Police say the 100,000 strong crowd joining Lord of the Rings premiere festivities was generally good humoured and well behaved.
Inspector Phil Gubb, Wellington Area operations manager, says police were kept busy throughout the day but by mid evening there had only been one arrest -- a young intoxicated man for breach of the peace.
Five children were temporarily separated in the crowd from their families or caregivers during the afternoon but most were quickly reunited. One nine-year-old boy spent about three hours with police and Wellington City Council staff before his mother was found.
"We had some concerns about the crush of people around the Tory Street area but this was alleviated when staff moved in to free up the choke points," Mr Gubb says.
"It was a long wait in the sun for many but most were in good spirits and were enjoying the spectacle.
"There was some silly behaviour from people sitting on bus stop shelter rooftops or on buildings and some glass and water bombs were thrown."
Police are aware of one person being assaulted with a bottle in the Te Aro Park area but the young man, who was treated for minor injuries, refused to make a complaint.
Mr Gubb praised Wellington motorists for their patience on the roads.
"It seems many heeded the call to leave their cars at home and while there was some congestion, it was not as bad as feared. There were delays during the evening rush hour, especially on the detoured routes, but generally traffic cleared reasonably quickly from the central city."