Two Weeks of Wellington Spring: Airport Pickup to Open Road
Late September in Wellington brings bright, restless light, a wind that can flip your hair and your umbrella in the same minute, and the first warm afternoons along the waterfront. Across these 14 nights from 24 September to 8 October, the arrivals hall fills with families travelling for the Mid-Autumn Festival, along with holidaymakers bound for the Wairarapa wine country or the ferry to the South Island. The runway sits right beside Lyall Bay, so you walk out into salt air and a view of the hills almost straight away. For Wellington Airport car rental we found 66 listings across seven suppliers, which gives you plenty to choose from.
Sixt has the lowest average at $639, but with only two listings it is a small shelf, so look closely at what is on it. Europcar offers the most choice (16 listings) and the cheapest car of all at $508, though its top price reaches $2,486. The gap between the cheapest and priciest listing is more than five times, so comparing a few suppliers can save you hundreds. Seven listings showed no price at all, so skip those and book from the ones with a real quote.
Five-seaters make up most of the fleet, which suits couples and small families, and the 7 and 8 seaters are there for grandparents and a pile of suitcases. Spring weather around the capital changes fast, so pick a car with a bit of grunt for the Rimutaka hill road and the winding drive to Kapiti, and expect gusts on the open coast. Quoted prices already include GST and show no location fees, so what you see at booking is what you pay. Collect early in the day if you can, because the school holiday crowd tends to hit the counters mid-morning.