As you touch down at Dunedin Airport you’ll be greeted by the rolling green hills and wild coast that give NewZealand its reputation as one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Welcome to Dunedin. Your comfortable hire car awaits you at the airport so you can get exploring without any delays.
A combination of unique cultural history and fascinating landscapes will have you charmed by this intriguing city. With the airport located a 25-minute drive from the city, a hire car will help you make your way from the airport to your next destination. Whether you’re staying for a while or passing through on your way to Queenstown or Christchurch, Dunedin is well worth taking the time to explore.
Be sure to raise your eyes skyward as you go through the city – Dunedin’s iconic Victorian and Edwardian architecture is truly a sight to behold. For a fantastic way to get your bearings, follow the Dunedin Street Art Trail – a leisurely 90-minute walk that showcases the whimsical and vibrant results of an extensive public art program that has seen blank concrete transformed into beautiful leaps of imagination all over the city. There’s a Writers Walk as well – as a UNESCO designated “City of Literature” Dunedin is rightly proud of its literary reputation – from a plethora of second hand and independent book stores to explore, to the Dutybound Book Bindery that showcased historical binding techniques booklovers will be utterly fascinated by their explorations here.
Explore Dunedin's Rich History
For a great overview of this area’s rich history, pay a visit to the Toitu Otago Settlers Museum – dedicated to telling the stories of Dunedin’s people past and present. There’s a wide range of fascinating interactive displays to explore in this multi-award winning museum and your time here is sure to be well spent.
Just seven kilometres out of town in a south-westerly direction you will find Tunnel Beach – it is a beautiful beach surrounded by sandstone cliffs, which makes the beach only accessible by painstakingly hand-carved tunnels. It’s a really unique place to explore and the beach is nothing short of spectacular.
The nearby Otago Peninsula is famous for its marine life, with royal albatrosses, seals, yellow-eyed penguins and sea lions all calling it home. The only mainland breeding ground of northern royal albatross in the world is right here, and other rare species call this home too – you can visit the Royal Albatross to find out more about them and the other twenty species of Albatross that frequent the area. You can also visit the Orokonui Eco Sanctuary to try and catch a glimpse of the elusive kiwi bird. There’s also Wildlife cruises you can enjoy which will let you see the local wildlife in their natural habitats.
Visit the beautiful hinterland region
The hinterland is well worth exploring as well, and you can do this on the scenic Taieri Gorge Railway. Taking passengers on an exciting trip through the narrow gorge and over the Wingatui Viaduct which the world’s largest wrought iron structure, you will marvel at the natural beauty of this special part of the world.
Here you’ll also find Larnach Castle, which in addition to being New Zealand’s only castle offers panoramic views over the Otago region. Built in 1871, its spectacular edifice certainly catches the eye, and the interior has been fully restored. You can enjoy some high tea in the enormous ornate ballroom and take a tour though the rooms filled with Victorian era grandeur.
No matter how much time you spend in Dunedin it won’t seem like quite enough – thankfully, with the freedom of your hire car, you will be able to pack as much as possible into your stay here before you have to bid Dunedin a fond farewell.
