If you want to mingle with travellers and don't mind a by-the-numbers hostel, Tuatara's lizard-green decor and tidy dorm rooms fit the bill. In the heart of Invercargill's CBD, basic rooms are stacked three floors high above a ground-floor cafe that doubles as a travellers' hub.
Tuatara Backpackers
Fiordland & Southland
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
1.56 MILES
A kingdom of shiny chrome lies beyond the doors of Transport World, touted as the largest private automotive museum on the planet. Across 15,000 sq metres…
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16.48 MILES
Oh, that all small-town museums could be this good! The riveting Riverton museum starts with a 16-minute film about Pākehā sealer Jack Price and his Māori…
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12.79 MILES
Salty tales whisper from the portholes, driftwood and barnacle-clung planks displayed at Bluff's small museum by the container port. The best part is…
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29.37 MILES
Standing on a desolate but beautiful point surrounded by farmland, this 13.4m-high lighthouse was built after the SS Tararua disaster, an 1881 shipwreck…
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0.72 MILES
Built in 1889, this elegant brick-clad structure resembles a lighthouse more than it does a water tower. Almost 43m high, it was built to supply the city…
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0.64 MILES
Half-wild, half-tamed Queens Park encompasses a whopping 80 hectares, with various gardens themed from Japanese to native NZ plant life. There are also…
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0.34 MILES
This broad-domed Roman Catholic basilica, open since 1905, is one of Invercargill's most elegant landmarks, and a standout against the low-rise skyline…
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12.94 MILES
With characters that are part cheeky, part creepy, award-winning sculptor Helen Back makes whimsical works that look like they've stepped from the pages…
Nearby Fiordland & Southland attractions
0.16 MILES
More than 300 motorcycles spanning over a century are displayed in this shiny-floored showroom, including three-wheelers and sidecar bikes. It's utterly…
0.24 MILES
Hardware shops aren't usually a must-see, but this one holds a piece of motoring history. In among the aisles of bolts, barbecues and brooms in this…
0.34 MILES
This broad-domed Roman Catholic basilica, open since 1905, is one of Invercargill's most elegant landmarks, and a standout against the low-rise skyline…
0.64 MILES
Half-wild, half-tamed Queens Park encompasses a whopping 80 hectares, with various gardens themed from Japanese to native NZ plant life. There are also…
0.72 MILES
Built in 1889, this elegant brick-clad structure resembles a lighthouse more than it does a water tower. Almost 43m high, it was built to supply the city…
1.56 MILES
A kingdom of shiny chrome lies beyond the doors of Transport World, touted as the largest private automotive museum on the planet. Across 15,000 sq metres…
3.56 MILES
Stretching over 24 hectares, this beautiful park includes landscaped gardens fringed by an expanse of native bush, plus a children's playground and duck…
5.67 MILES
Ten kilometres southwest of city centre Invercargill, this 26km sandy beach invites brisk walks and bike rides. Southland racing legend Burt Munro once…