Built in 1910, Government House serves as the official residence for New Zealand’s Governor-General, the official representative of the Queen. It’s also a home away from home for members of the Royal Family, Heads of State, and other distinguished guests visiting Wellington.
The house has eight guest suites, a self-contained apartment for the Governor-General and his/her spouse and family, as well as a ballroom, conservatory, sitting rooms, service rooms and kitchens, and a wing of offices. The house has a floor area of about 4,200 square metres.
More than 10,000 people visit Government House every year as guests of one or more of the many functions held there.
The estate covers 12 hectares with a gatehouse at the main gate, other buildings and facilities include a tennis court and pavilion, a small swimming pool, a World War II-era bomb shelter, a squash court, and garages.
It’s also significant as a former Māori site known as Kaipapa, and as the site of the Mt View Lunatic Asylum from 1873-1910.
Find out more about Government House tours