Curio Bay

Curio Bay is located on The Catlins coast just 7kms from Waikawa. Visiting or staying at Curio Bay is an idyllic way to spend time whether you are relaxing or swimming and surfing in the safe waters of Porpoise Bay. Take a walk or settle down on the headlands of the Curio Bay Reserve for a picnic and watch the impressive waves crashing on the rocks. There are only a small number of permanent residents’ homes dotted along the coastline, but the numbers swell in the summer season.

History -  The area has a long history of Maori occupation and, as with the rest of The Catlins, was an important food source area for Maori. The area was later settled by European whalers and sealers in the 1850s and 1860s.

Attractions and Services

• Where to Stay to suit all needs.
• Food and Services including café, camp shop.
• Tumu Toka Curioscape – Interactive centre.
• Walks Take a walk to the Petrified Forest where fossilised trees lie embedded in coastal bedrock.
• Wet and Wild – swimming, surfing, fishing.
• Nature & Wildlife Hector’s dolphins, yellow-eyed penguins and birdlife.

Location: 1 hour 25 minute drive from Balclutha, 1 hour 13 minute drive from Invercargill