Motuara Island Bird Sanctuary: Discover Rare Wildlife on a Picton Harbour Cruise

37 Ratings

Picton

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Embark on a 4.5-hour boat excursion from Picton Harbour to Motuara Island Bird Sanctuary. Discover rare native birds, seals, and dolphins while learning about wildlife and cultural history.

Duration: 4 hours, 30 minutes

Cancellation: 24 hours

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Highlights

Queen Charlotte Sound - Cruise through the tranquil waterways of the Queen Charlotte Sound, see wildlife and native flora and fauna along the way

What's Included

Commentary on board
On-board restrooms

What's Not Included

Food
Hotel pickup and drop-off
Beachcomber Cruises keep cups for $6 in the office before you depart

Additional Information

Embark on a 4.5-hour boat journey from Picton Harbour to Motuara Island and beyond, relishing the rare sight of native birds and diverse wildlife. Explore the majestic Motuara Island Bird Sanctuary and Ship Cove while gaining insights into wildlife and historical culture from your knowledgeable captain. Revel in the stunning Queen Charlotte Sound…

Location

1 London Quay

London Quay

Please meet us at the Beachcomber Cruises Office on the waterfront - the Corner of Wellington Street and London Quay, we are a black building with Blue Signage.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings

4.1

(37 Ratings)

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1 star

Janicel2117

Feb 17, 2026

Queen Charlotte Sounds - A fantastic tour with a great company, would use Beachcomber every time.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

S9161jyklausd

Jan 20, 2026

Great day in the Queen Charlotte Sound - We did the Motuara Island, Ship Cove and then Walking from Furneaux Lodge to Punga Cove! Sailing from Ship Cove to Furneaux Lodge we had an outstanding Hector Dolphin encounter thanks to our Captain! The staff is really good in taking care of the customers. Kind advice and help to chose the tour. Very professional and we felt safe all the time. Each question was welcomed. At the end our Captain took some time to collect the last Visitors friendly from the Cafe and Restaurant at Punga cove, and sailed us back to Picton. Really price worthy! A good return on investment. In a familiar and cordial atmosphere

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Banu_t

Mar 16, 2025

Beautiful scenery,... - Beautiful scenery, interesting stops to explore and learn about the history of the region and a well organized boat

Review provided by Viator

Maike_r

Jan 13, 2025

Fantastic and very special day out !!!! - We absolutely loved our day on the water and the visit to the island. However, it would have been easy for us to spend an additional hour on the island, just to enjoy the surroundings a wee bit longer. The lookout was an absolute highlight. Thank you for making this possible :)

Review provided by Viator

Leeane_v

Dec 31, 2025

The island is a bird... - The island is a bird sanctuary but that doesn't mean you will see birds , this is ok for us who are from NZ but may be disappointing for tourists. A nice jaunt around the sounds, great being able to spend time at Ships cove.

Review provided by Viator

Gloria_p

Jan 8, 2025

Wonderful morning adventure - The friendliness of the little Robins and seeing the Saddlebacks up so close, was a wonderful experience.

Review provided by Viator

A321bird

Mar 11, 2024

A Magic Island - An amazing island with just the right amount of time to ascend to the summit and the incredible panoramic views. Excellent views of the unique bird species found on the island. I was disappointed with the very short time we had by the Cook Memorial - the excuse that “we’re running late” by the boat skipper isn’t, I feel, good enough! Consequently it was a very rushed visit for everyone on that particular sailing.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Julie_from_mi

Feb 16, 2024

Great day on Marlborough Sound. - The boat ride was beautiful. On the island, I felt rushed to climb to the viewpoint and get back down on time. We enjoy seeing birds but are not experienced birders. We could hear more than we could see.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

227einarh

Dec 7, 2025

Visitors to Motuara Island Bird Sanctuary - My wife and I had looked forward to this trip, but we were probably disappointed. The boat trip took 4.5 hours in total, but only 1.5 hours were set aside to visit this basically fantastic bird island. The tour was without a guide, which we knew in advance. Three others took part in the trip with us. They were more concerned with talking loudly than studying bird life. Thus, many of the birds were scared away, and we did not get a big look at the particular species. All in all, this became one of the worst things we've ever been involved in. Not recommended!

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Cdawd

Dec 2, 2024

Disappointing trip - We did the Motoura Island stop before going onto the Ships Cove to Furneaux Lodge walk. We'd thought it would be one of the highlights of our trip but it was disappointing. Complimentary coffee on board is advertised but there was none during the 1 hr trip to Motoura Island on the motorboat. We couldn't hear the explanation too well because of the noise of the boat. We had thought there would be more commentary - the people on the mailboat cruise (they picked us up) seemed to have had better commentary. The return boat had issues so we had to wait for a replacement to come, which is fine, but instead of keeping us waiting at the Lodge, where we had warmth and drinks, we were told to get to the boat around 3:45. It was a miserable day but we had to wait on the boat for close to 45 minutes. Poor service. I'd say this is more like a water taxi and less of a cruise.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

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