I've only just realised that Kaikoura, one of my favourite places in the world, is on this site. Just had to tell people a bit about it.

The town is based around a number of water-based activites, the main ones being whale-watching (mainly sperm whales) and swimming with dolphins. The main town is situated on the north side of the peninsula, with the harbour, South Bay, obviously to the south.

The dolphin trips are similarly well-organised. After getting your snorkelling gear fitted out, you watch a presentation at the centre explaining what to do and not to do, then get a bus over to the harbour. You usually have to head a little way offshore to find the dolphin pods. Once they are located, you get kitted up and wait at the back for the signal to drop in the water. Once in, it's up to you to interact with the dolphins to keep them interested (but no touching!); quite often they move off after a short period, so you tend to get on and off the boat a few times. At the end, there's a bit of time allocated to simply following and watching the dolphins, while you hear a bit more about them. This is also the best tme to photograph them from the boat if you're been in the water all the time.

The main reason I travelled to Kaikoura so often was to dive (I did my Rescue course there). The main dive operation is Dive Kaikoura, a very professional centre based in the main town. They offer a range of courses, as well as single or double tank trips for qualified divers. A word of warning - this is not tropical diving! I actually found it good preparation for diving in the UK - the temperature varies from around 12-17C, so a good wetsuit is essential. Visibility id often fairly low, usually less than 10m. On the other hand, you get the chance to dive around the seals, who sometimes join you in the water, and there's plenty of crayfish if you're out for some food. (In fact, the actual meaning of Kaikoura comes from the Maori "eat crayfish", so it's the signature food in town.)

For me the best thing about Kaikoura was the scenery and the opportunities for photography. There are some beautiful viewpoints, and it's one of the few places in the world where I will get up for sunrise. The best views are from the "new" pier, and from the seal colony.

And there are plenty of places to stay. Most of my experience is of the backpacker places, of which there are several - I stayed at the Albatross Inn, the Lazy Shag and Lyell Creek Lodge, the latter two of which I especially liked. The Lazy Shag has a great little kitchen, and they recycle nearly everything. As far as I remember, Lyell Creek had no dorms, but was still set up as a backpakcers, with a couple of kitchens and a friendly vibe (but a bit further out from the town centre). But if you're in a group, or just looking to spend a bit more, there are great options for self-catering apartments - I stayed at both "Waves on the Esplanade" and Waterfront Apartments, and would recommend both. Many of them have balconies with (partial) sea views, and quite a few have small hot tubs - great after a dip in the (very chilly) sea! In between these options, there are a number of motels and small hotels, as well as lots of B+Bs. I rarely struggled to find somewhere to stay, even with no booking, but I'd be wary of turning up late with no booking.

It's much easier to get to Kaikoura with your own transport. The roads to each side are winding and can be frustrating if you get stuck behind a lorry (unbelievably, this road is actually the main route from Christchurch to Picton, on the way to the North Island). There are buses that do the trip, but they don't run very often (a couple per day for each company plus some shuttles), so check the schedule in advance. There are also some trips that do a triangle from Christchurch to Kaikoura then to Hamner Srpngs, a small spa town nearby.