The 172ha Natures Wonders property at Taiaroa Head may be for sale on the international market, but owner Perry Reid says he will sell only to the "right people''.
The tourism and farming operation was yesterday listed for tender with New Zealand Sotheby's International Realty.
Mr Reid, who bought the property in 2001, said it was time for someone "with more resources and a budget behind them'' to continue the tourism and farming operation.
Other than that, Mr Reid would not say why he was selling the property, and would not give numbers of tourists who visited annually.
He did not have an opinion on whether a local or overseas buyer would be better; rather, he wanted "someone who will look after the place and keep it''.
He would accept only "the right people'' and the property would not be sold otherwise.
The tourism venture on the property he runs with family members allows visitors to see native wildlife, including penguins and seals, and visit a working farm.
Mr Reid said that since taking over the farm, he and his family had self-funded predator-proof fencing, planted thousands of native trees and undertaken trapping programmes to make the property predator-free.
The headland property was part of the historic Fort Taiaroa and home to observation posts and gun placements, the remnants of which still existed.
It would be "heartbreaking'' to leave the property.
The land also contains an area under a Department of Conservation covenant where muttonbirds nest.
Doc conservation services manager David Agnew said an enduring covenant had been put in place by a previous owner.
It was on a paddock covered in marram grass and the birds nested there, protected under the Conservation Act.
There were other nesting sites in Otago but the Taiaroa Head site was significant, as it was one of the largest on the mainland.
Sotheby's sales associate Matt Finnigan, of Queenstown, said the company would run a marketing campaign until tenders closed on April 15.
All prominent properties were marketed offshore through the Sotheby's network, which included 700 offices internationally.
