Where to Find The Best Craft Beer in Wellington

Wellington treats craft beer with the same reverence Berlin gives techno or Tokyo gives vending machines.

At roughly 1.35 breweries per 10,000 people, it has one of the highest breweries per capita ratios anywhere. That means an unusually large number of taprooms in a very manageable perimeter, from Aro Valley’s tiny experimental rooms to Lyall Bay’s surf-adjacent pint spots, and Upper Hutt’s industrial-scale beer playground.

Visitors have the rare chance to experience a national craft beer scene almost entirely on foot, and this guide walks you through the best Wellington breweries, the city’s signature taprooms, what to drink, where to explore outside the CBD, and how to join the locals at the country’s biggest beer festivals.

Wellington’s craft beer scene sits mostly in and around Te Aro and Aro Valley, where old garages, warehouses, and corner buildings have been turned into small breweries with outsized reputations. Most places offer tasting paddles, limited releases, brewery-only fills and staff who’ll happily explain the decisions behind each flavour profile. It’s a compact, lively, and slightly obsessive ecosystem.

Garage Project is the brewery people mention first when talking craft beer Wellington-wide. Founded in 2011 by Pete Gillespie, Ian Gillespie and Jos Ruffell, Garage Project started with a 50-litre system in a derelict service station and a promise to release 24 beers in 24 weeks. The Aro Cellar Door now pours rotating taps, tasting flights and takeaway fills, including favourites like Pernicious Weed and Hāpi Daze. The flavour experimentation is relentless, with wild ferments, barrel ageing, sours, hazies and collaborations with artists. The Aro Valley location makes it one of the easiest high-impact stops for visitors.

Address: 68 Aro Street, Wellington

Parrotdog grew from a group of uni mates brewing in a flat into one of Wellington’s most reliable independent producers. The Lyall Bay bar sits a short walk from the beach, making it one of the few places in the capital where you can pair an IPA with the sound of actual waves. Inside you’ll find 17 taps, a neighbourhood crowd, pool tables, limited releases and the sort of low-key atmosphere that pairs well with long afternoons. Look for seasonal Parrotdog specials and Lyall Bay-only pours that rarely make it outside the taproom.

Address: 60–66 Kingsford Smith Street, Lyall Bay, Wellington

Panhead started in Upper Hutt and expanded into the city with a taproom that feels more urban than industrial. Expect 14 taps including classics like Supercharger along with experimental batches pumped out of the Upper Hutt brewery. The menu leans hearty and the atmosphere tends to lift after sunset. If you like bold, hop-forward beers, this is the place that doesn’t hold back.

Address: 1 Tory Street, Te Aro

Wellington’s official Craft Beer Capital Trail ties the entire region together. You can follow it casually as you wander the city or turn it into a structured crawl. Either way, it’s one of the neatest examples of a city formalising its craft beer obsession.

Mapped across Aro Valley, Te Aro, Thorndon and beyond, the trail lets you check in at breweries, bars and bottle shops, ticking off stops as you go. It’s designed to be walkable for most visitors staying near Cuba Street or Courtenay Place. The best approach is to start in Aro Valley at Garage Project, loop down to Panhead’s Tory Street spot, then finish near the waterfront. Beyond the city centre, two areas add more depth to the experience: the Kāpiti Coast and Upper Hutt’s Brewtown. Each offers its own mix of local styles, coastal air and taprooms surrounded by nature.

The Kāpiti Coast sits roughly 45–60 minutes north of Wellington and is an easy half-day addition for anyone chasing a broader flavour profile. Here, brewing tends to feel slower and more place-driven, shaped by the coastline and smaller communities.

Tuatara is one of New Zealand’s most recognisable beer names. The Paraparaumu taproom pours small-batch releases alongside long-time staples like Tuatara APA. The tasting paddles are generous and the atmosphere is relaxed, more coastal workshop than urban bar.

Address: 7 Sheffield Street, Paraparaumu

Duncan’s is known for creative small-batch beers, including cult-followed sours and dessert-inspired stouts. The brewery sits in an industrial pocket, but the taproom is bright, friendly and full of personality.

Address: 4B Sheffield Street, Paraparaumu

North End specialises in European-inspired beers with a New Zealand twist — think farmhouse ales, rauchbier, and traditional styles done with care. It’s one of the region’s best stops for beer lovers who enjoy technical brewing over hop-heavy experimentation.

Address: 11 Ngaio Road, Waikanae

Upper Hutt’s Brewtown is a rare beast: a former tyre factory transformed into a craft beer village, complete with breweries, a distillery, go-karts, paintball, ten-pin bowling, and an ice-skating rink.

The original Panhead site pumps out the full range and a steady flow of limited releases, giving you a taste of the brewery’s louder, bolder side. The space still carries the bones of its industrial past, which only adds to the energy: stainless steel everywhere, fresh hops in the air and a crowd that skews loyal and local. It’s a clear reminder of how quickly Panhead scaled from a small Hutt Valley operation into one of the country’s most recognisable names, and it’s one of the few places where you can taste experimental batches before they hit the wider market.

Address: 35A Blenheim Street, Upper Hutt

This second Tuatara outpost brings the same coastal character and precision brewing the brand is known for but places it in the centre of Brewtown’s brewery cluster. The taproom feels relaxed and unhurried, with staff who know exactly which seasonal drop or small-batch release is drinking best that week. Its location means you can wander out the door and straight into another brewery within moments, turning a casual visit into a multi-stop tasting run without ever crossing a main road.

Address: 23 Blenheim Street, Upper Hutt

Wellington’s craft beer calendar is also stacked with festivals that highlight the city’s talent for brewing, experimenting and celebrating good beer in wildly different ways.

This is Wellington’s flagship craft beer festival. Held at Sky Stadium on the waterfront, it typically attracts 14,000–16,000 visitors across two days, with 50+ breweries and more than 380 beers on offer. The format is multiple sessions and the atmosphere is a mix of brewer stalls, food trucks, live music and serious sampling. For a beer traveller it’s a must: you’ll get a cross-section of NZ’s craft beer scene in one place, from established heavyweights to new-school experimental brewers. One tip: go early in a session to avoid the rush and pace your tasting.

A summer-day festival at Basin Reserve in Wellington, this one is a bit lighter but still worth building your visit around. The next date is Saturday 28 February 2026. It’s designed for craft beer lovers who want good beers, local wineries and street food in a relaxed outdoor setting. If you’re in Wellington during a summer window, this offers a different pace compared to the bigger Beervana event.

If you visit in spring or early autumn, this German-style beer celebration on the Wellington waterfront combines local craft beers with Bavarian food, music and festival atmosphere. You’ll see breweries pouring German-style lagers or collaborative craft brews, bratwurst and sauerkraut on the menu, and a sense of cross-cultural fun. Great pick if you want beer culture but also experience something a little local-festive rather than purely hardcore craft.

Because Wellington has one of the highest brewery-to-population ratios in the world, a dense cluster of walkable taprooms, national award winners and a long-running culture of experimentation. Wellington’s scene grew early, grew fast and never slowed down

Start with Garage Project in Aro Valley, then walk down to Panhead on Tory Street. For a beachside pint, Parrotdog in Lyall Bay is unbeatable. Brewtown and the Kāpiti Coast are excellent add-ons for a fuller regional taste.

Yes. Several operators run guided brewery tours in Wellington, but many visitors prefer a self-guided crawl using the Craft Beer Capital Trail. Most breweries offer tasting paddles, making DIY touring easy.

Garage Project’s original site and cellar door are in Aro Valley at 68 Aro Street. This is where much of the experimental brewing and small-batch work still happens.

The central breweries are extremely walkable, particularly if you’re staying near Cuba Street. Parrotdog is a short trip toward the airport, while Kāpiti and Upper Hutt breweries require train or car transport.

Mercure Wellington Abel Tasman is ideally placed near Cuba Street and within walking distance of the city’s best breweries, bars and taprooms. It’s central, convenient and ideal for visitors exploring the craft beer scene on foot. Rooms are quiet enough to recover from a full day of tasting, the onsite restaurant works well for lining the stomach before a brewery crawl, and the front-desk team know the neighbourhood well enough to point you toward whatever’s pouring best that week.