Stewart Island/Rakiura

New Zealand'S Third Main Island, Reached By Ferry Or Light Plane From Bluff Or Invercargill, More Than 80 Per Cent Rakiura National Park And One Of The Largest Dark Sky Sanctuaries In The World, Where Wild Kiwi Are Seen On Guided Night Walks More Reliably Than Almost Anywhere Else In The Country · Oban, Southland

Stewart Island, known in Maori as Rakiura - the land of the glowing skies - is New Zealand's third main island, a short ferry crossing of Foveaux Strait from Bluff or a light-plane flight from Invercargill. More than 80 per cent of the island sits inside Rakiura National Park, largely untouched bush with almost no roads outside the small settlement of Oban. In 2019 the island became one of the largest Dark Sky Sanctuaries in the world, a stricter designation than a reserve, for skies with essentially no artificial light pollution island-wide. Wild kiwi, usually among the hardest New Zealand birds to see, are spotted here on guided night walks more reliably than almost anywhere else, since Rakiura kiwi are unusually active by day as well as at night. The island's name nods to sunsets that can turn the sky genuinely glowing shades of orange and pink, and to the aurora australis, visible on clear southern nights. Oban itself is tiny - one main street, a handful of places to eat and stay - and the rest of the island is reached on foot, by water taxi, or on the multi-day Rakiura Track.

New Zealand's third main island, reached by ferry from Bluff or flight from Invercargill, Oban, Southland, New Zealand

Stewart Island itself has no gates or opening hours - the national park and dark sky sanctuary are accessible at any hour to those already on the island. The Bluff to Oban ferry runs several times daily on a roughly 1 hour crossing, weather permitting, and is cancelled outright rather than delayed when Foveaux Strait is too rough to cross safely. Flights from Invercargill run on a similar daily timetable and are also weather dependent. Oban's shops, cafes and visitor centre keep standard small-town hours, roughly 9am to 5pm, with some closed on quieter days outside summer.

Stewart Island/Rakiura on Spottos · Explore more places on Spottos