A week of spring wind and harbour light out of Wellington
Early October at Wellington International Airport can mean a sharp southerly one hour and bright, rinsed sunshine the next, with the harbour flashing silver as your plane banks in. Spring is waking up around the Remutaka Range and the Kapiti Coast, and it's a lovely week to be behind the wheel. Wellington International Airport car rental is a short walk from the terminal, so you can be out of the car park and onto the coast road while your coffee is still hot. This 7 night stretch from 30 September to 7 October lands right on the 2026 National Day holiday window, so plenty of other people have had the same idea.
Alamo supplies all 13 listings, so the savings come from choosing the right car class, not from comparing brands. The cheapest total is $545.57, the median is $579.32, and the dearest is $1992.66 for a Tesla Model Y Long Range. A savvy booker locks in a Yaris, C-HR or Corolla in the $551 to $557 range and saves the extra cash for ferry tickets and fish and chips on the waterfront.
Every car here seats 5, and most run on standard petrol, with a few hybrids if you'd like to stretch a tank over the Wairarapa and back. Two wheel drive is plenty for sealed roads in spring, but pack soft bags rather than hard cases, because the smaller boots fill up fast. Wellington weather turns quickly, so pick up in daylight if you can, and leave a few spare minutes to get used to the gusts on the Hutt Road.