Wellington has a well-established sex industry, backed by progressive sex work laws that have turned the world’s oldest trade into just another job.
This is reflected by a city that houses several popular brothels, a bunch of successful escort agencies, a handful of late-night strip clubs, and a discreet but lively roster of independent workers plying their trade from apartments, hotels, and private flats.
You’ll also find erotic massage providers, a couple of gay-friendly saunas, and even the odd pop-up swingers’ event if you know the right people. In this guide, we take you on a tour of Wellington’s finest NSFW services and adult attractions.
Sex In Wellington
Sex and Prostitution In Wellington
Wellington is New Zealand’s capital and, like the rest of the country, it treats sex work as a legal occupation.
Prostitution (including street solicitation, brothels, and escort agencies) was decriminalised nationwide by the Prostitution Reform Act in 2003. Sex workers can operate freely throughout Wellington, and clients can purchase sexual services without risking the wrath of the law.
We haven’t seen any major law changes since 2003, aside from a few local bylaws tweaked to control brothel locations (some of the early conditions proved overly restrictive and were rolled back as inconsistent with sex workers’ rights).
If we look at the bigger picture, Wellington’s legal environment around sex work is considered one of the most liberal in the world – a glowing example that many states and regions would love to follow, if only they could get the necessary bills passed!
The capital also carries a pragmatic, slightly cheeky attitude toward the trade. Local Wellingtonians might joke about “popping down Vivian Street,” but there’s little moral panic about brothels or escorts – even if it’s not exactly dinner table talk.
Politicians, students, and suits alike quietly make use of the services on offer, and most venues value discretion just as much as their clients do…
Escort Industry
Wellington’s various escort agencies are easy to spot – they are very popular with both nervous first-timers and monied executives who are rushed for time (and want beautiful women to appear at their hotel out of thin air!).
Funhouse, Splash and The Apartment pitch themselves at the high end.
And then there are smaller collectives like 1Night Stands offering decent rates starting at around $300/350 for outcalls.
An agency will handle the logistics of bookings, provide incall venues (if requested), and keep a stable roster of women (and occasionally men) that changes week to week. They often have arrangements with escorts working in other cities, around NZ, or even overseas.
Independents, on the other hand, operate from private apartments or hotels and handle their own advertising and screening. Many run “small owner-operated brothels” – legal under NZ law – which can be as simple as a two-bedroom flat in Te Aro.
The best way to find them is via NZ’s well-established directory sites – and the biggest, by far, is NZ Girls. It has around 70 active listings in the Wellington region.
At one point, it was the 16th most-visited website in New Zealand. 😂
Locanto’s Wellington Escort board is also a popular meeting point with 390+ escort ads live (at time of writing). You get all kinds of crazy offers there – the current featured spot is for a Kilbirnie ‘accented girl’ offering blowjobs for $120 as a Wednesday special…
A real lucky dip.
Wellington Brothels
We’ve covered the Wellington brothel scene extensively and gave it an overall rating of 7/10 – not as stellar as Auckland (9/10) but significantly better than Christchurch (5/10).
So, why does it sit in the middle?
Because Wellington’s brothels get plenty right – clean premises, professional service, fair pricing – but they don’t have the sheer variety or volume that Auckland enjoys. The capital’s small size means fewer houses overall, and while you can find a great punt here, you don’t get the same conveyor belt of fresh talent you’d see up north.
That said, what Wellington lacks in numbers, it makes up for in personality. The city boasts a couple of true standouts, like Funhouse and The Bedroom, which run more like a five-star boutique hotel than a brothel.
Then you’ve got the long-timers – Paris, and Splash Club, TKs – each with their own stream of regulars and dazzling courtesans.
Most sex dens are clustered in Te Aro, within staggering distance of Courtenay Place’s bars, so you can quite literally make a night of it. Inside, you’ll usually be greeted by a host, offered a seat in a lounge, and given a lineup or introduction to whoever’s available.
The fancier establishments have online rotas (so you can check for your fave ahead of time).
Red Light Districts
There isn’t an “official” red light district, as such, and the authorities generally try to discourage any such hub from becoming too prominent (or at least, the neighbours do!).
There are a couple of pockets that are associated to the adult trade, however:
Vivian Street & Cuba Street (Te Aro)
This is the closest thing to a red-light zone in Wellington. The corner of Vivian and Cuba, and nearby Marion Street, have long been stroll territory for street-based hookers.
Wellington’s street workers are known to look out for each other, and NZPC outreach vans occasionally check on them at night.
Courtenay Place & Dixon Street
At the lower end of Courtenay you have strip club The Mermaid, and around the corner on Dixon St are Calendar Girls and Happy Pants. On a lively Friday night, this area is packed with revellers, stag groups and plastered tourists. More a party zone than a RLD, but certainly worth a visit.
If we go back many years, Wellington’s most infamous red light area in history was Haining Street in the late 19th and early 20th century. Back then, Haining was known for opium dens, gambling, and brothels run by Chinese immigrants. It was considered a den of vice until crackdowns in the 1900s. Today, Haining Street is quiet and gentrified – far departed from its shady past.
The Price of Sex in Wellington
Prices in the capital have remained fairly stable in recent years, with a typical full-service session costing roughly what it did a few years back.
Brothel Prices: For a standard session (oral + intercourse) at a mid-range Wellington brothel or agency, expect to pay about $150-$180 for 30 minutes, $220-$250 for an hour. That’s pretty comparable to Auckland and Christchurch.
Escort Prices: Many of the agencies will start at around $450 per hour, but this is the mid-to-high end of the market (always the case with agencies). Many excellent independents operate in the $300-$350/hr range for a deluxe GFE, and you’ll find plenty going much lower. Look out for upsells though. It’s not uncommon for independents to lure in the Johns with a cheap hourly rate only to upsell extras left, right and centre.
Street Prices: Not much action takes place on the streets. Vice reports the going rate at $100 for full sex, $60 for oral. Obviously… there’s a lot of negotiation (and desperation) involved. Some daring SWs advertise quick 15-minute “car specials” or “special $50 quickie” on sites like Locanto.
Just know that anything below the $100 mark in this industry is truly no-frills and YMMV.
The good thing about such a transparent legalised sex industry is that most legit services (including those listed on this page) will publish menus and full pricing on their websites. Just take a look and see how far your wallet will stretch.
Erotic Massage Shops
Wellington’s erotic massage scene falls somewhere between the straight-up sex trade and the spa world… and in Wellington, it’s readily available if you know where to look, though often packaged within brothels or private escorts’ services.
Once again, you have the major escort/parlour hybrids like Funhouse and The Apartment offering premium massage services.
There are independent erotic masseuses operating semi-privately. These are usually advertised through classifieds (Locanto, personal ads) or on NZGirls under massage category. Even the NZHerald has an erotic massage section!
Seems crazy to us that a punter would act on such scant information as “very busty, good service, good massage, toys“… but for some old hands, the lucky dip is all part of the experience. 😂
Sex Clubs In Wellington
When it comes to swinger clubs or dedicated sex party venues, Wellington’s scene is… underground.
In fact, there’s only one prominent destination that we’re aware of:
House of K – Whitby, Wellington. This club is extremely active with meet-ups held every month, including theme nights like Tarts & Vicars (interesting!), Kink, Leather & Lace, and Loose Lips Sinks Ships. The events draw a crowd of around 50-70 Lifestylers, free to play across a large venue with 7 play areas, a BDSM dungeon, a special ‘kink zone’ and multiple glory holes.
There used to be a venue called Club Silverado but our latest digging indicates that it’s no longer running.
For guys seeking male-on-male action, head over to Checkmate Sauna (15 Tory Street).
There used to be the popular Emperor’s Bathhouse (Wigan Street) but it’s now closed.
Wellington Strip Clubs
Looking for some late night eye candy in the Windy City?
You’ve got three main strip bars to choose from:
Calendar Girls – 13 Dixon Street, Te Aro. A staple of the NZ strip industry circuit. This is the flagship strip club in town and offers the classic strip club experience: stage shows nightly, private lap dance booths, VIP champagne lounges and a never-ending factory line of exotic dancers.
Mermaid Club – 73 Courtenay Place, Te Aro. An iconic name in NZ stripping, Mermaids is known for its unique twist: as legend has it, they featured an aquarium-style tank on some nights where a dancer would dress as a mermaid and perform underwater! No idea if that shit is still going on, but it’s a popular pit-stop for the stag crews.
Dreamgirls – 37 Dixon Street, Te Aro. Billed as “the titty bar ya mama warned you about“. This place is popular with stag dos and will have no hesitation in publicly humiliating the groom-to-be. It’s also the scene of regular jelly wrestling events (semi-naked chicks, dwarfs, tranny referee)! Open til 6am on the weekends.
Local Sex Shops and Adult Stores
Wellington is surprisingly bereft of choice when it comes to sex shops.
Peaches and Cream – Level 1/120 Cuba Street, Te Aro. Has a presence in every major NZ city and Wellington is no exception. This one is probably the largest adult shop in Wellington. It’s smack in the middle of Cuba Mall’s quirky shopping district – you can’t miss the pink signage. Inside, it’s actually pretty welcoming and clean: they stock the latest sex toys, vibrators, dildos, BDSM gear, sexy costumes, DVDs (a dwindling section these days), lubricants and more.
There’s also several Seductiva outlets scattered around the city.
Beyond this? You’re going to be heading online.
You’ll get a decent selection from any of the major online retailers, including Adult Toy Megastore, LoveHoney or GiGi.
What are your thoughts on the Wellington sex scene today?
Drop us a comment or a private email if we’ve missed anything important!
