Alexandra Travel Guide
Alexandra accommodation, Alexandra activities and attractions, Alexandra maps, transportation to and around Alexandra - the ALL NEW Jasons Alexandra Destination Travel Guide is your complete visitor guide for Alexandra.
Once a boisterous goldmining town, Alexandra in
Central Otago is now the centre of a rich fruitgrowing and pastoral area, with numerous orchards, herberies and wineries.
Alexandra sprang into existence after the discovery of gold between
Clyde and
Cromwell in 1862, and thousands of miners travelled to the district along the Old Dunstan Road. Today, Alexandra is the chief centre for Central Otago and is famous for New Zealand's original Blossom Festival, which attracts thousands of visitors each year.
Alexandra enjoys a low rainfall (only 300mm a year) and high sunshine hours, making it an ideal holiday spot and a prosperous wine-making region. There is excellent mountain biking in the area and Alexandra plays host each year to the Mountain Bike Gold Rush Weekend. Other activities include an Olympic-size swimming pool, an 18-hole golf course and a sporting complex. In winter there is ice skating and curling on the frozen Manorburn Dam.
Geographic Location
At the junction of the Clutha and Manuherikia Rivers
Climate
Mediterranean
Summer average: 15-35°C
Winter average: 6-15°C
Average yearly rainfall
300mm