Wellington City Council operates two cemeteries, at Karori and Makara. There is also a crematorium at Karori Cemetery.
The Council aims to support family and friends of deceased people, with a respectful environment and professional assistance. Council’s services and facilities for burials and cremation are designed to meet a range of bereavement needs.
All administration for burials, cremations, visitor needs and any ongoing cemetery services are handled by:
Karori Cemetery Office
| Address: | 76 Old Karori Road, Karori |
| Phone: | (04) 476 6109 |
| Fax: | (04) 476 8242 |
| Email: | cemeteries |
Open Hours
The cemeteries are open from 7.30am until dusk year-round.
Burial and cremation services normally occur Monday – Friday, 8.00am - 4.15pm. Special arrangements can be made for weekends or public holidays. These bookings must be approved by the cemetery’s Sexton and incur an additional cost.
Booking Burials & Cremations
Phone Karori Cemetery as soon as possible to check availability of dates and times. Cemetery staff will make a provisional reservation on your behalf.
Karori Cemetery
The booking cannot be officially confirmed until the cemetery receives paper copies of relevant documents, such as burial booking forms. The documents you would need for a burial, cremation or memorial service are provided with those sections of this website.
If you are unsure about the documentation process after reading this information, please call the cemetery office for advice.
Once the documentation is complete, the person making the booking receives a Customer Booking Summary as confirmation.
After Hours Bookings
You can also make a provisional booking by calling outside normal office hours. Karori Cemetery’s answering service records your details, and can inform you of availability. You will still need to prepare and submit the relevant documents to confirm the booking.
| Phone: | (04) 499 4444 or (04) 801 4444 |
Advance Notice for Bookings
Cemetery staff require all documentation at least 24 hours before casket and ash interments, cremations, chapel services and ash scatterings.
Records & Genealogical Information
Burial records dating back to 1891 at Karori Cemetery, and 1965 at Makara Cemetery, are available for public viewing at the Karori Cemetery office. The office also holds records dating back to 1849 of interments at Bolton Street Cemetery, now Bolton Street Memorial Park.
The cemetery holds records for 151,409 people who have been interred or cremated. Records can be searched by plot location or name.
Cemetery and crematorium records are available online.
Grave Maintenance
Cemetery staff maintain all plots at Makara Cemetery. At Karori Cemetery staff maintain access ways to plots but plots are the responsibility of families.
Related Links
- Birth, Death and Marriage Historical Records website
- Bolton Street Memorial Park
- Commemorative Policy
Department Details:
Cemeteries (Parks & Gardens)
