South Island
Rakiura / Stewart Island
The third island. Kiwi on the beach at dusk, and the ocean beyond.
South Island · Wildlife enthusiasts · Nature lovers · Active travellers
Rakiura / Stewart Island sits at 47 degrees south, twenty minutes by light aircraft from Invercargill, and feels genuinely removed from the world. Eighty-five per cent of the island is Rakiura National Park, ancient podocarp forest of rimu, tōtara, and rātā, threaded with walking tracks that lead to deserted beaches and remote bays. Halfmoon Bay, the island's only real settlement, has a population of around 400 people, most of whom are involved in fishing.
The reason most visitors come is the kiwi. Rakiura has one of the highest wild kiwi densities in New Zealand, and uniquely, Mason Bay on the island's west coast is a place where kiwi feed openly on the beach at dusk, visible without a guide, in the fading light. Seeing a wild kiwi, the national bird, nocturnal, shy, and in serious decline on the mainland, in this setting is a wildlife experience with very few equivalents anywhere in the world.
Among its moments
- Mason Bay, wild kiwi on open beach at dusk
- Rakiura Track, three-day Great Walk
- Ulva Island, open bird sanctuary with kākāpō history
- Fishing in Paterson Inlet, blue cod, pāua
- Aurora Australis from the southern shore
- Halfmoon Bay village, craft beer and fresh seafood
Stewart Island in photographs
Near here
All thirty regions, on the mapSouthland & the Catlins
The bottom of the country: Bluff oysters, waterfalls, and empty roads.
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