Royal Albatross Centre, Taiaroa Head
Pukekura
The only place in the world where albatrosses breed on an inhabited mainland. You can get close to northern royal albatrosses, which have a wingspan of 3 metres.
Pukekura (Taiaroa Head) is at the northernmost tip of the Otago Peninsula. It is the only place in the world where northern royal albatrosses breed on the mainland, and it has been protected since 1938. Royal albatrosses can have a wingspan of more than 3 metres. They spend most of their lives flying over the Southern Ocean and return to breed here every two years. To visit, you need to join a guided tour run by the Royal Albatross Centre (about 1 hour, from about NZ$60, check the official website for current prices). The tour starts with an exhibition, then continues up the hill to the observation room, where you can watch parent birds and chicks in their nests through glass. Your chances of seeing albatrosses taking off and gliding are better on windy afternoons. The same site also has the Armstrong Disappearing Gun Battery from the Second World War, which can be visited as an add-on. In the evening, little blue penguins come ashore at Pilots Beach below the hill, and the centre also runs penguin-watching tours. Tips: from mid-September to late November, when the parent birds return to nest, the observatory is closed to avoid disturbing them. The drive from the city centre takes about 50 minutes. The harbour road is scenic but winding.
Opening hours
About 10:00–17:00 (later in summer; check website)
Nearby sights
- Penguin Place
- Aramoana & The Mole
- Allans Beach
- Otago Peninsula
- Port Chalmers
- Orokonui Ecosanctuary
- Larnach Castle
- Sandfly Bay