About our Festival
Nau mai, haere mai! Welcome to this introduction to our festival. Read on to learn how you can become an Event Host, how we operate, and to see some events from previous years.
What is Wellington Heritage Festival?
Wellington Heritage Festival is a volunteer-led, community-sourced heritage and culture festival celebrating the region's people, places, and stories.
We act as a platform to promote events set up by individuals, organisations, and communities. All festival events are run by these groups, and our role is to highlight their efforts through our website, social media promotion, press coverage, and more.
When does the festival run?
In 2025, Wellington Heritage Festival will run for 22 days, from Saturday, October 18th until Sunday, November 9th.
Before the festival starts, our team will work with Event Hosts to plan and organise their offerings.
How do I become an Event Host?
Each year, there are two steps to becoming an event host:
Register your Interest online by completing a Registration of Interest form. This step is REQUIRED.
After your Registration of Interest is confirmed, you must complete an Event Application form online. This step is also REQUIRED.
Both steps are required unless otherwise discussed with our team. The earlier Registration of Interest form allows us to assist in planning your event, enabling us to time your event for a slot in the festival where you're likely to get the highest attendance.
Once you have submitted your Registration of Interest, we will contact you with instructions on how to complete your Event Application. You must fill out both forms to be part of the Festival.
New Requirements for Event Hosts
Following feedback from the public and past Event Hosts, we implemented an "Event Clustering" scheme.
If you run an event that only runs one time and occurs on a weekend, we may require you to host it on the "focus weekend" for your area.
You can learn more about this approach at the link below: Event Clustering Information | Wellington Heritage Festival
How much does it cost to become an Event Host?
Becoming an event host is FREE; the best price!
As an event host, you are solely responsible for funding and organising your event. We may be able to help with planning, and if you have prohibitive costs, please reach out to our team for a chat.
Some event examples from 2022
Our festival often represents an eclectic mix of people, places, and stories. The type of events we highlight varies greatly, so there is flexibility when planning your own. If you have an idea for an event but aren't sure if it will fit into the festival, please reach out to us via our email! Below are some examples of the types of events we receive.
Talk and Tour of the Wellington City Archives
Our festival shows people areas of the city they may not often visit or do not always have access to. One of the mainstays of this "Behind the scenes" type event is the Talk and Tour of the Wellington City Archives, which houses records and memorabilia relevant to Pōneke's heritage.
The 'Not-so-straight' Artists Walk Tour
Wellington's story is written by a wide range of communities and, perhaps more than most cities, much of ours is built by the rainbow community. This walking tour, hosted by Walk Tours NZ, covered some of these stories, focusing on the artists who shaped the city and the communities they were a part of.
Urbantics - A Spy Themes Urban Adventure
This event was a different take on exploring heritage. Urbantics ran a self-guided outdoor escape room tour around the city, using a website as a guide. With a group of friends, you could learn about heritage by solving puzzles and mysteries while exploring the area's landmarks.
Path of the Artists Walking Tour
Blending the arts and history, this walking tour saw the Curtain Call Company theatre group express their craft in a well-acted walking tour of the city. Portraying figures from Wellington's history, such as Katherine Mansfield, they read letters in places of importance to said figures.
Heritage Crafts & Vintage + Retro Fair Seatoun
This fair had a strong focus on community and crafts. Many activities were offered, from talks on embroidery to a market, all taking place within a historic building. This event was a microcosm of the variety our festival presents.
Who runs the festival?
Wellington Heritage Festival is delivered by our Board and a small Festival Delivery Team. Since 2023, our festival has been jointly delivered by the Rotary Clubs of Wellington and the Wellington Heritage Festival Trust - a registered charity (CC62729). The Wellington Heritage Festival Trust Board is chaired by Dr Roger Blakeley, while Alex Hockley acts as Chief Executive and Festival Director.
Our team also relies on the efforts of other talented volunteers and our community of event hosts. We are currently looking for more volunteers to help us over the coming months. If you would like to hear more, contact our team at info@wellingtonheritagefestival.nz.
How is the festival funded?
Given that it is free to be an event host, a fair question is how we are funded. Wellington Heritage Festival is funded by sponsorships, public grants, and generous donations from the public.
If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation to our kaupapa, you can do so via our Donate page. Your support ensures we can deliver our Festival each year, improve our publicity for the community of event hosts who run events, and enable our longevity as an organisation.
Our sponsors are highlighted on our website, printed brochures, and social media channels to thank them for their contributions, as the festival cannot run without their support. We are also open to naming rights for sponsors. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor for the festival, we would love to talk with you. You can email us at info@wellingtonheritagefestival.nz.
Our Sponsors
