Who's open in Wellington these holidays?

What businesses are open in Wellington these holidays?

Are you staying in Wellington for a stay-cation?  Or, are you visiting Wellington and want to know where to go and what to do over the holidays?

Here is a sample of who is open and when in Wellington.

Please refer to the websites for these businesses for more info.

24th Dec Xmas Day 26th Dec 27th Dec 28th Dec 29th Dec Central Library open closed closed closed open open Dairies open open open open open open Petrol stations open open open open open open Rubbish & Recycling collection - normal collection days continue throughout the holidays Southern Landfil open closed open open open open Staglands open closed open open open open Supermarkets open closed open open open open Swimming pools open closed open open open open Te Papa open open open open open open The Embassy Theatre open closed open open open open Video hire stores open open open open open open Zoo open closed open open open open Ancestral open closed closed closed open open Bangalore Polo Club     open closed open open open open Big Dog on Blair open closed Dinner Dinner Dinner open Boulcott St Bistro closed closed closed open open open Bull & Bear pub open closed closed closed open open Café Polo, Miramar closed closed closed closed closed closed Caffe L'affare closed closed closed closed closed closed Celcius Café, Petone    closed closed closed closed closed closed Cosa Nostra closed closed closed closed closed closed CQ Wellington open open open open open open Dockside open Lunch open open open open Floriditas closed closed closed open open open Fork & Brewer open closed closed closed open open Foxglove open closed open open open open French Kiss Café closed closed closed closed closed closed Gamboni's Deli, Karori open closed closed closed closed closed Green Man Pub closed closed closed closed closed closed Hells Pizza, Northland open closed closed open open open Kirkcaldie & Stains open closed closed open open open La Boca Loca closed closed closed closed closed closed Le Canard open closed closed closed closed closed Logan Brown Dinner Dinner closed Dinner Dinner Dinner MariLuca Ristoro open closed closed closed Dinner Dinner Martin Bosley's closed closed closed closed closed closed Matterhorn open closed closed open open open Memphis Belle open closed closed closed closed closed Mojo café -Wgtn airport open open open open open open Moore Wilsons open closed closed open open open Nikau Café open closed closed closed open open Osteria Del Toro Dinner Lunch closed closed Dinner Dinner Social Cooking closed closed closed closed closed closed

30th Dec

31st Dec

1st Jan

2nd Jan

3rd Jan

4th Jan

Central Library

open

open

closed

closed

closed

open

Dairies

open

open

open

open

open

open

Petrol stations

open

open

open

open

open

open

Rubbish & Recycling collection - normal collection days continue throughout the holidays

Southern Landfil

open

open

closed

open

open

open

Staglands

open

open

open

open

open

open

Supermarkets

open

open

open

open

open

open

Swimming pools

open

open

open

open

open

open

Te Papa

open

open

open

open

open

open

The Embassy Theatre

open

open

Video hire stores

open

open

open

open

open

open

Zoo

open

open

open

open

open

open

Ancestral

open

open

closed

closed

closed

open

Bangalore Polo Club

open

open

open

open

open

open

Big Dog on Blair

open

open

Dinner

open

open

open

Boulcott St Bistro

open

open

closed

closed

Bull & Bear pub

open

closed

closed

closed

closed

open

Café Polo, Miramar

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

Caffe L'affare

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

open

Celcius Café, Petone

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

Cosa Nostra

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

CQ Wellington

open

open

open

open

open

open

Dockside

open

open

Lunch

open

open

open

Floriditas

open

open

closed

closed

open

open

Fork & Brewer

open

open

Foxglove

open

open

open

open

open

open

French Kiss Café

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

Gamboni's Deli, Karori

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

Green Man Pub

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

open

Hells Pizza, Northland

open

open

open

open

open

open

Kirkcaldie & Stains

open

open

closed

closed

open

open

La Boca Loca

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

Le Canard

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

Logan Brown

Dinner

Dinner

closed

closed

closed

closed

MariLuca Ristoro

Dinner

Dinner

closed

closed

closed

closed

Martin Bosley's

closed

closed

closed

closed

Matterhorn

open

open

closed

closed

open

open

Memphis Belle

closed

closed

closed

closed

Mojo café -Wgtn airport

open

open

open

open

open

open

Moore Wilsons

open

open

open

open

open

open

Nikau Café

open

open

closed

closed

closed

open

Osteria Del Toro

Dinner

Dinner

closed

closed

Dinner

Dinner

Social Cooking

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

closed

The Embassy Theatre will be showing the Adventures of Tintin on Boxing Day
The Bangalore Polo Club are open on Boxing Day from noon
The Bull & Bear pub resumes normal hours from 4th January

Cafe Polo, Miramar re-opens on 24th January

Celcius Cafe, Petone re-opens on 9th January
Cosa Nostra re-opens on 9th January
Floriditas does not charge any holiday surcharge
The French Kiss Cafe re-opens on 16th January
Gamboni's Deli, Karori re-opens on 9th January
The Green Man pub re-opens on 10th January
La Boca Loca, Miramar resumes normal hours on 9th January
Le Canard resumes normal hours on 16th January
Logan Brown re-opens for dinner on 6th January
MariLuca Ristoro re-opens for dinner on 12th January
Osteria Del Toro resumes normal hours on 13th January
Social Cooking resumes with 'When in Rome' on 9th January.

please let us know if you'd like some information updated.

Merry Christmas to you all

Will your post arrive in time?

Christmas is coming.  There is no point denying it any longer.  Kirkcaldie & Stains Christmas shop is open and it won't be long before we will hear Christmas carols in the shops.

If you have family and friends overseas, then you may like to know about the changes for posting Christmas cards to arrive in time.

NZ Post no longer gives the option of sending cards by International Economy.  International Economy is only available for parcels.  Your only option to send cards overseas is by International Par Avion Air.  Of course, all mail gets sent by air these days.  It has been a long time since you had the option of post by sea or air.

So, what does this mean for the cost of sending a medium sized card overseas:
To Australia & South Pacific is $1.90
The rest of the world is $2.40

For posting Christmas cards it is worthwhile to keep in mind, it is the size of the envelope that determines the price of the postage, not the weight of the envelope.  This is different from how the postal prices works in the UK, for example.  In the UK you can choose between first and second class posting, and then postal costs are determined on the weight.

So, before you buy a pack of Christmas cards,  you may like to consider the size of the envelope and maybe buy the charity packs.  The charity pack of Christmas cards donate a portion of the sale proceeds to a named charity.

Another point to note, is the dates the NZPO advise for posting Christmas cards to arrive in time for Christmas in the UK, Europe & North America is 2nd December.  Of course, NZPO cannot guarantee your post will reach its destination within the delivery target.  Last Christmas the postal delivery for the UK was brought to a stand still as the heavy snow stopped deliveries.  In previous years, postal strikes by UK Postal Union saw sacks of mail undelivered by Christmas.

So, the good news is that you don't need to get organised for sending Christmas cards quite so early this year.

But don't leave it too long, I understand that next week will be the last delivery most retail shops will receive before Christmas.  And if you go shopping in the weekend, be prepared for driving, parking and shopping in general to take a bit longer.  Of course, you could choose to shop online, but that is another blog to come!

Below are outlines for the letter/card rates from NZPO:

The cost to send by International Air depends on the destination, weight and size of documents.

Size	Max dimensions per letter (height x length)	Max weight per letter	Max thickness per letter	Required postage per letter for Australia and South Pacific	Required postage per letter for Rest of the World
Aerogrammes and postcards	130mm x 235mm	10g	-	$1.90	$1.90
Medium	130mm x 235mm	200g	10mm	$1.90	$2.40
Large	165mm x 235mm	200g	10mm	$2.40	$2.90
Extra large	230mm x 325mm	200g	10mm	$2.90	$3.40
Oversize	260mm x 385mm	200g	10mm	$3.60	$5.10

All prices include GST. Items larger than 260mm x 385mm, thicker than 10mm or heavier than 200g are classified as parcels

Below are outlines for the mailing dates for Christmas letter and parcels from NZPO:

Make sure you send your mail by the dates below so your cards and gifts arrive in time for Christmas!

International	Zone  A (Australia)	Zone B (South Pacific),  Zone C (East Asia and North America), Zone D (UK and Europe)	Zone E (Rest of the world)
International Economy*	Fri 2 December	Fri 25 November	Mon 21 November
International Air	Fri 9 December	Fri 2 December	Mon 28 November
International Economy Courier**	Wed 14 December	Fri 9 December	N/A
International Express Courier	Fri 16 December	Wed 14 December	Mon 12 December

*International Economy is only available for parcels.
**International Economy Courier is available to 32 key locations.