Waitaki

The Waitaki Region combines historic whitestone architecture and unforgettable wildlife encounters in a beautiful natural landscape of rolling hills and sparkling rivers.

Famed for its dramatic landscape, classical architecture, heritage and its strong links to New Zealand’s pioneering past, the Waitaki District has something for everyone! Its wealthy past, combined with an abundance of limestone, gave rise to a precinct of impressive stone buildings – now New Zealand’s most complete Victorian streetscape, full of authentic atmosphere. As well as its yesteryear charm, Oamaru offers a chance to see penguins come ashore at the Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony. Every night the penguins come in from the sea and waddle up the beach to their cliff-side burrows. Scenery also abounds in this district, particularly in the Waitaki Valley linking North and Central Otago. Following the braided Waitaki River, with its many hydro lakes, its stunning scenery ranges from rolling farmland to alpine landscapes.

DO IT. Watch Little Blue Penguins come ashore at dusk in Oamaru, eat fish ‘n’ chips on the beach and contemplate the Moeraki Boulders, explore the architecture of Oamaru’s historic precinct, hike in the ruggedly beautiful Waitaki Valley, fish for salmon in the Waitaki – one of New Zealand’s few salmon fisheries, learn about one of New Zealand’s best-known authors on the Janet Frame Trail, wonder about the origins of the Moeraki Boulders.

Destinations

Oamaru Known for whitestone architecture and Blue Penguins.
Omarama Famous for its optimal gliding conditions.

Getting there and around

Air The nearest airport is in Dunedin, where domestic flights are available to all main centres and international flights to Brisbane, Australia.
Road Oamaru is 3 hours, 20 minutes from Christchurch and 1 hour, 40 minutes from Dunedin.