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Iconic Shore Excursion: Iconic Larnach Castle Tour
4.9
29 Ratings
Port Chalmers
Discover Dunedin and Larnach Castle on a 6-hour guided tour. Explore historic landmarks, enjoy stunning views, and wander award-winning gardens.
Duration:
6 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
learn more
Highlights
- Dunedin Railway Station - We stop here at this magnificent old Railway Station to admire the architecture and take photos.
- Northern Cemetery - Drive through the oldest cemetery in Dunedin and view the spectacular family tomb of William Larnach. Designed by famed architect Robert Lawson in the image of Dunedin’s Scottish First Church. The cemetery hosts a number of exquisite grave sites belonging to wealthy prestigious Dunedin people, nestled on a lovely wooded hillside.
- Larnach Castle & Gardens - Iconic Tours provide a fully guided small group tour of the Castle’s interior. Smaller group size allows us to navigate the Castle with ease, keeping away from the larger groups and fitting much more into the day.
New Zealand’s infamous castle was built over a century ago by William Larnach high up on the hills of the Otago Peninsula. Experience breath-taking views along the Peninsula’s high road with photo stops en-route to the Castle. Upon arrival it will be time for a light lunch in the Ballroom Cafe (at own cost). We reserve a table for our group and a variety of food is available at good prices.
After lunch, your guide will escort you throughout the entire castle, from the gun room below to the views from the turret and all the marvels in between. Get all the details as you explore the Larnach family’s legacy and hear the tale of their amazing story.
- Baldwin Street: The Steepest Street in the World - Stop and view the street from below, or have a go at walking to the top. Baldwin Street is known as the World’s steepest and no visit to Dunedin is complete without seeing this famous landmark.
- University of Otago - We drive through the University Campus area to view the student flats and interesting buildings. If time permits we will stop to view the old Clock Tower Building
- Otago Peninsula - We take you on a scenic drive along the high road for a lookout stop before reaching Larnach Castle, located high up on the hills of the Otago Peninsula
What's Included
- Guided tour of Larnach Castle
- Port pickup and drop-off
- Entry fee to Larnach Castle
What's Not Included
- Lunch
Additional Information
Enjoy a personalized small group tour of Larnach Castle and Dunedin City. This is a 6 hour fully guided tour that lets you explore Dunedin and Larnach Castle at a leisurely pace. Included is a fully guided tour of Larnach Castle’s unique interior. Chilled spring water is provided complimentary to those who bring their own re-useable water bottles.
The tour takes in many interesting buildings and landmarks in Dunedin city such as the Larnach family tomb, the old University and all the main city attractions. The drive to Larnach Castle offers spectacular views from the Otago Peninsula with a lookout stop along the way. On arrival at Larnach Castle, your table will be reserved for lunch at the Ballroom cafe (lunch is own cost). After lunch and the guided tour inside the Castle, your guide will also take you through the award winning gardens offering fantastic views over the Otago Harbour.
- Please provide the name of your cruise ship at time of booking
- Some steps to negotiate during the tour of Larnach Castle
- The Castle interior is not wheelchair accessible, however the Castle Gardens, Gift Shop and Ballroom Cafe are. Please notify us if you intend to bring a fold up wheelchair or walking aid on this tour.
- Passengers must be able to get on and off the bus steps unassisted.
Location
Beach Street Wharf
Beach Street
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.9
(29 Ratings)
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Utahcrowe
Feb 3, 2023
Skip the Cruise Ship excursion; book with Iconic instead - Ann was a terrific guide/host. We had plenty of scenic stops on the city tour and the van was cool and comfortable. Ann was especially knowledgeable about the caste and it’s gardens and was in every way gracious and friendly.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Debbie_g
Dec 27, 2022
Fantastic Service - Amazing tour. Thanks to Iconic shore tours we had a fabulous day.
Pickup our group of 10 from a cruise ship that come in.
Highly recommended.
Review provided by Viator
F4859xwantoniom
Nov 8, 2022
Enjoyable Tour of Dunedin NZ - Being collected at Port Chalmers, our tour guide Ann was very informative, and provided a personal and enjoyable tour of Dundein Sites as well as Larnach Castle. Ann was very accommodating to all on the tour, allowing us sufficient time to take as many photos as desired, without being overly concerned about being lateness. She weaved in stories about Dunedin's main industries, Historical City buildings, and introduced species of flora and fauna to NZ whilst showcasing the Dunedin sites.
Sites taken to included, the Centenary Lookout, the Local Cemetry (housing the Larnarch Patrich), The Octagon Centre of Dunedin, Larnach Castle and the famous Baldwin St. Some on the tour were keen to burnoff some energy by walking the step Baldwin St.
Ann was particularly knowledgeable about the history of the Larnach Castle, to exquisite details about the timbers used for the construction, the personal life of the Larnach family and the story of the restoration work undertaken by the current Castle owners over the past 50years. One of her sons, is the official bagpiper of the castle, and was present (in full uniform and kilt) to welcome us.
Entering the Dunedin waters on a cruise ship to get to Port Chamlers gave use spectular views of this very picturesque place, with the rolling green hills taller than our cruise ship and amply placed sheep all over these green hills.
Overall, our time in Dunedin, whilst short, was one of the highlights of our trip to New Zealand and both my wife and I, enjoyed immensely this tour, and would recommend it to others.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Davidckme
Mar 6, 2020
Perfect balance of city and castle tour - The itinerary was perfect for us. Opportunity to see and hear about many/most of the key Dunedin highlights. The group was small (10) so could move through and around the city quickly. Our guide, Alan, was very knowledgeable about the history of the country, city,and the sites we saw. He made the difference between just seeing things and really experiencing and learning about them. Way better!! Pickup and drop off at the cruise terminal was flawless.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
William_t
Feb 25, 2020
Best of Dunedin - Kim provided so much interesting history about Dunedin and Larnach Castle. He was also very personable and professional!
Review provided by Viator
43hueyl
Feb 17, 2020
Small Group Larnach Castle Tour - Lovely tour with SuperAnne. We visited many sites, felt like more than our expectation. The time at each site was relaxing. We did not feel being rushed. Thank you Anne.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bjorng505
Jan 19, 2020
Castle tour - Very good loved tour guide. Went above snd beyond what was expected. Ebery thing was great. Places went to . Pickup. Every thing was easy.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Craigcolleen67
Dec 8, 2019
Perfect start to our NZ Excursions - Larnach Castle Tour with Peninsula & City sights (Cruise Tour)
We had a great time on this tour and visited sights including Larnach Castle, the Dunedin Railway station (wow) and we walked Baldwin St.
Our driver never rushed us, reserved a group table for lunch at Larnach Castle and took us to various city sights and lookouts.
His passion for historic crimes in the area and referring to his own blog details may have lead us to missing other commentary about the local region and we did overhear some other tour groups operators giving details about Larnach Castle that wasn't mentioned to our group.
Overall, a very interesting and informative day about Dunedin and NZ in general which we'd highly recommend.
Pick up and drop off next to the ship was all too easy!
The smaller group size made this a perfect tour and we were able to miss the larger coach groups.
Would have liked to see Olveston house but that will be next time... Thanks ICONIC Tours
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Glenn
Nov 11, 2019
Wonderful! - We had an amazing time on this tour and were able to so several great sites including the castle. Highly recommended. Pick up and drop off at ship, thanks! Small group size made this perfect.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jmk8668
Jan 8, 2020
It’s worth it just to see the grounds! - Spent a few hours doing a tour. The house is very eccentric and the grounds are just amazing. Plants we hadn’t seen before. Some of the art in the house is very unusual. Well worth the visit.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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