33km from Dunedin on the tip of the Otago Peninsula is the
Royal Albatross Centre, the only mainland breeding colony of
Northern Royal Albatross in the world.
We feature in Lonely Planet's 2011 book 1000 Ultimate Sites
alongside the Taj Mahal and the Grand Canyon: "Here at one of
New Zealand's hottest attractions the drawcard is the
birdlife. Taiaroa Head is the site of the world's only
mainland royal albatross breeding ground, where you can
observe the spectacle of albatrosses with wingspans of up to
3m coming in to land like a succession of 747s".
Taiaroa Head is a nature reserve managed by the Dept of
Conservation; to protect the birds access to the colony is by
guided tour only. We are open 364 days per year; for further
details go to www.albatross.org.nz
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