Dunedin

Second largest city in South

Island

Dunedin is still considered to be one of the four main cities of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. It has impressive historic architecture from its days as a gold-rush mecca. Dunedin was the largest city in New Zealand by population until about 1900. The city population in March 2013 was 120,246. The harbour and hills around Dunedin are the remnants of an extinct volcano. The city suburbs extend out into the surrounding valleys and hills, onto the isthmus of the Otago Peninsula, and along the shores of the Otago Harbour and the Pacific Ocean.

Orokonui Ecosanctuary

20 miles north of Dunedin, the Orokonui Ecosanctuary is the only place on mainland South Island of New Zealand where native birds, animals and insects can live a life safe from predators. They are free to fly, feed, mate and nest wherever they wish, exactly as they would in the wild. In 2007, an 8.7km pest-proof fence was erected around the 307 hectares of protected habitat at a cost of NZ$2.2million. Since then a number of endangered species have been reintroduced and many native birds have found their own way there. The ecosanctuary is home to kaka, takahe, tui, kiwi, bellbirds, silvereye, brown creeper, fernbird, tomtit, fantail, kereru, grey warbler, rifleman, saddleback, robin, Otago skink, jewelled gecko and tuatara. At 350m above sea level it has stunning views over native forest, Blueskin Bay and the Silverpeaks There are a range of walking tracks with guided walks through the native podocarp forest.

Baldwin Street

Baldwin Street is the steepest street in the world. The gradient is 35 percent (or 19 degrees) at its steepest point. It looks like many of its residential neighbours: lined with houses, trees and bushes but it is really tough to walk up, let alone drive up (first gear necessary).

Train Station

The construction of Dunedin's fourth railway station began in 1903 and it was officially opened in 1906. It was designed in the fashionable and highly expensive Edwardian Baroque style. During the city's most prosperous years this railway station was the country's busiest, handling up to 100 trains each day.