Wellington City Council is a proud supporter of this annual festival, celebrating its seventh year showcasing the history and stories of the capital through events, tours, exhibitions, and behind the scenes sneak peeks into some iconic buildings.
Heritage Festival Programme
Deputy Mayor Laurie Foon says Te Whanganui-a-Tara has such a diverse and multicultural history that it’s no wonder there are so many events during this festival.
“We are proud of our history and embrace it as it’s unique to our city and connects our people – from the past to the present to the future.
“As a Council we are also aware of the many benefits that come from the preservation of our heritage for our communities, tourism, businesses and the economy.
“We contribute to this through funding, seismic strengthening, and providing support through resilience and conservation programmes and initiatives.”
Festival Director Alex Hockley says the event is going from strength to strength and has partnered with the Rotary Clubs of Wellington for the 2023 festival.
“The festival was first set up in 2017 to engage the public of Te Whanganui-a-Tara in our ‘People, Places, and Stories’. Rotary’s expertise and connections has been invaluable in furthering our mission this year.
“This year’s events have something for everyone, and it’s impossible to pick a favourite,” adds Alex.
We have more events than ever spread further throughout the region says Dr Roger Blakeley, Chair of the Rotary Committee for the festival.
“There are events centred on mana whenua histories, tours of graveyards and heritage landmarks, stories about well-known historic figures from the arts, culture, and rainbow communities, lots of vintage cars and machinery on show, and sneak peeks behind the scenes at Hannah Playhouse and City Archives – but they’re all booking up already, so we recommend people get in early.”
There are over 100 events happening all around Te-Whanganui-a-Tara from 23 October – 5 November, most of which are free or koha, but many need booking, so head to wellingtonheritagefestival.co.nz/events to see the full list of events.