Recent examples of this in the South might include the Fifa Women’s World Cup hosted in Dunedin in 2023, the filming of multi-Academy Award nominee The Power of the Dog in Central Otago, and the construction of the awesome Lake Dunstan Trail, with its amazing boardwalks attached to sheer bluffs and floating coffee boat.
We’re already the envy of others with our proximity to incredible wildlife.
And we must not forget other wonderful spectacles, such as the vivid displays of the Aurora Australis in recent years and the cold beauty of the night sky with its thousands of stars visible to the naked eye from the darkness of Central Otago.
Some of these drawcards are purely down to luck, being in the right place at the right time in the context of something much bigger than us.
Others are being actively driven by the usual human motivators of commerce, purpose and connection.
In a little over two years from now, Otago is going to find itself fortuitously at the heart of such a stupendous moment in time.
Just in case you haven’t been following the news closely, the region is going to go dark — very dark indeed — on the afternoon of Saturday July 22, 2028.
For the first time since December 27, 1163, a total solar eclipse, which occurs when the moon passes between Earth and the sun, is going to be visible across the entire region.
Both Dunedin and Queenstown will pretty much be on the centreline of the zone of darkness.
To put that in perspective, it is possible this will be the first time anyone living in Otago has experienced a total solar eclipse here, if we accept thinking that the first Māori settlers arrived sometime in the latter half of the 1200s.
New Zealand’s last total solar eclipse was on May 30, 1965.
According to the calculations, the 2028 eclipse will begin just after 3.09pm, with the deepest point of maximum eclipse at 4.17pm. The eclipse ends at 5.20pm and 1 second, with sunset uncannily just 55 seconds later.
As amazing as the eclipse will be, the way it will run in tandem with the setting sun makes it even more precious.
Given the date in July is just a month after the shortest day, much of the eclipse will actually take place when the sun is low in the northwestern sky.
Tūhura Otago Museum director Dr Ian Griffin is, err, over the moon at the prospect of the eclipse.
It hardly comes as a surprise that, when he moved to Dunedin 13 years ago, he purposefully chose a house which would give him stunning views of this eclipse.
The weather on eclipse day will remain an unknown quantity for almost as long as we have to wait.
But even if it is cloudy in Dunedin — not unheard of in July — the region’s range of climates means it could well be clearer inland.
Fortunately, regardless of how thick any cloud layer may be, the total absence of any sunlight for about three minutes guarantees a spell of sudden blackness and dropping temperatures.
Astronomers and space tourists are already booking accommodation in Dunedin for the big day.
City-wide marketing plans are being drawn up to attract international visitors and the Dunedin City Council has approached the government for $4 million to deliver an eight-day festival covering astronomy, mātauranga Māori, science, culture and the arts.
At this stage, the council says the city could expect an influx of 5000 international and 30,000 domestic visitors, with a potential economic benefit of $30m.
For such a momentous event, it makes you wonder if there might be merit in a special rail service to Middlemarch to watch the eclipse, or even a flight like those put on previously for aurora watchers.
Circle your calendar now for 2028. You don’t want to miss it, as you’ll have to wait until May 12, 2431, for the next one.
