Great Harbour Way

Do you want to walk or bike around one of the most beautiful harbours in the world? If so, you've come to the right place.

The vision for the Great Harbour Way / Te Aranui o Pōneke is a unique, spectacular 70 kilometer safe walking & cycling route right around Wellington's harbour; from Red Rocks on the west side by the Cook Strait to Baring Head on the east side at the South Coast.

The Great Harbour Way today offers a 49km route of a wonderful variety of separated shared or dedicated cycling and walking sections right around Wellington's harbour from Miramar on the west side of the harbour, to Pencarrow on the east side of the harbour. A fantastic experience for locals, or visitors from around New Zealand and the world; be it family day-trippers, cycle tourers or keen walkers. You will pass wild stretches of coast, rocky headlands and sandy beaches, as well as parks, marinas, museums, cafes, theatres, charming seaside suburbs, and the capital’s vibrant business and shopping centre.

Explore the Route Guides & Maps

Introduction

Wellington’s harbour – Te Whanganui-a-Tara (the great harbour of Tara) – is one of the world’s most beautiful harbours. Its clear waters are ringed by layers of grey-green hills. Its surroundings range from the soaring office towers of the capital city to the wild, shipwreck shores of Fitzroy Bay. The harbour teems with wildlife, from the seal colonies of Red Rocks, to the blue penguins which seek sanctuary at many places along the coastline, and the dolphins and orcas which regularly visit its waters.

What is unique about the Great Harbour Way is that provides a distinct route around the whole perimeter of Wellington's harbour. There are not many cities around the world that provide such a wonderful route that keeps you close to the harbour's water edge.

Most of the Great Harbour Way is rideable and walkable now; transiting through a variety of separated shared or dedicated cycling and walking sections, including the high quality Te Ara Tupau, Tupua Horonuku, and Tahitai paths. The Remutaka Cycle Trail (one of New Zealand Great Rides) also draws on a large part of the Great Harbour Way. In fact, a key purpose of the Great Harbour Way s to weave these distinctive shared pathway sections into a memorable harbour perimeter experience.

This website is is for a variety of different groups, be they locals, visitors from around New Zealand or overseas tourists. This can include families with young children or people with limited fitness or time availability, who may want to do smaller parts of the route. Or keen walkers and cyclists who may want to do the whole route over one or a couple of days. The General Guide page provides different itinerary options to suit all these different needs.

Latest News

People walking & cycling along Te Ara Tupua path

GHW Trust members celebrating Te Ara Tupua

Celebrating the (near) completion of the Great Harbour Way

Press release, 15 May 2026

As of today, the opening of Te Ara Tupua, the shared path linking Ngā Ūranga (Ngauranga) and Honiana Te Puni Reserve in Petone, nearly completes the Great Harbour Way around Wellington Harbour.

“Who would have thought we would reach this day?” said Graeme Hall, chair of the Great Harbour Way trustees. “Over 20 years, the vision of a shared walking and cycling path around the 70km perimeter of our beautiful harbour has become a reality. A key gap has been closed — Petone joined to Ngā Ūranga in a manner that is stylish, expansive and comprehensive. This is a day of celebration for everyone involved in Te Ara Tupua and Te Aranui o Pōneke, the Māori name for the Great Harbour Way gifted by Taranaki Whānui ki te Upoko o te Ika."

The opening of Te Ara Tupua follows last month’s opening of Tupua Horo Nuku, the 4.4km shared path around Wellington’s Eastern Bays. With the Ākau Tangi Evans Bay shared walking and cycling path now in its final stage, it is already possible to bike or walk on shared paths most of the way from the Miramar Cutting to Eastbourne without having to contend with traffic. Some small sections (at Seaview, Port Road and at Eastbourne, Days Bay) still require people to go back on the road. Hopefully this will be resolved before to long.

“This is a once-in-a-generation achievement. It is a world-class urban walking and cycling route,” Hall said. He called on regional leaders to follow the example of Otago, Hawke’s Bay and Taupō, which have successfully used walking and cycling trails to boost local economies. “A huge amount has been invested in creating the Great Harbour Way. Our leaders now need to grasp the economic, tourism and recreation opportunities it presents.”

For other Great Harbour Way related news items and activities, check out the News page.

What you can find on this Great Harbour Way website

Map showing the different sections of the Great Harbour Way route

Information about the route around Wellington's harbour

Check out the Route Guides pages to see information, photos and download the GPX navigation files for each of the different route sections. It also has a General Guide about options to do half day, one day and multi day walking and cycling excursions, plus what services are available along the route. And there is a page on other trails and routes that you can explore.

Study on the Great Harbour Way

Back in 2009, the Trust commissioned Boffa Miskell Consultants to write up a report on the opportunities and issues related to the Great Harbour Way. Read the report here.

The history of our harbour

Find out about the history of Te Whanganui-a-Tara Aotearoa (Wellington) and Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Wellington's great harbour); how Māori settled here first, and the arrival of pakeha / European settlers.

About us

Check out who the Great Harbour Way Trust people are, who for years have been advocating for this wonderful route around the Wellington harbour.

Our vision for the great harbour way

A safe, and enjoyable harbourside perimeter shared pathway for all. That is our vision in a nutshell. But there is more to our aspirations for the great harbour way., which you can read about on our Vision page.

Submission on reclaiming the Miramar Bays road

Our Advocacy

Read the various submissions, presentation etc that we publish to advocate for improvements that are needed to realise the vision and outcomes for the Great Harbour Way.

Contact us

We welcome and invite comments, questions and suggestions. Please use the Contact Form to get in touch with us.