This section is dedicated to take away all your "I wish someone had told me that before I went!" experiences. This way, you can spend less time settling in, and more time making new friends in your chosen hostel.
Dunedin -- the city of the student! It's full of life, friendly people, alternative nightlife, cheap eats, and touristy stuff, too! The city layout centering around the Octagon, a huge eight-edge roundabout, makes orientation rather easy. That's for inner city walking only, though; suburbs and the way to and from the highway can be a real mess. It would be a shame, though, to just stick to the centre as student life and its outgrowth have created in joints all over town. And it is also really worth taking a day or two to leave your Dunedin hostel to have a wander through some of the pretty neighbourhoods that dot the hills. There's also plenty of beautiful countrysides to explore on the Otago Peninsula, including some stunning wildlife such as the yellow-eyed penguins or sea lions. Being a student town, the general price level of eateries and all small things shoplike is comparatively low.
Hostels in Dunedin are abundant for a city of its size and are found scattered around the centre and adjoining neighbourhoods, though there are few options a bit further away. So far Dunedin has luckily been spared by the spread of sterile hostel chains. Thus it's immensely easy to find a hostel with a very special charm or history to it. There are those placed in old villas still retaining their historic air, there is one set in an old hospital, some set in family-homes in purely residential neighbourhoods, and even one in a former bishop's residence. When choosing your Dunedin hostel, you might also want to consider whether the place has a view, as there are some that offer quite lovely vistas of the surrounding sea and hills.
Written by local expertz for Dunedin
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