Yellow eyed penguin colony in Oamaru

Lovely place to visit and best of all it is free.

As the signs from DOC says, the penguins change their feathers from March until May, which makes it harder for you to see them leaving their nests and coming back as they are not waterproof and wont leave out to the sea at all. We will definitely come back later in the year because it seems like a cool spot to watch penguins. The beach is a bit far away so you will need binoculars to see them better. :)

It was unfortunately closed 01/Jan/2022. Could site Penguins at the distance..

Theres definitely still penguins still here. We arrived at 5:30 and within 5 minutes we saw one walk across the beach. Walking back to the car, we saw one really close to the fence! Theyll usually be around from 3pm - dark, and sunrise, you just need a little patience.

This little stretch of coastline really does have yellow-eyed penguins crossing the beach each evening after 3pm. My uncle used to care for them - what a loving chore Uncle Jim... thank you for all youve done! However you wont see any in my pics because ever the fresh pic hunter, I figured theyd have to go back out to sea in the morning and Id get that pic!? Unfortunately for me, their alarm went off earlier than mine so...stick to the after 3pm and please STAY OFF THE BEACH... theyll see you, youll scare them, and they wont come up!!! 😁😇👍🤘🙏

Tried our best to see the little guys but just watched the sea rolling in and dusk turn into night. Beautiful spot to witness that by itself.

Not sure a star rating helps here, but we saw 2 penguins around 7.30 after about an hour of waiting. They each waddled in from the seaweed and were tricky to spot! Heeeaps of seals in the water in amongst the seaweed further around to the north, so no doubt a precarious return for the penguins... anyway... patience paid off! Awesome spot.

did not see any penguins unfortunately despite waiting. however saw a few seals who entertained us!!

Viewing was abit far, but a few penguins came up the track, so could see them.Not a lot of penguins come ashore. Kids loved it

Great view, usually some wildlife too.

You can to meet penguins in sunset.

Beautiful spot. Just be aware that the Yellow Eyed Penguins are moulting, and so not out and about early march. Not sure how long they are out of action.

Nice sunrise, but didnt see any pingus :/

We are not allowed to take photos for those little fellows.

We saw 2 penguins, it was magical. The walk was pleasant and the lookout points were easy to get to

You need good eyes to see the penguins come ashore, but if you’re lucky you can see some in the forest near the entrance path

No pinguins, it is not a nice beach.

Lookout over the beach providing potential views of the penguins and also some information about the penguina during the seasons. Youll definitely need binoculars to see them better as this is a high up view point and you cannot access the beach after 3pm when the penguins are likely onshore.

Lovely to see the penguins

Really cool beach. From far away you can watch the penguins how they arive in the late afternoon. Before 3 p.m. you can also access the beach and watch the seals

A short walk to the observatory but we cannot see anything except sea lion.

Amazing spot especially if you are lucky enough to see some of the rarest penguins waddle out of the waves. Definitely need binoculars, some luck and patience!Very lucky to see 4 penguins on the 22nd March 19 during the 1.5hrs we were there!So many people turned up with their iPhones, not sure what they were expecting.

Good to sit and watch penguins. Bring binoculars

Short walk and if you get to see the penguins then well worth it. These birds are particularly elusive and dont always show up. Not sure where they go to otherwise specially in consideration of the distance they travel each day. A must to bring binoculars as where they normally gather is far from the view and out of normal eve sight.

Saw 2 yellow eyed pinguin. You need binocular or at least 300mm zoom lens. There are 3 spots to see. The last spot has the best point of view, but the farthest.

Saw a little yellowed eye penguin coming home. A little bit far away, but its better to let them leave without human bothering them

Penguins are in far away. But can see lot of sea lions 😍

Worth a visit when in Oamaru

Good parking clean pathways

Worth suporting the efforts to keep the colony going

Good set up but didnt see a pinguïn. Only short visit in the afternoon so made sense

Dusk is the most ideal time to visit the place as they arrive back to the beach. We only saw 4 penguins but was so worth it!

Wow.Very simple amazing experience.Not only can you see seals and other wildlife but also the EXTREMELY rare yellow eyed penguin.Get the after 3pm and you can start to see them come back to shore one by one.Wow. They are rare and very cute.Good viewing platforms including a hide.

Arrived at 430 pm and saw several Hoiho coming into shore over an hour. Lots of bird calls and stunning scenery and golden sand! Platform is quite far back from the penguins but definitely worth it

At low tide you can walk around to the blue penguin colony near Oamaru and also see some bunkers from the war. The viewing platform is quite far away so binoculars are recommended if you want to get a better view of the penguins.

We came in the morning not knowing the penguins will only show up in the evening. Missed out some homework in checking what is the best time to visit so we missed viewing the yellow-eye penguin. Shuttle bus to this place is only available from 4pm-6pm (if i can remember correctly i hope). You need to have a good camera lens to be able to take photographs of the penguin from far. This place can be missed we felt. #J2ACE

Waiting for long time and only see two penguins , but its worth!

Worth a visit at the crack of dawn or at the end of the day as it gets dark

Supposedly best time to see them is about two hours before sunset. Just saw 3 Penguins on the beach between 740 pm and 8 pm, and sunset is at 910 pm tonight. Also a great place to see seals as well. Wind can be brutal at times, so be prepared with jacket and scarf even in the middle of the summer.

Free charge place to see yellow eyed penguins. You can see few penguins back after 7pm in summer. What you need is a telescope

Nice place, but it is easier to see the pinguin in next bay - Moaraki

A long wait but worthwhile. 4 penguins and beautiful scenery

Be aware.. you could be sitting here for HOURS. was great to see a single penguin... But it was at a good 50+ meters so not clear and you would need a very BIG lens to make a picture.

What a great place to visit! Come before 3 pm so you can walk on the beach. The breach is a great place to find Paua shells. We were there in April and dont see any penguins but it was an amazing place to see SEALS. Some would let you get within arms length. One of the best free things I did in NZ

DOC have done a great job of providing us access.You can see penguins and seals, just be patient. Dont get too close to the seals, though theyre obviously pretty used to bring depicted.Follow the footprints in the sand to the bush line, theyll (penguinsbe resting under the bushes.Please move away from them before yelling out to your friends.... A walkie talkie would be a better idea.

One of the best experiences I have ever had! Highly recommended.

Beware - you will get to see the penguins only from a 100m high cliff, at a distance of 0.5km. Bring binoculars if you want to see any more than juts a black dot on a sandy beach.

It was a nice lookout for sunset but not great for penguins. The lookout is 300-400 metres from the beach so difficult to see unless you have binoculars!!

This is hit and miss - please remember that there are just six (6pairs of penguins and you can wait there for an hour, freezing your rear end and do not see any. And even if you see them, they will be couple of hundred meters away at least.So you need to have adequate explanations, warm clothes and really good telephoto lenses (at least 400mm/f4 for a full-frame cameraif you want to catch something. Good luck

Great place to come and see the penguins on the beech