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HOME AT FIRST

ALL NZ
LOCATIONS

NORTH ISLAND

SOUTH ISLAND

NELSON

WESTLAND

QUEENSTOWN

FIORDLAND

DUNEDIN

LAKE TEKAPO

CHRISTCHURCH

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DUNEDIN'S APPEALS ARE AGRICULTURAL, ARCHITECTURAL, CULTURAL, EDUCATIONAL, GEOLOGICAL,
AND ORNITHOLOGICAL. PREFER SAND BETWEEN YOUR TOES? DUNEDIN OFFERS GREAT BEACHES, TOO.
PHOTO CREDITS: NZ Tourism (LARNACH CASTLE / RUGBY PLAYERS); DAVID WALL-NZ TOURISM (OTAGO UNIVERSITY CLOCK
TOWER, AUTUMN / BALCLUTHA SHEEP FARM); KIERAN SCOTT-NZTourism (ST. KILDA BEACH); FAY LOONEY-NZ TOURISM
(THE CURIOUS MOERAKI BOULDERS); rob suisted-NZTourism (OTAGO PENINSULA BEACH ON SANDFLY BAY);
CHRIS McLennan-NZ TOURISM (YELLOW-EYED PENGUIN); DUNEDINNZ (DUNEDIN RAIL STATION).
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The South Island's Second City has a rich history and varied geography,
offering attractions for birders, beachcombers, and culture and rail buffs.
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Attractions in Dunedin City: Like Auckland on the North Island, Dunedin is a city arranged among the cones and craters of an extinct volcanic landscape. And, like Auckland, Dunedin city has spread far beyond its original setting to include considerable territory and incorporate several towns within its modern limits, so much so that Dunedin is New Zealand's largest city by area. Its territorial population (approx. 123,000) is second largest on the South Island (after Christchurch), and fifth overall in New Zealand. The inner city lays at the western end of Otago Harbour and is ringed by a crescent rim of volcanic hills. The city's center, The Octagon, is at the base of the ancient crater just west of State Highway 1, Dunedin's landmark 1906 Flemish Renaissance railway station ("Gingerbread George") and the harbor.

St. Paul's Cathedral and the Dunedin Town Hall are two
 landmark buildings lining central Dunedin's Octagon.
Photo NZ Tourism

          Scottish immigrants settled here in 1848, calling their town Dunedin, Scots Gaelic for Edinburgh. When gold was found nearby (1861) the resulting gold rush made Dunedin the largest city in New Zealand.  Imposing churches, concert halls, and other buildings soon were built. The country's first university, the University of Otago, was founded in 1869. Extensions of the railway from Christchurch arrived in 1878 and from Invercargill a year later. Houses in the ornate Victorian style lined the hilly streets surrounding the city center. Around the Octagon and throughout the city center churches, 

galleries, museums, the city administration center, and two cathedrals were constructed in gothic style of native South Island marble and bluestone. Dunedin—the furthest city in the world from Edinburgh, London, and other European capitals—was built in their High Victorian image.

Attractions in Greater Dunedin: Two principal attractions draw international visitors to Dunedin: the Taieri Gorge Railway and the Otago Peninsula.
 

• THE TAIERI GORGE RAILWAY is a tourist railway
   that operates trains from Dunedin Railway
   Station inland (west) through the mountains
   to Pukerangi or Middlemarch via the scenic
   Taieri Gorge toward the old gold fields of
   Otago. Trains operate daily year round. The
   railway also offers Seasider trains north from
   Dunedin along the coast with views of Otago
   Harbour and the South Pacific.

Entering Taieri Gorge in the
mountains west of Dunedin.
Taieri Gorge Railway Photo
 

Albatross chick testing its fledging
wings on Taiaroa Head.
Photo DunedinNZ
 

• The Otago Peninsula extends twenty miles east of
   Dunedin city. A scenic coast road traces the
   northern peninsular perimeter. While most of the
   peninsula is an undeveloped conservation district,
   the peninsula has some very inviting beaches and
   spectacular sea cliffs. Birders and others often visit
   certain beaches hoping to see the rare yellow-
   eyed and blue penguins which nest on the
   peninsula. The world's only mainland albatross
   colony occupies a protected headland at the far
   end of the peninsula. The Royal Albatross Centre offers
   tours at the colony about an hour's drive northeast
   of downtown Dunedin at Taiaroa Head.

Lodgings: Top quality bed and breakfast lodgings in Dunedin close to all central city attractions and convenient for exploring the Otago Peninsula.
 

Home At First's Dunedin
cottage lodgings provide
a convenient location for
touring and activities
in the city and on the
Otago Peninsula.

Getting around Dunedin: Use of a rental car is essential here. Expect congested traffic on city streets. A section of State Highway 1 is a limited access motorway through Dunedin city center. Outside of Dunedin roads are usually lightly traveled.

Street sign aids walkers strolling near
the Octagon in downtown Dunedin.
DunedinNZ Photo

Getting to/from Dunedin: Home At First guests arrive in Dunedin by rental car, normally coming east from Queenstown or Te Anau in Fiordland in 3-4.5 hours. Most depart Dunedin northwest for Mt. Cook/Lake Tekapo in 3-5 scenic hours or northeast to Christchurch in 4-6 hours.

The yellow-eyed penguin is thought
to be the world's rarest penguin.
Its habitat includes the Otago
Peninsula east of Dunedin.
DunedinNZ Photo.

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