Last updated October 2026
Saint Clair, almost always called St Clair, is a coastal residential suburb of Dunedin on the Pacific edge of the city’s southern plain. Houses sit on the flatter ground behind the beach and climb the slopes of Forbury Hill.
The suburb is best known for St Clair Beach, the western end of Ocean Beach, and for the esplanade of cafes that looks out over the surf.
A hot saltwater pool sits in the rocks at the beach’s southern end, and a surf lifesaving club has watched this shore for more than a century. People come here to swim, walk and eat, and many locals want the ocean at the end of the street.
Official Suburb Facts
- Population (2023 Census)
- About 3,260, down 1% since 2018
- Land area
- 2.31 km²
- Location
- 3.9 km south of central Dunedin
- Council
- Dunedin City Council
- Neighbouring suburbs
- Corstorphine, Saint Kilda, Kew, South Dunedin, Forbury Corner, Lawyers Head
- Getting there
- Forbury Road is the main approach from the city. Bedford Street links the flat to the hill, and Victoria Road runs along the back of the dunes. Orbus Route 8 runs between the St Clair Terminus, the city centre and Normanby.
- Main shopping
- A small local shopping area near the junction of Allandale Road and Forbury Road. Cafes and restaurants line the Esplanade.
- Schools
- St Clair School, a state contributing primary school on Richardson Street (years 1 to 6).
- Nearby landmarks
- St Clair Beach and the Esplanade; St Clair Hot Salt Water Pool; Forbury Hill and St Clair Golf Course; ruins of Cargill’s Castle.
Who Lives in Saint Clair
About 3,260 residents in 1,300 households. From the 2023 Census, with the New Zealand figure alongside for comparison.
In Saint Clair
Places and businesses inside the official Saint Clair boundary.
Places
About Saint Clair
St Clair is a residential coastal suburb, not an industrial strip. The ground is in two parts. One is the low plain behind the sea wall and the dunes. The other is the flank of Forbury Hill, whose summit lies inside St Clair Golf Course.
A small stream comes off the hill and is culverted before it reaches the sea at the western end of the beach. Bedford Street follows that valley for much of its length.
Whakahekerau is the traditional name mana whenua tūpuna gave to the St Clair area. The Dunedin City Council coastal plan, prepared with Te Rūnanga o Ōtākou, records that little is known of the name’s origin, and that it was also the name of the wife of the Kāti Māmoe chief Tūwiriroa.
The plan describes lagoons in the wider coastal strip that were used as a route, and whānau travelling the beach and over the hill toward the Taieri, gathering kai on the way. Artefacts have been found near the western end of the esplanade and in the dunes.
Early European settlement was led by William Henry Valpy, who arrived in 1849 and set up a farm he named The Forbury, after Forbury Gardens in Reading, England. Farming and horticulture came first. Market gardens were established by draining swampy ground nearer the coast, and a quarry on the inland cliff west of Forbury Road supplied a brickworks.
Chinese settlers were notable among early residents and did much of that drainage and gardening. From the early 1900s the suburb became mainly residential, and many of the city’s wealthier families built here. Houses by Francis Petre survive on Cliffs Road.
The beach is still the reason most visitors come. The esplanade, sea wall and a line of cafes and restaurants make this the social edge of southern Dunedin. Living on the flat means living with the coast: storms erode the dunes, and an old landfill sits behind them.
Dunedin City Council adopted the St Clair to St Kilda Coastal Plan, Whakahekerau-Rakiātea Rautaki Tai, in 2022, with Te Rūnanga o Ōtākou, to guide how this shore is managed as coastal hazards and climate change take effect. That plan sits inside the wider South Dunedin Future programme, run with Otago Regional Council. The hill streets are a different prospect from the streets behind the dunes.
Getting Around
Forbury Road is the main way in from the city. Bedford Street climbs from the beach end toward the hill, and Victoria Road runs along the landward side of the dunes. The Esplanade is a one-way street behind the sea wall, with a pedestrian walkway on the ocean side. Steps and ramps lead down to the sand.
Orbus Route 8 links the St Clair Terminus with the city centre and Normanby. On weekdays it runs about every 15 minutes through the day, then about every 30 minutes into the evening. Weekend services are less frequent. Timetables change, so check Orbus before you travel.
Parking on parts of the Esplanade, Forbury Road and Second Beach Road is free, but many spaces now have time limits, from five minutes to four hours. The council brought the limits in so short-stay parks would turn over for visitors and local businesses.
The council carpark overlooking the Esplanade and the ocean has no time restriction. A small number of parks can be set aside for mobile traders at busy times. Read the signs: the limit is not the same on every space.
Getting Outdoors
The standout outdoor places are the beach, the saltwater pool and Forbury Hill. St Clair Beach is the sandy western end of Ocean Beach, used for swimming, surfing and walking, and it regularly hosts surf events.
St Clair Surf Life Saving Club, established in 1911, is based here. Conditions can be rough. Swim between the flags when a patrol is operating, and stay out of the water if you are unsure.
The St Clair Hot Salt Water Pool, on the Esplanade, is an outdoor pool in the rocks at the southern end of the beach.
Dunedin City Council describes it as the only surviving saltwater pool of several built in the city in the late 1800s. It is heated to 28 degrees Celsius, with a 25 metre pool, a toddlers’ pool, a disabled changing area and a cafe.
Access to the pool is by stairs, so it is not a step-free route to the water. It is a seasonal pool, open through the warmer months. Check the council page for dates and hours.
Above the houses, St Clair Golf Course occupies the top of Forbury Hill. Southwest of the main beach, Second Beach is a smaller rocky cove under basalt cliffs, including hexagonal columns.
A short walking track runs behind it from the pool toward the headland, through former quarry land. Storms have damaged that track in recent years, so check whether it is open before you set out. Seals and sea lions are sometimes seen along this shore. Keep your distance.
History and Heritage
The coast was a travelling route long before the suburb existed. A pre-European track ran along the dunes and over Forbury Hill toward the country to the south.
European farms and gardens, then a quarry and brickworks, gave way to streets of houses in the early twentieth century. Noted early residents included the Petre, Cargill, Sidey and McIndoe families. Sir Archibald McIndoe, later a pioneer of plastic surgery, was one of them.
Cargill’s Castle, a former stately home built for Edward Cargill in 1877, stands in ruins near the hill. The cliffs above Second Beach held a coastal defence battery from the 1880s until the end of the First World War.
Nothing of the battery remains, and the site was later subdivided for houses. A large pavilion on the esplanade, opened in 1912, burned down in 1915. The saltwater pool and the surf club are the institutions that lasted.
St Clair School, on Richardson Street, is the suburb’s state primary school. It was established in 1896 and takes pupils from years 1 to 6. The upper part of the suburb, sometimes called St Clair Park, is known for older houses on the slopes, with the golf course along the summit. Industry in the suburb today is negligible.
Near Saint Clair
Just outside Saint Clair, within 5 km of its centre, nearest first.
Places
Businesses
Where to Learn More
Dunedin City Council: St Clair Hot Salt Water Pool: Season dates, hours, pool details and admission for the Esplanade saltwater pool.
Dunedin City Council: St Clair to St Kilda Coastal Plan: The adopted plan for managing this coast, including the Whakahekerau cultural context from Te Rūnanga o Ōtākou.
Orbus: Route 8, St Clair to Normanby: The timetable and map for the bus between the St Clair Terminus and the city.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Saint Clair the same place as St Clair?
Yes. Saint Clair is the official name. In signs, timetables and everyday speech it is St Clair.
How do I get to Saint Clair by bus?
Orbus Route 8 runs between the St Clair Terminus, the city centre and Normanby, with frequent daytime services on weekdays. Forbury Road is the main road in if you are driving.
Is the saltwater pool open all year?
No. It is a seasonal outdoor pool, open through the warmer months, and it is heated to 28 degrees Celsius. A cafe operates at the facility. Check the Dunedin City Council pool page for dates and hours, because the season is fixed each year.
Can I swim in the sea at St Clair?
The beach is a popular place to swim and surf, and St Clair Surf Life Saving Club patrols it. The Pacific here can be rough. Swim between the flags when lifeguards are on duty, and do not go in if you are unsure of the conditions.
Where do people shop and eat?
Day-to-day shops cluster near Allandale Road and Forbury Road. The Esplanade is the strip for cafes and restaurants looking over the beach.
Which school is in Saint Clair?
St Clair School is a state contributing primary on Richardson Street, for years 1 to 6. It was established in 1896.
What is the Māori name for this area?
Mana whenua know the St Clair area as Whakahekerau. The coastal plan for this shore was prepared with Te Rūnanga o Ōtākou.
Is parking at the Esplanade free?
Council parks here are free of charge, but many spaces on the Esplanade, Forbury Road and Second Beach Road have time limits. The council carpark overlooking the Esplanade is unrestricted. Always read the signs.
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Explore Dunedin only lists suburbs officially recognised by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), and Saint Clair is one of them. Suburb boundary: LINZ, CC BY 4.0.