Dunedin

If the weather cooperates, yes — it's the world's only mainland breeding colony of northern royal albatross, on Taiaroa Head at the tip of the Otago Peninsula. The Albatross Classic tour is NZ$65 for 60 minutes (presentation, short film, 30 minutes in the glassed observatory). The Unique Taiaroa combo is NZ$75 and adds the historic Fort Taiaroa tunnels. You will not always see a bird in flight — they go where the wind goes — but the observatory looks out over active nests for most of the cruise season. Heads up: a stretch of Harington Point Road is under repair April–June 2026, so allow extra travel time from the pier.

Maybe, with caveats. The yellow-eyed penguin (hoiho in Māori) is classified Threatened–Nationally Endangered, and the Otago Peninsula population has fallen roughly 75% since the mid-1990s. Viewing is now done only through controlled hides at private reserves like Penguin Place or as part of guided tours run by the Royal Albatross Centre — wandering onto a beach hoping to spot one is both unhelpful and not really how it works. Penguins come ashore in late afternoon, which can be tight against an all-aboard call. Confirm your ship's departure time before you book any penguin-viewing tour.

It's New Zealand's only castle, built in the 1870s by the banker-politician William Larnach, and the gardens are a Garden of International Significance — which is the kind of accolade Dunedin takes seriously. Adult admission is NZ$45 (kids 5–14 are NZ$15, under-5 free), and it's open every day of the year. The site is on the way to the albatross colony, so Larnach Castle plus Taiaroa Head is the standard Otago Peninsula combo. If you only do one and you've seen castles before, the wildlife is the rarer experience.

It's gone. The Cadbury factory closed in 2018 and Cadbury World — the visitor centre with the giant chocolate waterfall — closed at the same time. The site is being redeveloped for the new Dunedin Hospital. If a shore excursion or third-party tour page still lists it, the page hasn't been updated. There's a small craft-chocolate scene in the city (OCHO is the local name to know) but no factory tour at cruise-ship scale.

Cards are fine almost everywhere — New Zealand is one of the most cashless countries on the cruise circuit, and contactless tap is the default in cafes, restaurants, the castle ticket office, and the Royal Albatross Centre. The exception is the Orbus Route 14 cruise bus from Port Chalmers, which is cash-only at NZ$6 return. Carry a NZ$10 note for that and you're set; if you're going straight to a tour, you don't really need cash at all. The currency is the New Zealand dollar (NZD).

Cool, changeable, and windier than you expect — Dunedin sits at 45°S, the same latitude as the southern tip of France but with the Southern Ocean upwind instead of the Mediterranean. Cruise season runs October to April. Summer highs (December–February) are typically 16–22°C with regular rain showers; shoulder months can be raw. Layer like you mean it — a warm fleece, a wind shell, and shoes you don't mind getting damp on the peninsula tracks. "It's summer in New Zealand" is not a forecast.