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Dunedin City Highlights, Otago Peninsula Scenery & Albatross Guided Tour
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Reviewed 9 November 2017

Great knowledge of the albatross by staff, walked up to the lookout and saw young birds. They have a webcam online 24/7 that Is focused on one chick for 8 months until it fledges , amazing watching the progress from egg to fledgling!

Date of experience: September 2017
1  Thank vkstanley
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
OtagoPeninsulaTrust, Manager at The Royal Albatross Centre, responded to this reviewResponded 23 November 2017

Kia ora and thanks for taking the time to write a review.

Thanks for supporting us by taking a tour - we are pleased to hear our guides extensive knowledge impressed you and made this visit a memorable one! There is the chance for great viewing at the moment, with adult albatross returning to court, mate, breed and select nesting sites. DOC's RoyalCam is certainly a great live-stream to keep an eye on too. It is indeed a special and unique experience to be able to view these magnificent wild birds in their natural habitat and see the world’s only mainland breeding colony of Royal Albatross close up.

Your tour fees do go to a good cause - for conservation and education programmes to help look after this amazing wildlife sanctuary. A portion of the tour fees goes to the Pukekura Trust and supports the Trust's role as guardians of the headland. Our Otago Peninsula Trust is NZ's first charitable conservation trust, which was set up in 1967 to 'preserve and enhance Otago Peninsula'. As well as supporting conservation, pest control, habitat restoration and visitor facilities we also offer special prices and days for families to enable greater access and appreciation to the colony. We run education programmes for school children at a minimal cost for the pupils; in 2016 we hosted around 1500 students. The Trust also donates over $11,000 of free tickets annually to help schools, charities and good causes fundraise.

The Royal Albatross Centre itself, with it's comprehensive historical and educational displays, videos, toilets, cafe, gift shop is free to access for everyone. This is only made possible by the Trust's activities. As you will appreciate, it costs a significant amount to run a centre like this 364 days a year. We very much value all the contributions people make so that the Trust is able to offer this access and facilities to everyone year round. The cost of providing water and toilets to guests is about $100,000 per annum as water and sewage have to be trucked in and out of the headland. Thank you so much for your support of our Trust.

Hope you enjoyed the rest of your holiday!

All the best,
Ashleigh, Assistant Manager of Operations, Royal Albatross Centre

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Reviewed 8 November 2017 via mobile

We visited the centre on a cold, windy day. Surprisingly it didn't open until 10.15am with the first tour at 11am. While we were waiting for it to open - there are a couple of places to wander to look at gulls etc. - we saw a number of people arrive and leave.

When we did get into the centre there was obviously time to kill as we booked into the tour. There is quite a lot of information to read plus a couple of films to watch. And a small gift shop to meander.

There's also a cafe but amazingly it wasn't open by 11am. Lots of business opportunity missed.

We had a great tour guide. She gave us an informative talk on albatross and showed us a video. All interesting and worthwhile.

Then we had a steep walk up to the observation area. We saw two nesting albatross and then, brilliantly, we saw two albatross flying. One for quite some time soaring with the wind then struggling to land into it. Great. There are lots of binoculars provided to help get a closer look.

It's an expensive tour but worth the money and knowing that some goes towards helping albatross breeding and research.

Date of experience: November 2017
1  Thank gfsc5
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
OtagoPeninsulaTrust, Manager at The Royal Albatross Centre, responded to this reviewResponded 9 November 2017

Kia ora and thanks for taking the time to write a review.

Thanks for supporting us by taking a tour. There is the chance for great viewing at the moment with breeding adults coming and going. Our team love sharing their knowledge and stories of the albatross and introducing visitors to the 'Royals of Taiaroa'. It is indeed a special and unique experience to be able to view these magnificent wild birds in their natural habitat and see the world’s only mainland breeding colony of Royal Albatross close up.

The $50 cost for the one hour tour or $55 cost for the 90 minute tour compares very reasonably with other NZ tour attractions - and as this is run by a not-for-profit trust you can be assured that the tour revenue is being used for a great cause! Your tour fees go to a good cause - for conservation and education programmes to help look after this amazing wildlife sanctuary. A portion of the tour fees goes to the Pukekura Trust and supports the Trust's role as guardians of the headland. Our Otago Peninsula Trust is NZ's first charitable conservation trust, which was set up in 1967 to 'preserve and enhance Otago Peninsula'. As well as supporting conservation, pest control, habitat restoration and visitor facilities we also offer special prices and days for families to enable greater access and appreciation to the colony. We run education programmes for school children at a minimal cost for the pupils; in 2016 we hosted around 1500 students. The Trust also donates over $11,000 of free tickets annually to help schools, charities and good causes fundraise.

The Royal Albatross Centre itself, with its comprehensive historical and educational displays, videos, toilets, cafe, and gift shop is free to access for everyone. This is only made possible by the Trust's activities. As you will appreciate, it costs a significant amount to run a centre like this 364 days a year. We very much value all the contributions people make so that the Trust is able to offer this access and facilities to everyone year round. The cost of providing water and toilets to guests is about $100,000 per annum as water and sewage have to be trucked in and out of the headland. Thank you so much for your support of our Trust.

Hope you enjoyed the rest of your holiday!

All the best,
Ashleigh Compton

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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed 8 November 2017

The centre is informative and well organised and the coffee, good BUT the tour, at $100 a couple was poor value. Having asked how breeding couples there were and told 60, we expected to see some. Having been told that one was sitting on a nest just outside the viewing window so we had to be silent, we expected to see it. The only visible, sitting albatross was more than 50 metres away, visible above the grass as a white tuft of feathers only. The only 30 expected couples had not yet returned to lay but we were not told this. The video shown during the tour should have been on public display as it a the talk took up most of the 1 hour.
Stay in the car-park from which a good view of any birds flying around can be had and question very carefully before spending this amount.

Date of experience: November 2017
3  Thank Susan B
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
OtagoPeninsulaTrust, Manager at The Royal Albatross Centre, responded to this reviewResponded 9 November 2017

Kia ora.

The cost of the tour contributes to the stewardship of the Albatross. It enables the Otago Peninsula Trust, which manages the Royal Albatross Centre to continue to offer albatross experiences to the public, to offer education programmes to children, free interactive displays contributing to understanding of the peninsula wildlife and ecosystem for visitors and to continue in its role "To preserve and enhance the Otago Peninsula". A portion of the tour fees goes to the Department of Conservation and supports the department's role as wildlife guardians and for their management and care of the albatross at the colony. The $50 cost for the one hour tour or $55 cost for the 90 minute tour compares very reasonably with other NZ tour attractions - and as this is run by a not-for-profit trust you can be assured that the tour revenue is being used for a great cause!

As a kaitiaki of the headland we are primarily driven by the conservation of all the species that call Pukekura home, including the Royal Albatross at the world's only mainland albatross breeding colony. We love to share this special place and unique wildlife experiences with our visitors. By taking a tour visitors are contributing to the care and conservation of these species – we are the only operator that submits funds to the Department of Conservation for Royal Albatross viewing. We offer the best chance to see albatross in their breeding environment - the only mainland royal albatross breeding colony in the world!

Otago Peninsula Trust is NZ's first charitable conservation trust, which was set up in 1967 to 'preserve and enhance Otago Peninsula'. Our Annual Report is available online for anyone to view to see how funds are used and the good work we carry out; Trust members have membership privileges, we also offer special prices for families and days where locals can visit for very special prices. We run education programmes for school children at a minimal cost for the pupils. In 2016 we have hosted around 1500 students. The Trust has also donated over $11,000 of free tickets to help schools, charities and good causes fundraise.

The Royal Albatross Centre itself, with its comprehensive historical and educational displays, videos, toilets, cafe, and gift shop is free to access for everyone. This is only made possible by the Trust's activities. As you will appreciate, it costs a significant amount to run a centre like this 364 days a year. We very much value all the contributions people make so that the Trust is able to offer this access and facilities to everyone year round. The cost of providing water and toilets to guests is about $100,000 per annum as water and sewage have to be trucked in and out of the headland.

The albatross guided tour offers an informative, knowledgeable hosted experience for the limited number of visitors that are permitted by the Department of Conservation to access the colony. This includes a video, explanation of and insights into the lives of albatross, exclusive viewing from on the wildlife reserve and the only chance visitors have to easily access a close up experience of an albatross breeding colony. The activity is different every day, all year around as albatross court, breed and raise their chicks. There are over 20 species of wildlife that live at Pukekura, the observatory allows viewing of this wildlife too – and magnificent views of Otago Harbour and Peninsula.

We very much value any contribution that visitors are able to make to this precious wildlife sanctuary by supporting the Royal Albatross Centre's tours and activities.

All the best,
Ashleigh Compton

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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed 8 November 2017 via mobile

Had a wonderful time at the albatross colony. Did the tour great walk and very informative nice people got to see albatross flying and fishing about half a mile ofshore ate in the cafe food was expensive had a great time anyway

Date of experience: May 2017
1  Thank WilliamC5931
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
OtagoPeninsulaTrust, Manager at The Royal Albatross Centre, responded to this reviewResponded 9 November 2017

Kia ora and thanks for taking the time to write a review.

We really appreciate your great feedback and encouragement to others to meet the amazing albatross at the world's only mainland breeding colony - it is a wonderful experience and we love sharing it with our visitors! Our team takes pride in making the albatross experience an excellent excursion and we are glad you enjoyed your visit with us. Thanks for supporting us by taking a tour. Your tour fees go to a good cause - for conservation and education programmes to help look after this amazing wildlife sanctuary.

Hope you enjoyed the rest of your holiday!

All the best,
Ashleigh Compton

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Reviewed 7 November 2017 via mobile

This colony was developed to help preserve the albatross. They are located at the top of a high rock in the tip of the Otago peninsula. The road to get there follows the edge of the mountains and water and no guardrails so allow enough time to go slowly on this beautiful winding road.
They have an observatory which is a climb up from the visitor center. From the observatory you can view the albatrosses flying, nesting and interacting with each other.
Remember that these birds have up to a 10‘ wing span so they are a large bird.

Date of experience: November 2017
1  Thank fourbeesplus3
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
OtagoPeninsulaTrust, Manager at The Royal Albatross Centre, responded to this reviewResponded 9 November 2017

Kia ora and thanks for taking the time to write a review.

Thanks for supporting us by taking a tour. There is the chance for great viewing at the moment with breeding adults coming and going. Our team love sharing their knowledge and stories of the albatross and introducing visitors to the 'Royals of Taiaroa'. It is indeed a special and unique experience to be able to view these magnificent wild birds in their natural habitat and see the world’s only mainland breeding colony of Royal Albatross close up.
Your tour fees go to a good cause - for conservation and education programmes to help look after this amazing wildlife sanctuary. A portion of the tour fees goes to the Pukekura Trust and supports the Trust's role as guardians of the headland. Our Otago Peninsula Trust is NZ's first charitable conservation trust, which was set up in 1967 to 'preserve and enhance Otago Peninsula'. As well as supporting conservation, pest control, habitat restoration and visitor facilities we also offer special prices and days for families to enable greater access and appreciation to the colony. We run education programmes for school children at a minimal cost for the pupils; in 2016 we hosted around 1500 students. The Trust also donates over $11,000 of free tickets annually to help schools, charities and good causes fundraise.
The Royal Albatross Centre itself, with its comprehensive historical and educational displays, videos, toilets, cafe, and gift shop is free to access for everyone. This is only made possible by the Trust's activities. As you will appreciate, it costs a significant amount to run a centre like this 364 days a year. We very much value all the contributions people make so that the Trust is able to offer this access and facilities to everyone year round. The cost of providing water and toilets to guests is about $100,000 per annum as water and sewage have to be trucked in and out of the headland. Thank you so much for your support of our Trust.

Hope you enjoyed the rest of your holiday!

All the best,
Ashleigh Compton

Report response as inappropriate
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of TripAdvisor LLC
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