Dunedin, New Zealand

Dunedin Court House
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dunedin_Court_House.JPG
Author: Benchill


Dunedin is the second biggest city in the South Island of New Zealand. It is the main city of the Otago Region. Dunedin - whose name is in fact a Gaelic form of Edinburgh - was the largest city in New Zealand by land area, until it was superseded by Auckland upon the creation of Auckland Council in November 2010.

According to archeological excavations, there is evidence of human habitation in the Dunedin area between AD 1250-1300, suggesting that the Maori people may have settled there during that time. Captain James Cook was the first European to set food on the coast of Dunedin in 1770.

Dunedin was founded by the Lay Association of the Free Church of Scotland in 1848. In 1852 it was made the capital of Otago Province. Dunedin experienced rapid growth in 1861 sparked by a gold rush. It attracted many Irish, Italians, French, Germans, Jews and Chinese. It has the oldest university in New Zealand, the University of Otago, and was one of the most developed cities in the country. It was the most populous city in New Zealand until 1900.


Portabello Road, Dunedin. View Larger Map


Dunedin from the Caversham Bypass Motorway. View Larger Map

The growth of Dunedin slowed down at the turn of the 20th century, to be revived after the Second World War, although by then the city was trailing other cities in New Zealand. Between 1976 to 1981, there was a decline in the city's population, as it sought to reinvent itself as a culturally vibrant heritage city.

Today Dunedin retains its reputation as a centre for education, and is making in-roads into different fields from software engineering to bio-technology.

Harvesting clams at Blueskin Bay, Dunedin
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cockle_gatherers_021.jpg
Author: Mike McAlevey

Going to Dunedin

By Plane
The Dunedin International Airport (DUD) is served by Air New Zealand and Pacific Blue. There are international flights connecting it with Melbourne and Brisbane, as well as domestic flights with Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.

Ross Home, Dunedin
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ross_Home_Dunedin.jpg
Author: Benchill

Sights in Dunedin

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