Lower Hutt City: River Trails and Art

Discover Lower Hutt City through two distinct interests: outdoor activities along Te Awa Kairangi / Hutt River and decorative arts. The Hutt River Trail combines walking and cycling with access to the river for swimming; The Dowse adds a cultural highlight. When planning your accommodation, it helps to first consider which of these experiences you want to shape your days.

River and trails

The Hutt River Trail starts at Hikoikoi Reserve on Marine Parade in Petone and follows the river from Petone to Te Marua. It is an easy, scenic walking and cycling trail, with access to the river for swimming. It also connects with the Remutaka Rail Trail. This lets you take both using the trail and the option of a river swim into account when planning.

The Rātā Street Loop offers a different kind of trail: it is Lower Hutt’s shortest tramping circuit. The comparison is clear: the Hutt River Trail runs from Petone to Te Marua, while the Rātā Street Loop is a loop. If you’re travelling with a dog, it must be kept on a leash on the Hutt River Trail in Lower Hutt.

For travel by bus, route 145 runs from Waterloo or Melling Station to the Hill Road stop (Stop 9358, near number 133) from Monday to Saturday. Check current public transport conditions before travelling. Check current public transport conditions before travelling.

Explore parks and culture

At Wainuiomata Regional Park, you can visit a water-history museum along the Lower Dam Walk. The Waterfall Track is suitable for all ages and abilities. This means the trails offer a choice of different experiences: a walk with a museum visit, or a track whose suitability is explicitly broad. For families planning activities for different age groups, this information provides a useful point of reference.

The Dowse has a strong focus on decorative arts and is home to pātaka Nuku Tewhatewha. This adds another focus to your travel plans, distinct from the river and trails. If you’d like to combine nature experiences and culture, you can consider the trails and The Dowse as different parts of your stay, without centring your plans on a single activity.

Wellington as the broader setting

Across the wider Wellington destination, the Greater Wellington region extends along the west coast from north of Ōtaki to north of Castlepoint on the east coast, with almost 500 kilometres of coastline. Its eight regional parks cover more than 330 square kilometres and are visited by thousands of people each year. The Wellington Regional Trails network includes almost 300 kilometres of mountain biking, walking and horse-riding trails across 40,000 hectares of publicly used land. It stretches from Wellington’s city centre to the Wairarapa region and the Kāpiti Coast. This regional perspective complements the specific river, park and art experiences in Lower Hutt City.

Choose accommodation to suit your experiences

Start your search by considering what you want to focus on each day: the Hutt River Trail and the river, a trail and museum in Wainuiomata, or art at The Dowse. If several of these themes matter to you, you can then check which specific accommodation location suits your plans.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Lower Hutt, Wellington City, Masterton District, Kapiti Coast District, Upper Hutt City, Gladstone, South Wairarapa District.

Back to the main travel overview: Wellington.