There’s a Maori proverb; He aha te mea nui o te ao. He tangata, he tangata, he tangata
What is the most important thing in the world? It is the people, it is the people, it is the people.
So when the good people from Destination Queenstown invited me to lunch, in Melbourne, I jumped at the opportunity for face to face meetings! They came to remind the Melbourne Travel Industry they’re open and looking forward to our clients visits! Here’re a few snippets from the day that you might choose to include when we organise your visit to Queenstown.
Image credit Destination Queenstown
Every visit to Queenstown should include a local wine, craft beer or gin tasting – maybe all three. This region is famous for producing some of New Zealand’s best Pinot Noir. For some local knowledge, and maybe meet the maker, join a half or full day tour. A self guided tour on the hop on hop off wine drop tour allows you to sample at your own pace, no designated driver required. A private or custom tour enables you to take the kids along, can cater for multiple families, groups, or conferences.
I think my favourite way to ensure a wide selection of Queenstown’s wine & food scene, with a local, is to join a Progressive Dinner Tour. There are a few to choose from but imagine entrée and wine tasting overlooking the vines at the award winning Amisfield Winery or at a little piece of Italy in Arrowtown at Aosta . Maybe dessert at the iconic Eichardts beside the lake?
Maybe you’d prefer a vineyard stay or wine tour by bike? Learn about the Central Otago wine region here
Image credit Air Milford
The Queenstown region is mountains, glaciers and fiords, best seen from the air. You’ll get a glimpse of the beauty if you fly into Queenstown, especially if Coronet Peak’s open and the sky’s blue! Or, see it all in a day with a fixed wing / helicopter combination (minimum 2 people). Taking off from Queenstown in a small aircraft, over the Southern Alps into Mt Aspiring National Park to view New Zealand’s highest mountain, Aoraki/Mt Cook, (one of 16 peaks in the Southern Alps over 3000 metres). Switch to a helicopter for a glacier landing then back in the fixed wing down the spectacular West Coast into Milford Sound.
Image credit Shotover Canyon Swing
Queenstown is the home of adventure, it goes without saying that your Queenstown holiday will include an adrenalin rush of some sort! It all happens here; skydiving, jetboating, ziplining, canyon swinging, paragliding, four wheel driving, bungy jumping, rafting, you can do it in Queenstown. Inspo for your Queenstown adventure here
Image credit Destination Queenstown
Queenstown’s got it all. See Kiwi and native birds in the middle of town at the Kiwi Birdlife Park , join a 4WD ATV to explore Central Otago’s history on The Old Gold Trail or a take a drive to the picturesque village of Glenorchy at the head of Lake Wakatipu. The 3km Queenstown Gardens Trail (that’s the pond in the gardens above) starts in town, on the lake shore, and is wheelchair and pushchair friendly. It’s open year round then once a year is lights up to host the Luma Festival . There are 140kms of hiking and biking trails in the Queenstown area, explore on a bike or on foot, guided or self guided.
Image Credit Fiordland Discovery
With so many lakes, fiords and rivers, there’s a myriad of options for a water based activity. From white water rafting, kayaking, river boarding, the hydro attack Shark ride , jetboating, stand up paddle boarding and aqua bikes to relaxing on board the TSS Earnslaw cruising across Lake Wakatipu for lunch at Walter Peak Station.
It was great to catch up with the good people from Fiordland Discovery, their enthusiasm for the Fiordland region is contagious. Fiordland Jewel is a purpose build catamaran, with just 9 cabins. There’s a top deck hot tub to relax in and soak up the scenery, a heli pad for easy access to the even remoter regions you cruise through and a ‘remote underwater vehicle’ that feeds live underwater footage to the comfort of the lounge.
I’m looking forward to joining Fiordland Discovery when they return to Melbourne for a consumer information night later in 2021. Register your interest to join us here
Image credit Imperium Luxury Collection
From cosy guesthouses to luxury lodges, Queenstown has a huge range of accommodation to suit all budgets.
The image above is one of 4 apartments, part of the iconic, luxury Eichardts Private Hotel, located just metres from the Lake Wakatipu foreshore. These apartments have interconnecting options which make them perfect for larger groups of travellers.
Holiday Inn Express & Suites is the first new build Hotel in Queenstown in 20 years and it’s right in the middle of town. There’s so much to love about this property; it’s a 5 minute walk from the centre of everything, breakfast’s included AND there’s a fire pit for serious marshmallow toasting.
A lakeview room at the Novotel, beside the lake, is hard to beat for accessibility to everything Queenstown has to offer!
Vancouver & Canada Specialist
New Zealand Gold Specialist Consultant
Japan Specialist with Japan National Tourism Organisation
Peace of mind
