By the time I left, the town had done what it always does. It reminded me that travel is not always about going far. Sometimes it is simply about slowing down, letting the buildings talk to you, and noticing how a place can feel both familiar and brand new at the same time. Oamaru does this. It gives you grand scenes one moment and gentle ones the next, and all you need to do is wander with a camera and pay attention to the timeless charm.
Just up the road, the gallery-like quality of the streets started to show. The buildings are so confidently built, so unapologetically ornate, that you can almost hear the masons who shaped the stone congratulating themselves from the afterlife. The Opera House loomed into view next, and honestly, it is one of those structures that makes you pause. The tower, the details, the improbable brightness of the limestone in the late light all work together to create a scene that never feels tired no matter how many times you photograph it.
Every corner had something unexpected. A quiet side street where sunlight hit peeling paint in a way that felt cinematic. A row of heritage shopfronts that looked like they belonged in a much larger city. A crossroads framed by Oamaru’s heritage backdrop.
There are towns you pass through and towns you wander into by accident, only to realise you have somehow stepped sideways in time. Oamaru is firmly in the second category. I arrived with the morning sun spilling across the harbour, casting long shadows from the old rail lines and turning the limestone buildings a creamy gold.
Walking through the Victorian Precinct felt oddly theatrical, like the locals might suddenly break into a dress rehearsal for something involving steam engines, goggles and elaborate hats. The old railway station and its simple wooden sign seemed frozen in a moment that refused to modernise. I stood there for a while, taking photos, noticing the way the gravel track curved gently toward the past.
I’d driven up to Oamaru for the day and, as always, ended up wandering through the town’s remarkable heritage precinct. It’s one of those places that makes you feel as though you’ve stepped into another century, all creamy limestone facades, iron railings, and a faint whiff of coal smoke in the imagination.
Eventually, I found myself on Harbour Street, the heart of it all, and honestly, it was just lovely. The buildings stood shoulder to shoulder, each one a relic from the town’s glory days, now home to art galleries, antique shops, and cafés that sell tea in mismatched china.
But here’s what I don’t understand: why on earth is the street still open to traffic? It’s narrow, charming, and practically begging to be pedestrian-only. Nothing quite spoils the mood of admiring Victorian architecture like dodging SUVs and utes crawling past at two kilometres an hour. It made no sense at all, I pondered this for some time. Eventually giving up and headed for an Art Gallery then maybe a cup of coffee and biscuit.
The Criterion Hotel in Oamaru
Strolling through the streets of Oamaru, I came to the corner of Tyne and Harbour Street which is home to the Criterion Hotel. Its grand and elaborate Italianate façade showing the magnificence of the time it was built. Set on a prominent corner site and opening in 1877, it was described in the local paper as ‘the most ornamental of the recent additions to our street architecture.’ Whereas these days it’s described as ‘a true treasure and institution in Ōamaru’
The Waitaki District Council in Oamaru
The drive from Christchurch to Dunedin was uneventful. Which is just what you want to be able to say when you are travelling on part of the national state highway network. I detoured around the towns of Ashburton and Timaru, past Temuka, Makikihi and Winchester, but by the time I reached Oamaru I was ready for a break. A place that is able to boast the country’s oldest public garden, stunning Victorian architecture, two penguin colonies and having been home to human habitation since around AD 1100. Oamaru is a very nice place. It has its own delightful charm that makes you feel relaxed. It’s also full of surprises. You feel like you’re driving through any other typical New Zealand town, but then you turn a corner and everything changes. Suddenly you’re faced with a splendid collection of Victorian buildings near the harbour that are constructed from local limestone which tell the story of how the town grew on the prosperity of exploring goods of wool, grain and frozen meat from the 1860s and 1870s onwards. On this occasion, it was a quiet Sunday afternoon so I parked near the old colonial bank buildings near the harbour. I walked up one side of the street and back down the other before returning to my car and continuing the drive home.
Bank of Otago (Former) in Oamaru
For this photo I seriously considered editing it to take out the large ANZ sign on the left. It’s rather ugly and when I first looked at the photo, it completely took away from the rest of the building. However, upon closer inspection I decided to hide it instead. After editing the photo in Lightroom and adding a preset I made called ‘lift off for AJ’, I opened it in photoshop. From there, I added a vignette to darken the surrounds and draw the eye into the centre of the photo. The fact that the building is made of Oamaru stone means it looks awesome with filters that highlight the texture, tones and colours of the bank which was built in 1870.
Clarks Mill near Oamaru
On a whim, I stopped at Clarks Mill. I was on my way to Christchurch and when the historic mill came into view, some 15 kilometres south of Oamaru, for no particular reason I pulled the car over and made the decision to have a look around. Unfortunately, the mill was closed and all locked up so I was forced to be content with wandering around the grounds. However, I was able to find out that the milling of wheat and flour was a key component of the early North Otago economy and Clarks Mill was an important part of that production. Opened in 1867 for the New Zealand and Australia Land Company, Clarks Mill was originally equipped with grinding stones powered by a water wheel. Since the mill was in a rather awkward location beside a bend of the Kakanui River, it required the construction of a long water race to power it.
The Penguin Entertainers Club
Wandering around the Victorian Heritage precinct of Oamaru, I had a delightful time exploring all the alleyways that connect the surrounding area. They were filled with doors that were clearly delivery entrances and the usual assortment of rubbish bins and other bits and pieces you might find in an alleyway next to a busy shopping area. Along one passageway that ran between two historic buildings I came across a ramp and door that looked slightly different than all the rest. The sign on the door said, Jam Night: Members, Guests. The sign above said ‘The Penguin Club.’ It was one of those places that appeared to be still in use, but then again it was hard to tell. Intrigued, I made a note and continued on exploring the heritage buildings.
Later, I read that the Penguin Entertainers Club started in 1990. Located in the annex of an old grain store, the space was made available for Oamaru musicians to practise, have a few drinks and mix with local talent and now, almost 35 years later the place is still going.
Steampunk HQ
Welcome to Steampunk HQ in Oamaru which is a fun place to visit. This train outside also lights up at night which is quite spectacular. Unfortunately, whenever I go past it’s always daylight. I really must go up for a night trip to photograph the lights in the evening. Also, a fun fact I read stated that not only is Oamaru the Steampunk capital of New Zealand but of the entire world. Is that true?
Kings Emporium Vintage Clothing – Buy
Kings Emporium and Vintage Clothing is located on Otepopo Street in Herbert. That’s about 22 kilometres or 17 minutes (depending on your driving speed) from Oamaru. According to the shop’s Facebook page, the Emporium is currently closed while some house renovations happen. I can’t say I’ve ever been into the store, however I’ve always thought it would make interesting subject matter for a photo.
Harbour Street in Oamaru – Buy
I recently drove to Christchurch from Dunedin, a distance of some 360 kilometres. On the way I ventured through Oamaru and on a whim I detoured through the heritage precinct situated near the harbour. Made up of several streets, the heritage precinct is a wonderful streetscape of commercial Victorian style buildings that are constructed from local limestone and were built around 1865 to 1885. Needing to stretch my legs, I parked several blocks away and joined the steady throng of people who were ambling around the area. I walked down Tyne Street and turned left into Harbour Street. I was hoping to photograph the outside of some of the historic buildings, however for reasons that can only be guessed the street has been left open to traffic. As I was standing there, I tried to figure out the logic of having a street no more than 100 metres in length, with a width of no more than several cars and buildings over 150 years old that attracts large crowds, and the council allows people to park cars right in front of them. As I moved along the street, I thought to myself there really is nothing like casually strolling from shop to shop, admiring hand crafted facades and having to wait while some numb nut tries to parallel park a Subaru Impreza or for a Mitsubishi Outlander to move because the driver doesn’t want to walk the extra 10 steps to the shop!
The Dingle Burn – Buy
I wish I could remember where the field of sunflowers was where I took this image. I know it was near , however I have know idea where. About the same time I took this image I had been looking at some Renaissance style art which drove my final idea for this sunflower image.
The Kakanui River – Buy
Ten kilometres south-west of Oamaru, near Maheno, is the small settlement of Gemmell’s Crossing. Named after James Gemmell from Ayreshire in Scotland, Gemmell purchased a 283 hectare property for farming near Oamaru in 1870. With the Kakanui River running close to his farm, James Gemmell used to drive his cattle over the river at the point now called Gemmell’s Crossing.