Pokies in Waitaki: Venues and Gaming Machines
At the end of June 2026, 11 venues in Waitaki held licences for 107 gaming machines (pokies), according to the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA). A year earlier the district had 11 venues and 108 machines, the same number of venues. Below is every licensed pokie venue in Waitaki, with its address, venue type and number of machines, followed by what players lost on those machines.
Pokie venues in Waitaki
| Venue and address | Type | Machines |
|---|---|---|
| Kurow Hotel 55 Bledisloe Street, Kurow 9435 | Hotel | 3 |
| Waitaki Hotel 37 Bledisloe Street, Kurow 9435 | Hotel | 6 |
| Northstar Motels Restaurant and Bar 495A Thames Street, Oamaru, Oamaru 9400 | Hotel | 16 |
| Oamaru Club 32 Severn Street, Oamaru 9400 | Commercial Club | 18 |
| Sports Central Brewhouse Corner Wear and Thames Streets, Oamaru, Oamaru 9400 | Hotel | 14 |
| The Last Post 12 Thames Street, Oamaru, Oamaru 9400 | Restaurant | 6 |
| The Phoenix Complex 500 Thames Highway, Oamaru North, Oamaru 9400 | Restaurant | 18 |
| Boots & Jandals Hotel 1 Chain Hills Highway, Omarama 9412 | Hotel | 5 |
| Otematata District Club 8 Tasman Road, Otematata 9412 | Commercial Club | 7 |
| Otematata Eatery, Bar & Lodging 2736 Otematata-Kurow Road, Otematata 9412 | Hotel | 6 |
| Waihemo Lodge Hotel 13 Runbrake Street, Palmerston 9430 | Hotel | 8 |
Venues by suburb or town: Oamaru (4), Kurow (2), Otematata (2), Omarama (1), Oamaru North (1), Palmerston (1). 2 of the 11 venues run the maximum of 18 machines. 2 of the 11 venues are clubs (RSA, sports, cosmopolitan or similar); the rest are pubs, hotels, TAB venues and other commercial premises. The Gambling Act 2003 caps a pub or club at 18 machines, and venues first licensed after 17 October 2001 at 9 unless the Minister approved more.
How much players lose on pokies in Waitaki
Players in Waitaki lost $1.1 million on pub and club pokies in the April-June 2026 quarter, up 4.2% on $1.0 million in April-June 2025. Over the four quarters to June 2026 the total was $4.2 million (up 4.4% on the previous four quarters). Across New Zealand the figure for the same quarter was $267.1 million, so Waitaki accounted for 0.4% of national pokie losses outside casinos.
| Quarter | Gaming machine profits |
|---|---|
| Jul-Sep 2024 | $964,943 |
| Oct-Dec 2024 | $1.0 million |
| Jan-Mar 2025 | $984,062 |
| Apr-Jun 2025 | $1.0 million |
| Jul-Sep 2025 | $1.0 million |
| Oct-Dec 2025 | $1.1 million |
| Jan-Mar 2026 | $1.0 million |
| Apr-Jun 2026 | $1.1 million |
Who runs the machines and where the money goes
Pokies in pubs and clubs are class 4 gambling. Only a corporate society, such as a community trust or a club, can hold the licence, and the profit after tax and costs must go to authorised purposes such as community grants. In Waitaki the main licence holders are Trust Aoraki Limited (2), The Lion Foundation 2008 (2), Pub Charity Limited (2).
Looking for somewhere to bet on racing or sport? Our TAB Waitaki list has every TAB store, pub TAB and club TAB in the district.
More pokie venues in Otago
Dunedin (24) · Queenstown Lakes (4) · Central Otago (9) · Clutha (8) · All of New Zealand
Before you play
If gambling is costing more than you planned, the Gambling Helpline is free and open 24/7 on 0800 654 655 or by free text to 8006. Under section 310 of the Gambling Act 2003 a venue manager must, when you ask, issue an exclusion order that bars you from the gambling area of that venue for up to 2 years. More options are on our gambling help page.
Prefer to play from home? Our online pokies guide explains how online pokies differ from pub machines, and our gambling law page covers what is legal in New Zealand.
Source: Department of Internal Affairs, Quarterly List of Venues and Gaming Machines (June 2026) and Class 4 Gambling Expenditure by Quarter and District, published on data.govt.nz. Gaming machine profits (GMP) are the amounts players put into the machines minus the prizes paid out, before tax and grants. Opening hours are not part of the DIA data; check with the venue.