{"id":986,"date":"2019-02-26T15:22:25","date_gmt":"2019-02-26T03:22:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/?p=986"},"modified":"2019-02-27T08:05:17","modified_gmt":"2019-02-26T20:05:17","slug":"recreation-at-otago-unipol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/recreation-at-otago-unipol\/","title":{"rendered":"Recreation at Otago = Unipol."},"content":{"rendered":"

If you’re new to the University of Otago<\/a> you will hear people talking about Unipol<\/a>.\u00a0 No, it’s not some undercover university police operation……Unipol<\/a> is a very weird name…..it is an amalgamation of the university and the polytechnic and it doesn’t give you any idea of what it is all about….. but let’s not worry about the name, I don’t think it will be changing anytime soon, let’s focus on what Unipol<\/a> is all about, because there is a LOT to talk about!<\/em><\/p>\n

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What is Unipol?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Unipol is the University of Otago’s recreation centre.\u00a0 And it is some centre.\u00a0Unipol Recreation Services<\/a> offers a huge choice of recreational activities, including cardio and weights, sports halls, group fitness, outdoor rental, social sport and outdoor adventures.\u00a0 Unipol is all about balancing your studies and keeping a smile on your face.<\/p>\n

Prior to 2011, Unipol was housed in an awesome old art-deco building just a 5-minute walk from campus, but the demand for a bigger, and more up to date facility saw the creation of this amazing building, which is also home to the UOLCFY<\/a> (University of Otago Language Centre and Foundation Year) and right next to New Zealand’s only covered stadium – Forsyth Barr Stadium<\/a>.\u00a0 Our stadium raises the roof by hosting international sporting events, including our famous All Blacks<\/a>, and a range of world class entertainment, including Pink<\/a>, Kendrik Lamar<\/a>, Elton John<\/a> (who loved it so much here he’s coming back on his final tour) and Ed Sheeran<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Who can use Unipol?
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Entry into the Unipol Recreation Services<\/a> is free for University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic students with presentation of their ID card.<\/p>\n

It is also available for use by University of Otago and Otago Polytechnic staff and their wh\u0101nau and friends.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0University approved recreation providers<\/strong><\/p>\n

Get in touch with your inner explorer, venture beyond campus and experience the natural beauty that Dunedin has to offer with a variety of outdoor adventures from local University approved recreation providers. Be sure to use your valid student ID card to get special student discounts!<\/p>\n

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Surfing<\/strong><\/p>\n

This mobile surf school based at The Esplanade, St Clair Beach, offer learn to surf sessions for beginners through to advanced lessons for those wanting to extend their local knowledge. Your wave is waiting!<\/p>\n

Esplanade Surf School<\/a><\/p>\n

Walks<\/strong><\/p>\n

A variety of walking excursions around Dunedin, the peninsula and surrounding coast lines. You will come across plenty of wildlife so bring your camera!<\/p>\n

Untamed NZ Tour Company<\/a><\/p>\n

Dunedin Adventures Ltd<\/a><\/p>\n

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Mountain biking<\/strong><\/p>\n

Love mountain biking? From sandy beaches to native forests Dunedin, and it’s surrounding area, have some amazing tracks to be explored.<\/p>\n

Offtrack MTB Tours<\/a><\/p>\n

Windsurfing\/SUP<\/strong><\/p>\n

Experience the exhilaration and fun of windsurfing and\/or stand up paddle boarding (SUP) on the beautiful Otago Harbour. It’s sure to blow your hair back!<\/p>\n

Watercooled Sports<\/a><\/p>\n

Ice hockey<\/strong><\/p>\n

Learn to play ice hockey, focusing on skating, puck handling, passing and shooting while having loads of fun.<\/p>\n

Dunedin Ice Hockey<\/a><\/p>\n

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Sea kayaking<\/strong><\/p>\n

Picture yourself in a sea kayak cruising amongst Otago’s coastal wildlife while paddling around the beautiful Otago Peninsula. Get ready to see the unexpected.<\/p>\n

Wild Earth Adventures<\/a><\/p>\n

Rock climbing<\/strong><\/p>\n

Take a break from your study with a rock climbing adventure. Choose between an introduction course or advance your skills with some lead climbing!<\/p>\n

Dunedin Adventures Ltd<\/a><\/p>\n

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Unipol staff – they’re a good bunch<\/strong><\/p>\n

This is Dan and Liz, two of the team that take care of all things Unipol and they are good sorts – they are pretty funny, smile a lot and enjoy life.\u00a0 It’s probably because they follow their own advice and know how good exercise makes you feel, and I’m guessing they do a fair bit of it.\u00a0 So take their advice, go into Unipol and see what you can find to put a smile on your dial.<\/p>\n

Thanks to the Unipol website for providing a lot of the information contained in this blog.<\/p>\n

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Nicky Richardson is an International Marketing Coordinator at the University of Otago. With degrees in music and marketing, she is a recent graduate of Otago herself – she loves Otago so much she ended up getting a job here!<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you’re new to the University of Otago you will hear people talking about Unipol.\u00a0 No, it’s not some undercover university police operation……Unipol is a very weird name…..it is an amalgamation of the university and the polytechnic and it doesn’t give you any idea of what it is all about….. but let’s not worry about […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36370,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[70379,8967,70378,62,70388,70397,81,16238,19279,29389,1,66,28098],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-campus-life","category-dunedin","category-exploring","category-new-zealand","category-outdoor-pursuits","category-physical-health","category-recreation","category-staff","category-students","category-surfing","category-uncategorized","category-university-of-otago","category-wellbeing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/36370"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=986"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/986\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.otago.ac.nz\/international\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}