17' latitude Wellington is at a similar latitude ( Antipodes) as these cities in the Northern Hemisphere : Rome, Barcelona, Istanbul, Porto (PT) . In the US, Martha's Vineyard island

What is the population? 100 people? The streets are empty.

I've been there for 10 days last 2019! ❤ I miss the vibe of Wellington !

We travelled around NZ for 2 weeks in July/August this year. We didn’t get to Wellington but looks like we didn’t miss much! Our favourite city was Christchurch 😍

Yo can you do a run through of the galleries in Wellington? I came in on Sunday and was kind of disapointed, portrait gallery was a mixed bag but overall really good, Parkin drawing award was better than expected, city gallery was garbage (But the staff were actually amazing, like really good despite what they were working with).

You got out in the wrong day . with a little sun , nothing beats Wellington . Thank you anyway . Life is good .

From Terence Wise in UK...........Judging by the weather anyone from England should feel at home in Wellington.

Wellingon was one of my favourite places to live. Went to Vic uni and worked at a pub, had the time of my life.

It's worth mentioning the embassy theatre, if your a film buff and Peter Jackson fan, there is so much rich film tours for LOTR there, but the embassy is something really special. I was there for the hobbit desolation of smaug premiere and it was brilliant. Also went to weta studio and Peter Jackson's studio. It was so epic. I know it's a bit cliche but it really adds value to wellington! Also worth mentioning te ahumairangi and mount Victoria. Wellington is just a gorgeous place

What do you mean by "things are a little bleak in places"? NZ (Wellington) is just beautiful compared with most cities in Asia. Maybe not as crowded which is a good thing in my book.

I was there in Summer, last Jan. It was also raining for a while then sun finally appeared. It’s not very hot in summer. I love it, already miss it. It’s a lovely city though I am bias and will always love Sydney where I live. Will travel there again soon though.

Absolutely spot on man, Good commentary 👍 I don't live there anymore. Windy wellington for the young ones

In the five years I've lived in Wellington, it has definitely changed from being open and friendly to closed and judgy. Not my kinda place anymore, I can't wait to explore the other cool cities we have in this country. Might go to Tauranga 😎😆 or home to New Plymouth

Big question mark on the future of Wellington or NZ overall as what it will look like in a few years. Kind of remember Wellington as much busier. These days so many people are talking of moving going over the ditch, it's a country in transition. Learnt this morning our 'leaders' have signed up with Blackrock, yeah brilliant...

You have awesome pronunciation of maori words man, im glad you are attentive to pronunciation

thanks fo the video, heading over for the first time from Melbourne in nNovember. Any suggestions where i could find hungai?

The appearance of New Zealand may be characterized by a sense of desolation and sorrow. The atmosphere is notably devoid of activity and lacking in vibrancy. Personally, I would not have any inclination to visit such a country which I find to be quite unpleasant.

❤❤❤ amazing vídeo!!

When I was in Wellington some 28 years ago I found the place beautiful but strangely depressing. Maybe the crap weather. I saw no trolley buses in your video. Do they still have them? I found they gave the place a lot of character.

I'm from Christchurch and have never been to Wellington, i had considered visiting one day but now i don't think I'll bother unless i have to. Looks terribly depressing and boring.

2:13 - at the weekends, everything is closed! I remember visiting some years ago on a Saturday, counting 67 people on the main street. Having said that, I remember the bars and restaurants in the marina being busy, great service and food...

This reminds me of the way it was 46 years ago.

Love the video, im a kiwi living in Vietnam at the moment so its nice to have a little peek back home

In my 8 years of work in Wellington, I escape the first month of winter every year heading for vacation back home in the tropical Philippines. I dreaded the winter season so a month long basking under the sun in my tropical country at least shortened my bearing the wintry cold Wellington weather to just two months. Over all, I still love windy Welly because it doesn't have snowfall during winter (except in 2011 when Welly was blanketed with snow).

1:36 the flag of Sri Lanka.

Reminds me of the Spinal Tap song 'Hell hole'

I tried to like Wellington, I really did. But the continued growth in homelessness in the city and crazy rent prices is what caused me to leave. I really wanted to stay in the city as that is where I prefer to be as a tech professional. Unless you live out far and can catch the train in on very cold and wet mornings this place is only meant for upper middleclass.

Hi 👋 I lived in Wellington twice once in the 1980s and the early 2000s. The harbour is so nice particularly on a good day.

Wellington CBD on Mondays and Fridays (especially if it is raining is dead), everyone just works from home. if you wanna see an alive CBD, do it on a sunny day. Good on you for highlighting some of the CBD. Also, I think the dead dinosaur that is the reading complex is killing Courtney Place, it you to very busy there before but all the food courts and nice shops clothing shops moved to Willis Street

Thoroughly enjoyable from a Wellingtonian - Thank you

I haven't lived in Wellington since the early 2000's. The CBD looks pretty quiet compared to how I remember it.

I want to move and work in Welly so bad once I finish my nursing degree. Visited again this weekend. Im so tired of Hawke's Bay and Palmy bs.

Jesus my village at the back end of nowhere has more people moving on the streets than a capital of New Zealand.

Lived in Auckland for a while. Not much ever seems to happen, not much industry yet the price of property is horrendous. Weird.

Great architecture in Wellington and the streets look so clean . I like it ! Thank you for this lovely video .

So many beautiful places in Wellington

No homeless zombies pitching tents/sleeping on sidewalks? No encampments and people living in RVs? Wellington sounds like paradise!

I'm watching this as a manifestation (great video)

This video was apparently posted "3 months ago" which (as I write this) was August 2023. In other words, *winter* - so it's not surprising that Wellington looked "sad" at that time of year. From January to March is the best time of year here.

Wellingtonian who's lived in LA 28yrs here - the best things about Wellington/Te Whanganui-a-Tara are not commerce-based, the sea, the hills, the clean air, and the weather always reminding us who is really in charge. But the thing that really makes Wellington great is the people; the nods you get from strangers, the decades-deep immigrant communities who've helped shape the city, and the friendships you'll find if you slow down and visit a coffee shop, bar, sports club, surf club, marae, or even one of the well established Pacific Island churches around the city. Community runs deep in Wgtn and as long as you're not a d**k, you're welcome :)

I moved from wellington where I had grown up in, to Christchurch 5 years ago and I can’t believe the streets are so empty in wgtn at lunchtime on a week day! Maybe covid did this and people are working from home? I worked in a building on Willis street and no matter what the weather was Lambton quay was packed and busy. It looks like a ghost town!

The 'Beehive' is the executive offices for the government ministers and the PM, - the actual parliament building is the one in the middle. The building on the right is the parliamentary library.

Wellingtons gone woke guys, and so it is also going broke

was in Wellys a couple of weeks ago was so hoping to pump into you lol just wanted to say love Wellington and suburbs so much nicer than Auckland . love your workmate keep it up xx

I’ve travelled through Wellington on three separate occasions to catch the inter-islander ferry to the South Island and it’s rained heavily on each occasion…it’s an expensive place with bad weather most of the year….

I've heard there's a pub in wellington city that has cartoon drawings of famous New zealanders

city looks beautiful, I visited once but it was during a night, so haven't seen much :)