☰Larnach Castle

New Zealand's only castle sits high on Otago Peninsula with sweeping views over harbour, hills and the Pacific. William Larnach, a flamboyant banker and politician, built it in 1871 and spent years importing craftsmen and materials from Europe to embellish the interiors — the ballroom ceiling took three craftsmen twelve years to complete. The castle changed hands many times and fell into decay before being restored by the Barker family from the 1960s onward. You can tour the house and wander the extensive gardens. The story of the Larnach family itself is dramatic: financial ruin, suicide, scandal — the castle absorbed all of it.