Gore - town in New Zealand's Southland region

Gore is a town in the Southland region of New Zealand that is known as the world's capital of brown trout fishing, and New Zealand's capital of country music. It is on State Highway 1 about an hour's drive from Invercargill.

Understand

Named after Governor Gore Browne, the town is a service center for the surrounding district.

Get in

By bus

There are bus services from Dunedin to Invercargill as well as to Queenstown and other places in the southern lakes district.

By car

Gore is about 2.5 hours by road south from Dunedin, along State Highway 1.

By plane

Get around

See

• Eastern Southland Gallery, Corner Hokonui Drive & Norfolk Street, -46.09800°, 168.94599°. M-F 10AM-4:30PM, Sa-Su 1-4PM. Includes the Ralph Hotere Gallery, which holds more than 60 works by this major New Zealand artist. Also the John Money Collection of New Zealand, aboriginal Australian and West African art. Housed in a former Carnegie Library building. Free 2015-10-20
• Hands of Fame. A statue celebrating country music. It has a number of hand prints of country music artists, including Kenny Rogers.
• Hokonui Heritage Centre, Corner Hokonui Drive and Norfolk Street. M-F 8.30AM-5PM, Sa 9:30AM-4PM, Su 1-4PM. Includes the Hokonui Moonshine Museum and the Gore Historical Museum. The Moonshine Museum celebrates the district's historical illicit whiskey making. The Historical Museum includes an exhibition about trout fishing. Also has visitor information desk Mon-Sat. Historical Museum free, charge for Moonshine Museum.
• Trout statue, -46.09863°, 168.94724°. A large sculpture of a brown trout at the entrance to the town. 2021-06-02

Do

• Gold Guitar Awards. Country music awards at Queen’s Birthday Weekend in early June.
• Freeze ya bits off busking (dead link: January 2023) Busking competition on the Queen’s Birthday Weekend.
• Trout fishing (dead link: January 2023) on the Mataura River. Gore is said to be the brown trout world capital.

Buy

Eat

• Cafe Ambience, 51 Main St, -46.1°, 168.9454°, +64 3-208 5888. 2021-11-10
• The Green Room Cafe, 59 Irk St, -46.1001°, 168.944°, +64 3-208 1005. 2021-11-10

Drink

Sleep

• Heartland Hotel Croyden, 100 Waimea Street, -46.08385°, 168.93641°. Scenic group hotel set in 6 acres. 2021-06-02
• ASURE Oakleigh Motel, -46.09218°, 168.94462°. 9 unit motel. 2021-06-02
• Gore Motor Camp, 35 Broughton Street, -46.1101°, 168.9363°. Cabins and pitches for tents and campervans. 2021-06-02

Go next

• Mataura

Related: Driving in New Zealand