Portobello is a village beside the Otago Harbour

Otago Harbour

Otago Harbour is the natural harbour of Dunedin, New Zealand, consisting of a long, much-indented stretch of generally navigable water separating the Otago Peninsula from the mainland. They join at its southwest end, from the harbour mouth...

 halfway along the Otago Peninsula

Otago Peninsula

The Otago Peninsula is a long, hilly indented finger of land that forms the easternmost part of Dunedin, New Zealand. Volcanic in origin, it forms one wall of the eroded valley that now forms Otago Harbour. The peninsula lies south-east of Otago Harbour and runs parallel to the mainland for...

 in Dunedin City, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. It lies at the foot of a small peninsula (Portobello Peninsula) between Portobello Bay and Latham Bay.

Like scores of Dunedin features, it was named after a locality, Portobello

Portobello, Edinburgh

Portobello is a beach resort located three miles to the east of the city centre of Edinburgh, along the coast of the Firth of Forth, in Scotland. It is now a suburb of Edinburgh, with a promenade fronting on to the wide sand beach....

, in Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

 Scotland

Scotland

Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

.

At the end of Portobello Peninsula sits a marine research station, the Portobello Marine Laboratory

Portobello Marine Laboratory

The Portobello Marine Laboratory is located on the end of a short peninsula close to the township of Portobello, within the limits of the city of Dunedin in New Zealand's South Island...

, which is part of the University of Otago

University of Otago

The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...

. Close to the end of this peninsula lies Saint Martin's/Quarantine Island.

Portobello features a Historical Society Museum, the 1908 Restaurant, a local primary school (Portobello School Dunedin NZ, Years 1-8), the old Portobello Hotel (a pub) and several accommodation providers, including a camping ground, bed and breakfasts and motels. A local dairy

Milk bar

Milk bar is a term in some parts of Australia for suburban local shops or general stores. They are known as tuck shops, delicatessens or delis in South Australia and Western Australia, and as corner stores in Queensland and New South Wales...

acts as the community's grocers, though most of the village's retail needs are served by Dunedin, which is easily accessed via the winding but well-surfaced Portobello Road which runs along the edge of the harbour. A more convoluted but scenic route, Highcliff Road, connects Portobello with Dunedin city centre via the ridge of the peninsula.

Boating is an historical focus for Portobello. The Boating Club owns the remnants of the ferry jetty (http://jetty.portobello.net.nz) and a slipway a short distance from the centre of the village. In the past, Portobello residents caught the ferry to the city, before the Portobello Road along the foreshore was constructed.

Portobello Community Inc. (http://community.portobello.net.nz) is the local community group, which works to improve Portobello for its community.