The sleepy hamlet of Tapanui is a film star in its own right writes Elisabeth Easther.

From eco tours to distillery visits, there's plenty to fill a holiday here.

The mother of murdered Owaka teen Kylie Smith says she is "absolutely delighted" to have five years off from having to argue to keep

A man who drank a bottle of bourbon before driving his vehicle to a police station to talk to police was jailed for six months.

A student is held in custody after being charged with possession of amphetamine and steroids while on bail awaiting trial for other drugs charges.

The man who raped and killed Owaka teenager Kylie Smith will remain behind bars for at least another five years.

Pavlina Pizova, who survived a month in a remote hut on the Routeburn Track, broke down in tears as she spoke about her fight for survival.

This lovely spot comes with barrels of history, some of it millions of years old, as Elisabeth Easther discovers.

A tramper is believed to have fallen to his death on the Routeburn track.

An Otago Uni student who discovered four unknown women trashing his Hyde St flat yesterday says crime on the North Dunedin party street is "getting worse".

Convicted killer Colin Bouwer will remain behind bars after requesting parole be declined at his latest hearing.

Chinese national Limin Ma has pleaded guilty over the crash which killed young Dunedin photographer Riley Baker.

A bus driver's spontaneous detour has come to a unplanned halt at a hairpin turn in Dunedin's Northeast Valley.

Diana Plater enjoys some of the best Central Otago has to offer.

A dairy farmer under financial pressure despite working 100-hour weeks has admitted breaking the tails of nearly 50 cows.

Kea researcher Paul van Klink has raised the issue that giving Keas mountain cafe food is damaging the birds' health.

Double the average number of meningitis cases have been identified in the South this year as authorities call for vigilance following the death of an Otago Polytechnic student.

The parents of a 20-year-old student, who died tragically at the weekend from meningitis, have warned people to be wary of the disease's symptoms.

A young motorcyclist who police say died after colliding with a Chinese driver's vehicle in Otago on Saturday will donate organs to seven different people.

The motorcyclist who died after a crash in East Otago was a talented and award-winning Dunedin photographer.

A motorcyclist who died after colliding with a car in Otago on Saturday has been named.

The person who brutally assaulted a Dunedin pensioner is still at large and she is asking why police let the case go cold so quickly.

Joanna Hunkin lives the champagne lifestyle in Queenstown during a weekend loaded with luxury.

A motorcyclist was critically injured in a crash with a car in Otago this afternoon.

Watch: More than 30 firefighters are attempting to put out a chimney fire at the Jack's Point Golf Course clubhouse, near Queenstown, this morning.

Police are hunting for a knife-wielding assailant who attempted to rob the Highgate Dairy, on Highgate, Dunedin, tonight.

Most financial advisers mention just one KiwiSaver scheme when they give advice.

The operator of a new low-rise development joined to a historic hotel predicts it will command New Zealand's most expensive new hotel room rate at $10,000 a night.

A Wanaka man has been charged with ill-treating an animal after a cat was shot.

A police officer cleared of repeatedly punching a teenager has laid a complaint with the IPCA.