Bed and Breakfast Accommodation in Dunedin, The Catlins, Invercargill and Stewart Island

Otago

Location
Located in the centre of the South Island, inland from Dunedin, this semi-arid region comprises a series of river basins and deep river gorges.

General
Otago is often called the golden country due to its goldmining associations, vivid autumn colours and apricot orchards. The Central Otago region is the only one to experience a continental climate, having the hottest summers and coldest winters in New Zealand.

Old trails that provided access for thousands of miners in the gold rush of the 1860s can still be seen winding over the hills, along with stone cottages, cleverly-engineered water channels, mines and machinery associated with the gold rush.

Alexandra, the main town on the Clutha River is the centre for stone fruit, particularly golden apricots. The towns of Alexandra, Clyde and Cromwell are ideal bases from which to explore the surrounding historic countryside.

Main Attractions / Activities
Exploring the heritage trails, quaint mining towns and historic sites is the most rewarding activity in this region. Most activities are associated with this, such as four-wheel drive safari excursions and gold panning.

Don't Miss
Gabriels Gully - location of the 1860s goldrush
Historic towns of Clyde, Lawrence, St Bathans and Naseby

Main Centres
Alexandra - main town of the region Roxburgh,
Cromwell, Ranfurly - other towns.

Alexandra

Central Otago is a land of riches - a special place, where nature's most powerful elements combine to create a unique and enchanting environment - from some of the country's best fishing to its top vineyards, the thrill of mountain biking through remote tussock, arts, crafts, and fine regional food.

Jet boating, gold panning, ice skating outdoors on a clear winter's day. The region is readily accessible by main highway from Christchurch, Dunedin, Invercargill or Queenstown. Central Otago includes the towns of Alexandra, Cromwell, Clyde, Ranfurly, Roxburgh and Naseby.

Dunedin

Location
The Otago Coast stretches from the Waitaki River to the mighty Clutha River, on the South Island's eastern coast. About halfway between is Dunedin, built around Otago Harbour, which indents Otago Peninsula.

General
Dunedin, with a population of 112,000, is the South Island's second-largest city and the commercial centre for the Otago region. Its name is the old Gaelic one for Edinburgh - appropriate since the city was established by Scottish Presbyterians. It is a gracious city whose numerous grand nineteenth-century and Edwardian buildings are unrivalled anywhere in the Southern Hemisphere.

Main Attractions / Activities
Dunedin's architectural heritage has provided the city with some notable buildings, including the train station, town hall, university and many churches. There are also special former private residences worth noting including Olveston, a Jacobean-style family home and Glenfalloch, surrounded by 12 hectares of woodland garden. Neo-Gothic Larnach Castle represents the finest of nineteenth century craftsmanship.

A natural attraction on the Otago Peninsula is the abundant wildlife, only a 15-20 minute drive from the central business district. Nature and wildlife tour companies run daily excursions to view fur seals, endangered yellow-eyed penguin, cormorants and albatross. Nowhere else in the world does the largest of the world's sea birds live within such easy human access.

Further north on the Otago coast is Oamaru, known for the grand white stone buildings of its old harbourside precinct. On Moeraki Beach, about halfway between Oamaru and Dunedin are the unique, perfectly round Moeraki Boulders, which weigh up to four tons each.

Don't Miss
Dunedin Public Art Gallery
Taieri Gorge railway, Dunedin
Olveston historic home, Dunedin
Otago Museum, Dunedin
Otago Settlers Museum
Fortune Theatre
Royal albatross colony, Otago Peninsula
Dunedin Botanic Gardens
Yellow-eyed penguin conservation reserve on Otago Peninsula
Dunedin's lively pub scene
Oamaru's historic white stone precinct
Penguins, Oamaru
Moeraki boulders

Main Centres
Dunedin - main centre for Otago and second-largest South Island city
Oamaru - for white-stone Victorian architecture and blue penguins.

Southland

Location
Southland is New Zealand's southern-most region, and includes New Zealand's third island, Stewart Island. General Southland's lush, green pastoral lands are among the richest in the country, a strong contrast to dry Central Otago further north. There are many farmstay options available in this region for those looking for a real Kiwi experience.

The region's largest urban centre is Invercargill, a city of 49,000, with many elegant Victorian and Edwardian buildings, gardens and landscaped parks. Like Dunedin to the north, Scots also settled Invercargill.

Unspoilt in its isolation, Stewart Island across Foveaux Strait is the third largest island making up New Zealand.

Main Attractions / Activities
On the coast, the Catlins Forest Park is a place of hidden waterfalls and river valleys, where native forest meets the water's edge. Rocky bays, inlets and estuaries make up some of the region's most magnificent coastal scenery.

Invercargill has an excellent art gallery and museum with high-tech audio/visual displays based on the flora and fauna of New Zealand's sub-Antarctic islands. It also has a unique live display of the tuatara, a lizard-like reptile related to the dinosaur, that is native to New Zealand.

Gore, on the Mataura River, has gained a good reputation for its trout fishing.

For anyone seeking peace and tranquillity, Stewart Island is the ultimate spot. There are superb bush walks and great launch cruises around some of New Zealand's most beautiful coastline.

Don't Miss
Catlins coastline, for great walks
Port Craig hike, to see amazing wooden viaducts
Invercargill Museum, for live tuatara reptiles
Stewart Island walking tracks
Sea kayaking, Stewart Island
Kiwi spotting, Stewart Island

Discover Southland, Otago and Stewart Island in style with Heritage & Character New Zealand Portrfolio and enjoy some of the finest boutique b&b accommodation in New Zealand.

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