My Wellington Cable Car Ride & Cable Car Museum Visit

The cable car system is an icon of Wellington. You can’t give it a miss if you happen to be in New Zealand’s capital. In this post I am going to discuss my experiences about the Wellington cable car ride. After the memorable trip, I also went to the cable car museum. So I will also briefly talk about the museum. For all the updated details, you are recommended to visit the official page of the cable car.

Wellington Cable Car – a Brief history

The funicular railway was built from 1898 to 1902. The main objective was to serve the continuously expanding Wellington city, and also to support the infrastructure development in the Kelburn area. The cable car proved to be an instant success. Since its inception, the cable car system has gone through multiple renovations, and remains an icon of the capital city.

Route, stations and stoppage

A Wellington cable car ride starts from the Lambton Quay, and ends at the Kelburn terminal station. The Kelburn station is located just next to the entrance gate of Wellington Botanic Garden. The length of the cable car’s track is 628 meters. It takes nearly 5 minutes to complete the scenic journey.  There are 5 stations (including source and destination stations) along the route-

1. Lambton Quay
2. Clifton,
3. Talavera
4. Salamanca
5. Kelburn

Wellington cable car Timings

The cable car starts operating at 7:00am, and the services end at 10:00pm (Monday – Friday). However, on the weekends the services are available from 8.30am to 10.00pm (Saturday) and 9.00pm (Sunday).

The time table is slightly different in December, January, and on Christmas.  A car departs throughout the day with a regular frequency of one car leaving every 10 minutes.

Fares and online bookings

You don’t need to reserve a seat in advance. However, you can book the cable car ticket online in advance. One way adult fare is capped at NZ $4, return fare is NZ $7.50. You may refer to the cable car timetable & fares for latest details.

Cable Car Tunnel

Along the way you will see an illuminated tram tunnel. The LED illuminated lighting inside the tunnel is just great. The lights would flash on and off creating a variety of patterns.

Here is one the photos that I clicked as the tram passed through the illuminated tunnel –

Cable Car system

The cable car system has basically two cars operating on a single track. Each car starts from the opposite end – one car from the Lambton Quay, another from the Kelburn station. The cars would cross each other in the middle of the track. A car may stop for a while (near the Talavera station) in order to allow another car to pass safely. The two cars are connected to each other via rollers.

Cable Car Museum Visit

The Cable Car Museum is sandwiched between the Kelburn station and the entrance gate of the botanic garden. I reached the cable car museum by 9.00am. There was no other option than to wait as the museum opens at sharp 9.30am.

There were a few more people who came early. The nearby area looks very scenic, so we spent time clicking photos.

The museum opened at its scheduled time and the entry was free. Subsequently, we had a chance to explore the museum’s interior. The two story museum is located in the original winding house. In fact, the museum is not big. It’s comparable to a double room in size. The members of staff are very friendly.

The museum will let you see the exciting historical journey of the cable car. For example, you will also have a chance to see the original cars that operated on the line in the past.

I especially liked the model railway layout. The train keeps moving on its track continuously and passes through the mountainous terrain. I believe children would love this museum. You can also buy souvenir T-shirts for a reasonable price.

That’s all about the Wellington Cable Car.

You can also check out my other posts about New Zealand tourism from my trip, or the other countries, or the complete navigation list. You can also find more about me.

Wish you a great travel in Wellington city, and elsewhere in New Zealand. 🙂

 Last updated: Tuesday, September 5, 2017