Iconic Wildlife Tour with Yellow Eyed Penguins & Royal Albatross
Recommended by 91% of travelers
Port Chalmers, New Zealand
- 7 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Observe yellow-eyed penguins and royal albatrosses in their natural habitats on a tour from Dunedin to the Otago Peninsula. Hear informative narration about these native New Zealand birds and enjoy great photo ops from various lookouts. The penguin hides are carefully placed to maximize your chance of seeing the birds in the wild, as this isn’t a center with birds in captivity. Tour includes a brief introductory tour of Dunedin.
- See yellow-eyed penguins in their breeding and nesting grounds
- Tour includes transfers from Port Chalmers or central Dunedin
- An easy way to get out into nature from Dunedin city
- See Dunedin Railway Station and world's steepest street, Baldwin Street
What's Included
- Entry fees to The OPERA (Yellow Eyed Penguin guided tour)
- Entry fees to Royal Albatross guided tour
- Cruise Port pickup and drop off; Please meet us inside the Visitor Building on ship's wharf
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Operating hours.9:00 am
Itinerary
1
The Otago Peninsula Eco Restoration Alliance
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
2
The Royal Albatross Centre
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
3
Otago Peninsula
4 hours • Admission Ticket Free
4
Baldwin Street - World's Steepest Street!
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
5
Dunedin Railway Station
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received within 48 hours of booking, subject to availability
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Infant seats available
- Not recommended for travelers with back problems
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- A minimum of 2 people per booking is required
- At time of booking, Cruise ship passengers must provide the following information at time of booking: ship name, docking time, disembarkation time and re-boarding time
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- This tour involves short walks on unsealed tracks and there are a number of easy steps to negotiate in the reserve. Please bring suitable footwear.
- Wildlife are free to come and go as they please. While we make every effort to maximise the opportunities to see wildlife, we cannot guarrantee exactly what you will see on the day
- Not recommended for people with mobility aids
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
This experience is non-refundable and cannot be changed for any reason. If you cancel or ask for an amendment, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
lanzawda
Very well organised and got a lot in a day without feeling rushed. We saw the many varieties of penguin and at the Albatross centre saw three nesting pairs with their young from the comfort of the viewing area. Excellent tour, would definitely recommend
Reviews
4.7
based on 35 reviews
fiona_s, Nov 2025
Wonderful! Lovely local couple drove and guided us around the area. They were so knowledgeable and we also appreciated their flexibility, staying a little longer so we could walk the steepest street, lots of photo stops and nothing was too much trouble. Really great tour and the penguins and albatross were amazing!
Jeanne_L, Mar 2025
Tour guide was very informative and fun describing countryside as they delivered us to the two amazing sanctuaries. Both sanctuaries had incredible staff that guided us on the trails where beautiful wildlife showed up to “wow” us. It was a breath-taking trip!!!!
lanzawda, Feb 2025
Very well organised and got a lot in a day without feeling rushed. We saw the many varieties of penguin and at the Albatross centre saw three nesting pairs with their young from the comfort of the viewing area. Excellent tour, would definitely recommend
Tiffany_S, Feb 2025
A very relaxing tour, beautiful scenery, and we loved seeing and learning about the albatross and penguins. Our guide Greg was informative and did a great job. Definitely recommend
Kathy_K, Mar 2020
Loved this tour! Our guide Jo was friendly and knowledgeable, and made sure we got to see the highlights of Dunedin as well as the 2 bird reserves. We were lucky to see the yellow eyed penguins as well as albatross flying and nesting with their chicks! Perfect tour from our cruise ship
Response from Host, Mar 2020
Dear Kathy_K
Thank you so much for posting this great review for Jo. She is our newest driver so it is especially pleasing to hear how much you enjoyed your day with her. I have already sent her the review and I have no doubt she will be thrilled. Best wishes, Kim
John_T, Feb 2020
Excellent trip enjoyed the penguin sanctuary and we saw a young chick yellow eyed Penguin in the wild. The albatross sanctuary was good we saw adults on the nest and saw them soaring. There was a problem with our ticket but the company sorted in quickly without fuss so very pleased with the tour.
John_T, Feb 2020
Excellent trip on a lovely boat that cut through the water very smoothly. Very friendly crew and they made you feel at ease. Very nice wine & cookie and the search dog is brilliant. We saw lots of dolphins plus seals and penguins.Definitely recommend this trip 👍
David_C, Feb 2020
Great tour. Amazing area. Never to be missed the Yellow Eyed Penguin Preserve and Albatross Center. Dunedin is an amazing town. Not to be missed is the railroad station and Baldwin Street.
Ying Jen C, Dec 2017
We were with Iconic Wildlife Tour. The owner Kim was our tour guide and the driver. With anotherr couple not showing, my wife and I were Kim's sole guests so that we had enjoyed the whole day very personal attention and guidance. I am sure that experience would've been the same even with more participants, given Kim's professionalism and warm kindness. The only draw back was that the view of yellow-eyed penguines was cancelled due to the death of all chicks as a result of severe hot weather the week before ... : sad both for the demise of chicks and our tour! But, Kim had kindly refunded part of our tour cost. Kim literally drove us on the high - and low roads to watch other birds. He was especially determined for us to witness the beautiful Albatross, which was the highlight and we did .... what a view and experience! We loved the tour at every single moment! Highly recommended to go with Iconic Wildlife Tour and we wish you all could go see yellow-eyed penguine.
Lawrence K, Mar 2017
The all day tour with Alan Hansen could not have been better. We were met at the pier as arranged and were somewhat surprised that it was a private tour with only Alan, myself and my wife. He was extremely informative, giving us a great deal of information about the geography, history,political, and economic climate of New Zealand and the Otago Peninsula. Plenty of time to see the sights and to have an in depth discussion about life in New Zealand. Could not have had a better time. Saw seals, penguins, albatrosses and other wildlife. Alan was especially terrific. Would recommend this tour to anyone. Extremely reasonable price.
David_H, Mar 2017
Probably a 4 and a half, instead of a 5, but very, very good. The mountain top was shrouded in clouds not the tour company's fault, and the penguins and Albatross center were VERY enjoyable, but not as much to see as we had hoped. Other sights were fine, nothing speactacular, and always a little rushed, but all in all, very nice!
George_W, Feb 2017
It was a rainy day, not the fault of the Tour Co. but it made for a bad day. The Penguins that we were shown were, first in a hospital only 3 or so, and second in a preserve of which there was one. It was disappointing as the advert made it seem as if we would see many birds - probably at sea, or nesting. The time of year was the problem, but that fact was not addressed prior to booking. Also seeing the Royal Albatross required a walk up and down a steep path - which again was not listed before booking. My wife and I are both a bit rickety and we cannot walk or climb well anymore. We were both disappointed in the tour.
Mark Z, Dec 2016
The first part of the tour was good. Our guide, Kim, took us to the steepest street, the Railroad Station and drove around the Octogon part of town. The scenery was beautiful as we drove to the Otago Peninsula, but once there it became a bit disappointing. There was only one penguin to see. The description of the tour led me to believe that we would see many more. There was not much to do the rest of our time there. Kim got us back in plenty of time to board the ship as we drove through Port Chalmers.
Suzanne C, Mar 2016
Small tour bus from Viator for wildlife tour which picked us up from the cruise terminal, we drove through town on the way towards the Penguins. We learned about the endangered yellow eyed blue penguins and got to see their program to shelter injured penguins and the process of reintegrating them into natural environment. There is a moderate amount of walking in various places during the day. We walked by the coast to see some of the fur seals basking in the sun. I would have liked to go to the Lamach castle but the guide stated we didn't have time. We did however, spend time at the Albatross center even though we didn't opt for it . We saw some albatross flying above but it got so windy cold, we had to go inside after awhile. This was very scenic and enjoyed the nature part of this trip but recommend getting the specifics of the day in writing so they don't change it on you.
Response from Host, Mar 2016
Thank you for your feedback! We are sorry to hear you were disappointed about the lack of visit to Lamach Castle. Unfortunately, this particular tour package does not include a visit to the castle, as this is primarily focused on the area's wildlife instead. However, we hope you still had a great time on your tour and enjoyed your time in New Zealand!
kenlbenoit, Mar 2016
Another well done, informative tour of the area. The tour operator/owner did a great job with his presentation. Oh, its an excellent value too. Thanks again! ken
RedWagon, Mar 2016
Really enjoyed this Tour. There were only 5 of us and the driver Kim made sure we saw some extra's. We Loved the beautiful buildings and the craftsmanship involved. We saw beautiful gardens and Yellow eyed penguins. We also were amazed to see the Albatross gliding through the air.
Janett H, Dec 2016
Diese Tour wurde von Iconic Tours durchgeführt. Unser Führer hieß Kim und war super klasse. Er war nett, freundlich, ging auf alle Fragen ein. Wir waren eine kleine Gruppe von 10 Personen, das war sehr schön. Die Organisation war perfekt, die Erlebnisse bei den Pinguinen und Albatrossen einmalig. Die Landschaft auf der Otago Peninsula ist traumhaft schön. Kim fuhr dann einen anderen Weg nach Dunedin wieder zurück damit wir möglichst viel von der Landschaft sehen können. Er hat uns auch einiges in Dunedin gezeigt. Der Tag war sehr schön, erlebnisreich und wir wollen ihn auf keinen Fall missen. Großes Lob an unseren grandiosen Reiseführer Kim.
From $236.98
per person-You will not receive a refund if you cancel.
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Iconic Wildlife Tour with Yellow Eyed Penguins & Royal Albatross
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