Attendee Information

The Culture Club Supporters preferential booking period is from Thursday 9 November to Sunday 19 November 2023, 11.59pm (excluding previously announced shows). Learn more here.

Public sales from Monday 20 November 2023.

Early Bird Sales

Book early and save! An Early bird price is available for most shows, giving you a discount on top reserve ticket price. Limited availability, so get in quick. Ends 14 December, 11:59pm or once allocation is exhausted.

Find a breakdown of ticket types and categories here.

To book by telephone: Call our dedicated Ticketmaster line on 0800 111 999 during opening hours: Mon-Fri 9am-9pm, Sat-Sun 9am-5pm.

In person: Purchase tickets over the counter at Wellington iSITE

The iSITE outlet is open Mon-Fri, 8.30am-5pm, and Sat-Sun, 9am-5pm (public holidays 9am-4pm).

Outside Wellington? You can also book at Ticketmaster outlets nationwide.

Door sales: Tickets may be purchased at the venue one hour prior to the show – provided there are still tickets available!

Booking online

Booking online is the easiest way to purchase your Festival tickets.

To book individual shows: Simply follow the Buy Tickets link on that event page.

To book multiple shows: There are two ticketing providers for the 2024 Festival – Ticketmaster for events held at the Michael Fowler Centre, St James Theatre or TSB Arena, and iTICKET for events at Circa Theatre, Tāwhiri Warehouse, St Mary of the Angels, Māoriland Hub and Embassy Theatre. Each ticketing provider has a dedicated Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts page listing all the events they are ticketing. From this page on each site, you can book for as many shows as you wish in one transaction, reducing booking fees. Go here for Ticketmaster Festival events and here for iTICKET Festival events.

BOOKING FOR MORE THAN TEN PEOPLE FOR ONE SHOW?

Discounts are available for groups of 10+ for selected shows. Groups of 10+ will save 10% off and groups of 20+ will save 20% (on selected shows only and subject to availability). Contact us at ticketing@festival.co.nz or phone Ticketing on 021 528 481.

It is essential you advise the Festival at the time of booking if you have any special seating requirements, such as wheelchair access, hearing loop access, or a companion ticket. Access tickets for most events are $20.

Email us at ticketing@festival.co.nz or for Ticketmaster events, please contact Ticketmaster’s Accessible Seating Line on 09 970 9711, and for iTICKET events please phone 0508 iTICKET (484-253) or email support@iticket.co.nz for more information.

If you require assistance to attend, you can book an essential companion ticket for free. Companion tickets are limited and subject to availability. For more information on Festival accessibility, including our Access and Inclusion programme, click here.

There are several ways to receive your Ticketmaster tickets:

Mobile download
Post or courier (telephone bookings only)
Print-at-home (telephone bookings only)
Collect at venue (telephone bookings only)

*For Ticketmaster bookings, tickets cannot be posted or couriered after 5 February 2024. Beyond this date, you may select print-at-home, mobile download, or collect your tickets from the venue box office.

All iTICKET tickets will be delivered digitally and can be printed at home or downloaded to your phone.

To book by telephone: Call our dedicated Ticketmaster line on 0800 111 999 during opening hours: Mon-Fri 9am-9pm, Sat-Sun 9am-5pm.

In person: Purchase tickets over the counter at Wellington Isite

The Wellington Isite is open Mon-Fri, 8.30am-5pm, and Sat-Sun, 9am-5pm (public holidays 9am-4pm).

Outside Wellington? You can also book at Ticketmaster outlets nationwide.

Door sales: Tickets may be purchased at the venue one hour prior to the show – provided there are still tickets available!

There are several ways to receive your Ticketmaster tickets:

Mobile download
Post or courier (telephone bookings only)
Print-at-home (telephone bookings only)
Collect at venue (telephone bookings only)

*For Ticketmaster bookings, tickets cannot be posted or couriered after 5 February 2024. Beyond this date, you may select print-at-home, mobile download, or collect your tickets from the venue box office.

All iTICKET tickets will be delivered digitally and can be printed at home or downloaded to your phone.

Booking through Ticketmaster:
Internet bookings: $5.00 per transaction
Phone bookings: $11.00 per transaction
Tickets couriered: $9.00 per transaction
Door sales and Ticketmaster outlets: $2.00 per ticket

A payment processing fee of no more than 2.3% applies to purchases by credit card or debit card.

Booking through iTICKET:

Online: A $2.50 booking fee per ticket applies to all tickets booked online through iTICKET, capped at $7.50 per transaction.

Phone bookings: $7.50 per transaction.

Credit Cards: A payment processing fee of no more than 2.5% applies to purchases by credit card or debit card.

Bank Transfer: A payment processing fee of $1.50 applies to purchases made by bank transfer.

Online EFTPOS: A payment processing fee of no more than 1.8% applies to purchases using online EFTPOS or POLi.

Saving you 30% on the full price, this $89 five-show pass is for Writers events in The Embassy Grand between 23-25 February. Applies to all $19 (Early Bird)/$25 sessions only. Limited availability so get in quick.

Excluded are House on Fire (Friday 23 Feb, 6pm) and Keri and Janet in the Frame (Sun 25 Feb, 7:30pm)

Buy a Grand Take 5 pass here.

How does the Grand Take 5 Pass Work?

When you've picked your five events, head to the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts Writers Festival page
1. Scroll down to the listing of The Grand events
2. Select your preferred Event
3. Click “get tickets” on your preferred event and select your tickets – please note, until you reach the checkout and use your unique code, these tickets will appear to have a price attached.
4. Repeat until you have added five tickets to your cart.
5. Proceed to Checkout and enter your unique Order Number (see below) to validate your Take Five Pass. Order numbers are found just above the words “Booking Summary” on your receipt and should be entered without the #.

Entering your unique code will make your tickets $0 value. Continue through to the Checkout to complete your booking or head back to the Festival page to book more tickets.

Please note it can take up to a day to active your Order Number for this validation process. If you have any issues or would like any assistance during this process, please do not hesitate to contact iTICKET's Customer Support team on 0508 iTICKET (484 253) or support@iticket.co.nz.

Choose Your Price I Kōwhiria Tō Utu empowers you to select your ticket price based on what you can afford, with no booking fees. Choose Your Price sessions can be booked directly from this website.

Choose Your Price shows for 2024 are:

• Our Own Little Mess by A Slightly Isolated Dog at Circa Theatre, Sunday 25 February, 4pm
• The Savage Coloniser Show by Tusiata Avia at Circa Theatre, Sunday 3 March, 4pm
• Gravity and Grace by Eleanor Bishop and Karin McCracken at Circa Theatre, Sunday 10 March, 2pm
• Tararua: Bird Like Men at the Māoriland Hub, Ōtaki, Friday 1 March, 7:30pm

Booking online? Download them as print-at-home, or show on your smartphone.

Lost your tickets? If you have lost your tickets, please contact Ticketmaster on 0800 111 999 or iTICKET on 0508 iTICKET (484-253) .

Tickets didn’t arrive? If you haven’t received your tickets, please contact Ticketmaster on 0800 111 999 or iTICKET on 0508 iTICKET (484-253) .

Child prices: Selected shows have special prices for children aged 15 years and under. See specific events for details. All children must have a ticket, regardless of age.

If you have any other questions, feel free to contact us at ticketing@festival.co.nz and we will be happy to help.

Tickets to all shows are non-refundable and non-transferable, except if a show is cancelled, or as required under New Zealand consumer law. If a show is cancelled, you will be refunded your ticket price (excluding any service fees).

Tickets to all shows are subject to availability. Unless selected otherwise, the best available seats (in each price category) at the time of purchase will be sold.

Latecomers may be excluded from a show, or only admitted at a suitable time. Latecomers will not be entitled to a transfer or refund.

Remember to switch off your mobile phone prior to the start of the show. Recording and photography during all performances is prohibited.

Information on this website is correct at the time of entry. The Festival reserves the right to alter without notice any events, programmes and artists.

Any claims on refunds for cancelled shows must be done prior to Friday 29 March 2024, via Ticketmaster or ITICKET.