We charge by the piece/tattoo. We have a shop minimum of $160, which is where all pricing starts from. From there, the price can go up depending on the desired style, size, and level of detail of the tattoo. For bigger projects that take at least a full day session or longer, we cap the price at a set day rate for each day session until the piece is completed. The day rate can vary depending on the artist, as each artist has different levels of experience. For cultural styled tattoos (ta moko and Polynesian), we strictly price by the size/amount of area the piece is covering, not by day rates.

We require deposits to secure any appointment at Ōtautahi, whether it is a consultation or a full day session. We require a $80 deposit for consultations, strictly to stop "no-shows". This deposit will carry over to the actual tattoo booking and be taken off the overall cost of the tattoo on the day of the session. For full day sessions, we require an additional $80 to book, so there is $160 deposit all paid up. You will need to give us a 24 hour notice to cancel or rebook your consultation appointment without forfeiting your deposit, and a 48 hour notice to cancel or rebook a actual tattoo session.

We leave it up to each artist if they feel comfortable tattooing anyone under the age of 18. Generally, all of our artists prefer to wait until their clients are 18 before tattooing them, unless the piece is a cultural or memorial piece, then we will consider.

We accept cash, eftpos/debit cards, credit cards, and offer LayBuy.

If it is your first tattoo, we will not tattoo your hands, fingers, neck, or face. If you are already decently covered in tattoos, we will review these requests on a case-by-case basis. Our tattoo artists know that these pieces can be seen as "job-stoppers" down the line for clients, and carry the weight of the clients' decisions on themselves as well. Also these pieces can vary in quality, for example, you unavoidably use your hands everyday. The nature of the skin on your hands and fingers is that is sheds constantly and the skin is much thicker than the rest of your body, making the healing process problematic. Keep in mind, when you get a new piece from one of our artists, you are a walking advertisement for our shop and the artist, so we are hesitant on these areas.

Yes, we do sell gift vouchers. We only offer physical copies of the vouchers, so you will need to stop by the shop to get yours! We can post them to customers who live out of town at the customers expense. Vouchers can be purchased at any value you desire.

We recommend and prefer you to book a consultation with the appropriate artist for the tattoo you are wanting. You can do so by emailing the shop, giving us a ring, or walking in for a chat with a manager at the front desk. Each of our artists specialise in different tattoo styles, so you are more than welcome to request a certain artist but we may recommend a different artist if we feel the tattoo you are wanting is better suited to someone else. At the consultation, you and the artist will chat through the design options and details of the tattoo. You are encouraged to bring reference pictures with you to help show the artist the route you are wanting to take. After the consultation, we will be able to give you a rough estimate on the price of the piece. We won't know the final price until the final stencil is stuck on you at the actual tattoo session, but we will do our best to give a good estimate for you so you are prepared on the day of the tattoo. The manager will then find a day and time that works for both you and the artist to book in to get the tattoo done. The artist will then start to work on your design and have it ready by your booking. For smaller projects, we can do both the consultation and tattoo in the same day, these can also be known as "walk-ins".

We are located upstairs above Ben and Jerry's at Riverside Market, so there are two flights of stairs to get up into our shop and we unfortunately don't have a lift. But we do have plenty of artists here that can help assist/carry anyone up stairs if need be!