Kaikoura

Kaikoura is a town located within the Canterbury Region of New Zealand's South Island, 180 km north of Christchurch, and became the first municipality to achieve Green Globe tourism certification.

The Kaikoura Peninsula juts into the sea to the south of the town, and the resulting currents bring in an abundance of marine life from the depths of the nearby Hikurangi Trench. The town owes its origin to this effect, having developed as a center for the whaling industry.

Kaikoura is now a major tourist destination, primarily for whale watching, particularly sperm whales, and swimming with or near dolphins. There is also a large colony of New Zealand fur seals (Arctocephalus fosteri) on the western side of the town, and it is one of the best places in the world to see seabirds such as albatrosses, petrels, and shearwaters.