Otago Centre of the Piping and Dancing Association president Shiobhan Smith said the association thought hosting the championships this year was a good way to celebrate the 175th anniversary of Scottish settlers arriving in Dunedin.
The championships included dancing competitions at the University of Otago College of Education Auditorium and piping competitions at John McGlashan College.
Mrs Smith said the competition was very fierce this year.
About 150 competitors would have put in a lot of time preparing.
"The competitors would have been putting in hours and hours of practice.
"It’s probably also including other forms of fitness, like being in the gym and doing cross fit and things like that, too.
"It’s a very aerobic type of dance, so being fit is important.
"It’s very rigorous."
Trophies, certificates and cash prizes were at stake.
Competitors aged 18 and over were competing for the highest New Zealand ranking, Mrs Smith said.
"Say you have ranked No 1 in New Zealand for that year, it is helpful if you want to go for funding, say, to go to Scotland and dance."
Entry was free for members of the public to watch the performances and Mrs Smith said there was a number of people who came and watched.
"We have a lot of members of the public that come because they love the sound of the pipes or watching the dance.
"They may also come because they used to be pipers or dancers themselves."
