Explore Ulva Island with Ulva's Guided Walks on Stewart Island, New Zealand. 

Ulva's Guided Walks, established in 2004, has a team of specialist birding and natural history guides who will provide you with a unique experience, learning about native flora and fauna from a Maori and local Stewart Island perspective. 

What's unique about Ulva's Guided Walks?

• Local guides – the majority of our team live and work on Rakiura Stewart Island.
• Small group sizes – high quality bird watching & botanical experiences; personal, informative & relaxed.
• Unique predator-free tour areas:  

Ulva Island open sanctuary is one of several small islands situated in Paterson Inlet encompassed in the Rakiura National Park, Stewart Island.  A place of unsurpassed natural beauty, Ulva Island gives us some idea of how New Zealand used to be.  In 1899 Ulva Island became one of the earliest reserves of its kind and has been free of rodents since 1999.  

Mamaku Point Conservation Reserve is a world class bioreserve located on the north-eastern coastline of Stewart Island.  Ulva’s Guided Walks has exclusive rights to operate kiwi spotting tours here.  The area provides a thriving habitat for more than 180 native species including a population of Stewart Island Brown Kiwi (Tokoeka).

Guided tour options:

Ulva Island Guided Walk

Discover rare and endangered birds and plants with our experienced natural history guide. Ulva Island has 4½ km of gravel walking tracks that weave through temperate rainforest. Walking pace and direction is dictated by the activity of birds and discoveries in the bush edges and ancient podocarp forest canopy. 

• 3½ to 4 hour guided walk at Ulva Island.
• Departs/returns Golden Bay Wharf.
• Begins and ends with 7-minute water taxi journey between Stewart Island and Ulva Island.

Kiwi Spotting at Mamaku Point Reserve

A memorable evening experience led by our experienced natural history guide to spot Stewart Island Brown Kiwi (Tokoeka) in the wild. We enter the bioreserve via straightforward quarantine system and traverse ancient native podocarp forest and hilly grassland in our search. 

• 2 to 3 hour evening guided walk at Mamaku Point Reserve.
• Departs Oban township/returns to Stewart Island accommodation.
• Begins with 10-minute vehicle transfer to Mamaku Point. 

NEW: Ulva's Guided Walks 2-Night Stewart Island Discovery Package 

Rakiura/Stewart Island’s premier birding, wildlife and botanical tour operator Ulva’s Guided 

Walks, have partnered with Greenvale Bed and Breakfast to offer the ultimate Stewart Island adventure, including Kiwi Spotting and guided walks on Ulva Island.