Monkey Island, Orepuki
Overnight Campervan Parking and Walk
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Marios Gavalas
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Information
Monkey Island, Orepuki
Freedom campers are allowed to stay for up to 28 days per calendar year.
Monkey Island can be reached by foot at a low tide, and offers good views of the beach and distant mountains.
Be a good camper - keep your patch tidy, respect other users of the area, look after the resident flora and fauna (especially any monkeys) and enjoy!
Note - beware the hungry sandfly on on this coast; choose your weapon and keep it handy.
This is a council designated campsite.
http://www.southlanddc.govt.nz/my-southland/freedom-camping/
Walking Track
Timing
You can only cross to Monkey Island at low tide.
Access
Monkey Island is signposted between Colac Bay and Orepuki. Continue 1 km to the roadend where there are toilets and picnic benches by a small beach.
Track
You can only cross to Monkey Island at low tide.
A short stepped climb leads to a viewing platform.
Details
| Feature | Value | Info |
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Organisation |
Southland District CouncilCouncil organisation |
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Location |
South Island ▷ Southland ▷ Tuatapere |
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Categories |
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Directions To Coordinates |
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Coordinates |
Freedom Camping
Walking
Google Maps
Nearby
Reviews
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Stunning views -
Clean toilets
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Nice walking tracks
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Free camping
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Can get very busy -
Very windy at times
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No fresh water available
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Nice place and view, great beach.
Wyklicky -
Beautiful spot!!
Joseph Buckett -
Such a great spot for beginner surfers!
Annie87 -
Great place but very difficult to get a spot.
Shelley Rohloff -
Really nice spot.
Pauline
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Two toilets located each end of the camp, really cool to see so many make the trip here.
Beautiful walks along the beach. Clean toilets, didn't see any bins so please take your rubbish. Can get super windy so ensure everything is tied down
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Thank you, Council, for providing this Camp ground for free in such a unique setting.
I wish to make a few suggestions regarding environment conservation: 1. Keep an eye on irresponsible folks who misuse the beach racing motorcycles along it despite many visitors walking and children playing. 2. As there are sea lions coming ashore in the evening invite dog owners to keep their friends on a leash. We witnessed a critical situation between a big dog and a sea lion making its way to its resting place. Thank you
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Stunning spot, toilets very clean get there by 4pm for spot fills up fast We saw dolphins playing close to shore on dusk Gemstone beach only 4kms away
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Great spot.
On the water. We saw dolphins. Nice easy walk to top monkey island great viewing point, low tide. Can be windy. 4 clean serviced drop toilets. Fits around 60 campers mix of tents n vans.
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Beautiful spot.
Very crowded in late December - to be expected. Drop toilets are fine. Lovely views but can be very windy.
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Lovely place with lots of locals staying here as well.
Good space for maybe 30-40 campers depending on how they park. We loved the beach and monkey island! Would def stay here again.
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Great little stop along the beach 4 drop toilets that were cleaned regularly Tents allowed Site was checked a couple of times over the two days we were there - made some of the bigger motorhomes that
were parked parallel along the tenting area move and back in
Definitely consider it as an easy place to freedom camp
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Really nice spot.
The island is cute and sunset is stunning. Quite a lot of space for campervans. Long drop toilets and rubbish.
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Great views, clean toilets, very quite, terrific for star gazing.
The only possible fault is that the bathrooms are lit with an external strip light that is very bright at night. Just avoid looking at it if you’re trying to admire the stars.
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One of our favourite spots to camp.
Clean loos, plenty of space but it does get busy. We snorkeled in the lagoon and saw some sea slugs, massive sea stars and collected mussels for tea. The sea here was calm enough to swim in and is very clear.
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Great location by a nice beach with great views.
Sunday night and about 6 vans here so plenty of space.
Two long drop toilet blocks at each end
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Mad spot here at monkey island.
A little gusty and rainy but otherwise mint as. Monkey island lookout at low tide is a neat little walk. Good people and fine company. Not to far from Orepuki tavern and beach cafe. Each with their helpful local knowledge and abundant tastes foryou to enjoy. Keep an eye out for seals. Will stay again.
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Awesome spot.
Beautiful view of the sea. Heaps of space. 4 toilets in total. Was fairly busy when we arrived at 6:45pm still plenty of space however. Will definitely come back.
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Such a great spot for beginner surfers!
Only downside is it’s popular so can be busy. We stayed twice, two weeks a part in January. First time was quieter and magical, second time much busier and we had a neighbour light a fire 3m from us and smoked us out of our camper (fires not permitted FYI).
- Toilets super clean long drops, cleaned daily in summer.
- No fresh water, bring what you need.
- Rubbish & recycling on site, although clearly most ppl suck at recycling or reading as the recycling bin was full of crap.
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Very nice beach but very full car park type campsite.
When we stayed some local youths (non-campers) arrived very late and parked very close to us in their cars. They had a big bonfire, lots of very loud music played out of car speakers and lots of drinking. They then lit bangers and fireworks near to our vehicle and we had to move because of this. If you want to sleep then avoid here! We were parked in one of the grassy spaces as you come in so probably better to be next to lots of other cars in the main section for safety.
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Two toilets located each end of the camp, really cool to see so many make the trip here.
Beautiful walks along the beach. Clean toilets, didn't see any bins so please take your rubbish. Can get super windy so ensure everything is tied down
-
Thank you, Council, for providing this Camp ground for free in such a unique setting.
I wish to make a few suggestions regarding environment conservation: 1. Keep an eye on irresponsible folks who misuse the beach racing motorcycles along it despite many visitors walking and children playing. 2. As there are sea lions coming ashore in the evening invite dog owners to keep their friends on a leash. We witnessed a critical situation between a big dog and a sea lion making its way to its resting place. Thank you
-
Stunning spot, toilets very clean get there by 4pm for spot fills up fast We saw dolphins playing close to shore on dusk Gemstone beach only 4kms away
-
Great spot.
On the water. We saw dolphins. Nice easy walk to top monkey island great viewing point, low tide. Can be windy. 4 clean serviced drop toilets. Fits around 60 campers mix of tents n vans.
-
Beautiful spot.
Very crowded in late December - to be expected. Drop toilets are fine. Lovely views but can be very windy.
-
Lovely place with lots of locals staying here as well.
Good space for maybe 30-40 campers depending on how they park. We loved the beach and monkey island! Would def stay here again.
-
Great little stop along the beach 4 drop toilets that were cleaned regularly Tents allowed Site was checked a couple of times over the two days we were there - made some of the bigger motorhomes that
were parked parallel along the tenting area move and back in
Definitely consider it as an easy place to freedom camp
-
-
Really nice spot.
The island is cute and sunset is stunning. Quite a lot of space for campervans. Long drop toilets and rubbish.
-
Great views, clean toilets, very quite, terrific for star gazing.
The only possible fault is that the bathrooms are lit with an external strip light that is very bright at night. Just avoid looking at it if you’re trying to admire the stars.
-
-
One of our favourite spots to camp.
Clean loos, plenty of space but it does get busy. We snorkeled in the lagoon and saw some sea slugs, massive sea stars and collected mussels for tea. The sea here was calm enough to swim in and is very clear.
-
Great location by a nice beach with great views.
Sunday night and about 6 vans here so plenty of space.
Two long drop toilet blocks at each end
-
Mad spot here at monkey island.
A little gusty and rainy but otherwise mint as. Monkey island lookout at low tide is a neat little walk. Good people and fine company. Not to far from Orepuki tavern and beach cafe. Each with their helpful local knowledge and abundant tastes foryou to enjoy. Keep an eye out for seals. Will stay again.
-
Awesome spot.
Beautiful view of the sea. Heaps of space. 4 toilets in total. Was fairly busy when we arrived at 6:45pm still plenty of space however. Will definitely come back.
-
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Such a great spot for beginner surfers!
Only downside is it’s popular so can be busy. We stayed twice, two weeks a part in January. First time was quieter and magical, second time much busier and we had a neighbour light a fire 3m from us and smoked us out of our camper (fires not permitted FYI).
- Toilets super clean long drops, cleaned daily in summer.
- No fresh water, bring what you need.
- Rubbish & recycling on site, although clearly most ppl suck at recycling or reading as the recycling bin was full of crap.
-
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One of the best free campsites I've visited in the country.
The camp site is nestled behind some low dunes, which help to protect tents from the wind. Toilets are well maintained and even have lights, which is a nice touch. The beach is lovely for a walk, and the island is neat to explore on low tide. If we had more time we would have stayed longer. Because of how popular it is it can be hard to find a spot during peak camping time.
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A great place to stay.
Clean toilets too. If you are into kai moana there is plenty (mussels, paua) and have a go at fishing, you may catch something. The weather was great so there was quite a few parked up. Well done Southland.