Otago Peninsula Overview

Extending 22km from Dunedin, the serene Otago Peninsula leaves the bustling city behind almost immediately. Yellow-eyed penguins, fur seals, sea lions, and royal albatross claim the area. The dramatic tip of the peninsula, Taiaroa Head, a 45min. drive from Dunedin, drops off crags and great swaths of billowing kelp.

Transportation. The best way to experience the peninsula is by car, though the flat terrain and harborside travel make for an excellent bike ride although there is no bike lane. Portobello Road, the sinuous coastal route along the bay, is full of treacherous curves; the shoreline plays hide-and-seek behind roadside cliffs and is rarely more than a few meters from your car. Exercise caution while driving, and attempt to finish your travels before nightfall. Citibus runs daily service to Portobello (and Harrington Point on request) from Cumberland St. (Timetables and route plans can be obtained from the Dunedin i-Site.) Back to Nature Tours has intimate tours with knowledgeable guides. Free binoculars allow you to see nature in action. The tour ends at Sandfly Beach, where yellow-eyed penguins waddle up the cliff. (☎0800 477 0484; www.backtonaturetours.co.nz. 5hr. 1 per day. $69, backpackers $59. Free pickup.) Elm Wildlife Tours also provides small, in-depth walking wildlife excursions, which lead to a private beach. (☎0800 356 563; www.elmwildlifetours.co.nz. 6hr. 1 per day, max. 10 people. $75, backpackers/YHA/student $63. Free pickup and binoculars.) Newton Tours offers package tours to Larnach Castle. (☎477 5577. Free pickup. $80.)

Accommodations And Food. If you spend the night at the peninsula, homestays are a possibility. Costs vary, but the visitors center in Dunedin provides brochures and bookings. One farmstay that beats the cost curve is McFarmers Backpackers (BBH) , in Portobello up Hereweka St., is a retreat midway between Dunedin and the albatross colony. The park is a good starting point for exploring the peninsula by bike. (☎478 0359; portobellopark@xtra.co.nz. Reception 8am-10:30pm. Backpacker rooms $55 for 2, $10 each extra person; 2-person tourist flats $85; tent sites $12, with power $14.) Penguin Place , part of the Yellow-Eyed Penguin Reserve, has sparsely furnished rooms with small beds but terrific views of the bay. Ask for a harborside room. (☎478 0286. $20 per person. MC/V.)

Food options on the peninsula are limited, but one reasonable choice is the 1908 Cafe , 7 Harrington Point Rd., in sleepy Portobello. The cafe offers standard mains in a casual setting (lunch $9-14, dinner $18-26). (☎478 0801. Open daily noon-2pm and 6pm-late; in winter Th-F 11am-2:30pm, Sa-Su 11:30am-2:30pm and 6pm-late.) The Portobello Store, on Portobello Rd. at the junction with the road to the aquarium, stocks limited groceries. (☎478 0555. Open M-W 7:30am-7:30pm, Th-F 7:30am-8pm, Sa 8am-8pm, Su 8:30am-7:30am.)

Wildlife. At the Taiaroa Royal Albatross Colony, you’ll learn more than you had previously believed possible about these massive birds. Taiaroa is the only mainland albatross colony on earth; these wanderers fledge and rear their young here, then circumnavigate the globe without landing until they return. Entrance to the Royal Albatross Centre, which houses displays and live TV coverage of the birds’ activities is by donation, but the educational tour and observatory viewing—your best bets to see a live bird—are costly. (☎478 0499. Open Oct.-Apr. daily 8:30am-8:30pm; May-Sept. daily 9am-5pm. No tours or viewing Sept. 16-Nov. 24 due to hatching season. Observing an albatross in flight is not guaranteed. $30, families $74, children $14.) Monarch Wildlife Cruises runs a skiff from Wellers Rock near the head, providing views of massive chimney roosts and rare cormorants. (☎477 4276; www.wildlife.co.nz. Albatross sighting or 2nd trip free. 5 per day in summer, 2 per day in winter. $35, children $10. Binoculars and jackets provided. Transport from Dunedin, some including admission to other Peninsula sights, $75-115.)

Rare yellow-eyed penguins (hoiho) have, with a little human assistance, recolonized Penguin Beach just beyond Taiaroa Head. Once as scarce as the Giant Panda, the penguins have begun a roaring comeback, boosting the local eco-tourism industry with each new hatching. The Reid family runs  Nature’s Wonders wildlife tours, a short drive past the Albatross Colony. Led by father Perry, the Reid children whisk guests to remote wildlife sanctuaries on fully amphibious 8WD vehicles called ARGOs. (☎0800 246 446. Guided tours daily at frequent intervals. 10:15am-dusk. Bookings essential. $45, children $40.) At the Yellow-Eyed Penguin Conservation Reserve, part of Penguin Place, 5min. before the Albatross Centre, camouflaged trenches affords views of the penguins from just a few meters away. (☎478 0286. 1hr. tours every 30min. Oct.-Apr. from 10:15am-7:15pm; May-Sept. during the last 3hr. of daylight. $33, children $12. Bookings essential in summer.)

Sights And Outdoor Activities. Rent bikes and kayaks from Peninsula Bike and Kayak, 13 McCauley Rd., to get up close and personal with Otago’s rocky coastline. Coming from Dunedin, turn right at the second Beaconfield Rd. by the playground, and then left onto McCauley Rd. (☎478 0724; 3hr. kayak tours to Taiaroa Head $75. Bikes $25 per half-day; $35 full-day. Call ahead.) About 2.5km up a dirt road from town in Portobello, the University of Otago runs the New Zealand Marine Studies Centre. Doubling as a research center for marine biologists and an aquarium open to the public, the small display showcases marine animals and ecosystems. (☎479 5826; www.marine.ac.nz. Open daily noon-4:30pm. Feedings W and Sa 2:30pm. $8, children $4. Guided tour daily 10:30am. $16/8.)

Larnach Castle is a 43-room architectural marvel, though the story behind the castle is even more intriguing. The virile Mr. Larnach, with six children by his first wife alone, eventually married his third wife when he was 57. Upon learning of her reputed affair with his second son, Larnach committed suicide in the Parliament building in Wellington and purportedly haunts it to this day. Take a self-guided tour through the various rooms of the castle, including the inlaid mahogany, teak, and kauri foyer. (☎476 1616. $20, children $8. Gardens $10, children $2.40.) To get there, you can take the Citibus to McAndrew Bay Stop and hike up a steep trail to High Cliff Rd. Follow this to the left until Camp Rd., which leads to the castle. Halfway down the peninsula and three kilometers up the winding Castlewood Rd., the aptly named High Cliff Road is an alternate route with views of the south side of the peninsula. Broad Bay Equestrian, based in Broad Bay just before Portobello, embarks on ride through the hillsides and up to the castle. (☎478 0892. Turn right off Portobello Rd. onto Camp St., the driveway is the 2nd on the right. $40 for castle, $35 for other trips. Call ahead, as all tour guides work day jobs.)