Ōhāriu Valley
Ōhāriu Valley is the farming valley over the ridge from Johnsonville and Khandallah, farmed since the 1850s, with the 1870 Holy Trinity Church and the 1906 valley hall as its landmarks on Ohariu Valley Road.
Why people love it here
Ōhāriu Valley is a rural district inside the city boundary, and it has stayed one. The valley runs north-west from Johnsonville, one road runs through it, and the 2023 census found 414 people in 144 dwellings across its 4,680 hectares. It has its own community board, shared with Mākara, which still meets in the valley hall.
The first settlers arrived in 1854, once the Old Coach Road had been cut over Totara Ridge from Johnsonville, and the families farmed sheep and cattle, then for fifty years from 1916 ran dairy herds. The name comes from Kupe, who is said to have dried his sails here.
Holy Trinity Church at 639 Ohariu Valley Road was built in 1870 by a local blacksmith and his son, and it is the oldest Anglican church in the Wellington region still holding services, monthly now, with its graveyard around it. Down the road at 550, the valley hall of 1906 was paid for by a company of local shareholders, Alexander Turnbull among them.
The horses are the other thing. There are riding schools and a riding club in the valley, and the equestrian centre at 517 takes treks across an 850-acre farm. Old Coach Road is open to walkers, riders and mountain bikers back to Johnsonville, and the Skyline Walkway crosses the valley's eastern ridge.
Ōhāriu Valley, counted
Stats NZ figures for the statistical area Mākara and Ōhāriu, Place summaries. Population is the estimated resident population; the rest are the 2023 Census. Licensed CC BY 4.0.
The best of Ōhāriu Valley
Every pick checked against its own listing on 21 September 2026.
What you can buy here
The working farm
Sheep and cattle country since the 1850s, the homestead with the woolshed and the yards.
The lifestyle block
A house on a few hectares off Ohariu Valley Road, with a paddock for the horses.
The valley house
On the road near the hall and the church, where the settlement has always been.
A farming valley the city grew around
Holy Trinity Church
The 1870 timber church with its bellcote and pointed windows, still holding services at 639 Ohariu Valley Road.
Old Coach Road
The road the settlers came in on, cut over Totara Ridge from Johnsonville between 1856 and 1858 and still walked today.
What people ask about Ōhāriu Valley
Where is Ōhāriu Valley?
Ōhāriu Valley is the rural valley north-west of Johnsonville and Khandallah in Wellington, reached by Ironside Road from Johnsonville, with Takarau Gorge Road running on to Mākara.
How far is Ōhāriu Valley from Wellington's city centre?
The valley is about 5 km from Khandallah, and the drive to the city goes through Johnsonville to the motorway.
What is Ōhāriu Valley known for?
Holy Trinity Church of 1870, the valley hall of 1906, its horses and riding schools, and Old Coach Road over the ridge to Johnsonville.
What kind of homes are in Ōhāriu Valley?
Farmhouses on working sheep and cattle farms, houses on lifestyle blocks along Ohariu Valley Road, and a few houses near the hall and the church.
What schools are in Ōhāriu Valley?
There is no school in the valley now. Johnsonville's primary schools are over the ridge, and both Onslow College and Newlands College name Ohariu Valley in their home zones.
Tell me your street and I will send you your Ōhāriu Valley performance report, with specific sales and data.
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