Let me be honest with you upfront. When people think of Queenstown, they think of young people throwing themselves off bridges and hurtling down rivers in jet boats. They think of bungee jumping and heli-skiing and the particular kind of energy that comes when a town has decided to dedicate itself entirely to organised mayhem.
That Queenstown is real. It is also not the only one.
There is another Queenstown – quieter, more beautiful, more interested in what is on the plate and in the glass than in the height of the next jump – and it has been growing steadily for years while the adventure industry took all the attention. This is the Queenstown of floating saunas on Lake Wakatipu at dusk, of 155-year-old taverns warmed by open fires, of a 1912 steamship that still crosses the lake to a barbecue feast at a working high country farm. It is a Queenstown that suits us very well indeed.
Late spring — October to November — or early autumn — March to April — provide the most pleasant conditions for travellers in our demographic, with temperatures hovering around 20 degrees in Queenstown, ideal for wine tasting and scenic drives, with tourist numbers lower than peak season. But I want to make the case for winter too — because Queenstown in winter, when the Remarkables are draped in snow and the cold air comes off the lake and the town feels properly Alpine, is something else entirely.
Winter in Queenstown runs from June through August. Temperatures are usually under 10 degrees during the day and can drop to around minus two at night – but the skies are often clear blue, the mountain views are at their most spectacular, and the town comes alive with a calendar of events that has nothing to do with ski lifts.
Friday afternoon: Take the gondola up. Take your time coming down.
Your first act in Queenstown should be to get above it. The Skyline Gondola at Bob’s Peak is a 400-metre climb above the town, and the view from the top – Lake Wakatipu stretching away below you in its lightning-bolt shape, the Remarkables rising on the far side, the town spread along the waterfront – is one of those views that makes you understand immediately why people keep coming back.
The gondola was significantly upgraded in 2023 with new 10-seater cable cars that are more spacious and offer faster rides. If you are feeling adventurous, take a turn or two on the luge – the gentle, gravity-powered cart run down a banked course – which is more fun than it has any right to be and requires absolutely no athletic ability whatsoever. Then take the gondola back down and let the view do what views here do: reset everything.
Friday evening belongs to the TSS Earnslaw and Walter Peak. The Earnslaw is a 1912 coal-fired steamship – one of the last operating steamships in the Southern Hemisphere – and it still crosses Lake Wakatipu to Walter Peak High Country Farm exactly as it has done for more than a century. The dinner at Walter Peak is a genuinely excellent buffet: green-lipped mussels, five kinds of fish, rotisserie meats, and garden vegetables cooked in a hangi – the traditional Maori underground oven. After dinner, the Border collies demonstrate their mustering skills in a display that is far more impressive than it sounds.
Note: the TSS Earnslaw typically undergoes annual maintenance from mid-May to late June. During this period, the modern Spirit of Queenstown catamaran offers the same cruise and farm experience – not quite as romantic as the old steamer, but the farm dinner and the lake crossing are equally good.
Saturday morning: Arrowtown before the crowd finds it
Twenty minutes from Queenstown by road, Arrowtown is a preserved 1860s gold rush village that looks, on an autumn or winter morning, like a painting someone has come back to touch up every decade or so to keep it perfect. The oak, sycamore and cork elm trees along the Arrow River turn extraordinary colours in autumn – gold and copper and deep burgundy against the clear Otago sky.
Start at Provisions of Arrowtown for breakfast – their sticky buns have a reputation that precedes them – then wander the main street, which has galleries, studio workshops and the Lakes District Museum & Art Gallery, where you can try your hand at gold panning in the Arrow River. It sounds touristy. It is genuinely enjoyable.
If you are visiting in winter, the Ayrburn Estate – a beautifully restored historic property between Arrowtown and Queenstown – runs a Winter Wonderland experience with skating under the southern night sky and strolls under glowing lights with hot chocolate or mulled wine. It is the kind of thing that feels like it belongs in the Alps rather than the Southern Hemisphere, until you look up and see the Remarkables and remember exactly where you are.
The e-bike trail from Arrowtown to Gibbston Valley is one of the most enjoyable cycling experiences in the region – a rolling, mostly flat route through dramatic schist gorge country to the Gibbston Valley wine region, with a winery lunch at the other end and the option to be collected if the return trip feels ambitious. It is more manageable than it sounds on an e-bike, and the scenery makes every pedal stroke worthwhile.
Saturday afternoon: The Onsen Hot Pools and Eichardt’s Bar
You have earned something restorative. The Onsen Hot Pools are a ten-minute drive from central Queenstown, perched above the Shotover Canyon in private outdoor tubs – each one looking out over a valley that drops away into what feels like the bottom of the world.
For two adults, you can expect to pay around $126 NZD for a one-hour soak in either a semi-indoor or outdoor pool. The tubs hold up to four people. In winter, soaking in water this hot while the cold air comes off the mountains is one of those rare experiences that feels actively good for you while you are having it. Book ahead – they are popular year-round and particularly so in the colder months.
Alternatively – or additionally – the new Watershed Saunas, floating on Lake Wakatipu just steps from the town centre, offer a 75-minute session in a glass-walled Finnish sauna with cold-plunge pool access and views across the lake’s undeveloped banks. It opened in December 2024 and has quickly become one of the most talked-about new experiences in town.
The evening belongs to Eichardt’s. Eichardt’s Private Hotel opened in 1861 in an old wool-shearing shed, making it the oldest accommodation in Queenstown, and Eichardt’s Bar inside it is the oldest watering hole in town. It is tiny, stone-walled, warmed by a rustic fireplace, anchored by plush sofas, and entirely the kind of place you settle into and find it difficult to leave. Walk-ins only — no reservations.
Saturday dinner: South Island gastronomy
Queenstown’s restaurant scene has been one of the most pleasant developments of the past decade – it has gone from a competent resort town dining experience to something genuinely world-class, driven by chefs committed to the extraordinary produce of the South Island.
Rātā, which has been the standard-bearer of this movement for nearly 15 years, is the essential reservation: a seasonal menu of South Island’s natural pantry, from potato and burnt butter rösti to sourdough infused with Speight’s beer and roasted white chocolate and miso ice cream made from locally produced sake lees. Book well ahead.
The new Terrace restaurant at the waterfront – with near-invisible glass walls and ceilings that dissolve the boundary between the dining room and the lake – is the most spectacular setting in town. And for something more straightforward, Fergbaker’s meat pies on Marine Parade for a lakeside lunch are a genuinely excellent version of a New Zealand staple.
Sunday: Milford Sound — if you can only do it once in your life
If you have three days in Queenstown and you have not been to Milford Sound – properly called Milford Sound/Piopiotahi – this is your day to fix that.
There are several ways to get there. The fly-cruise-fly option is the premium choice – you fly in over the fiord from above, cruise its length past waterfalls that plunge hundreds of metres into the dark water, then fly back with the full visual context of just how extraordinary this piece of geography is. It is not cheap. It is worth every dollar.
The drive from Queenstown through Te Anau and along the Milford Road – one of the most spectacular roads in the world, through the Homer Tunnel and into the fiord – is a full day’s commitment but rewards handsomely. I recommend spending the night in Te Anau or at the Milford Sound Lodge so you can properly explore the road to Milford Sound without the pressure of the return journey.
Day trips from Queenstown are also available by guided coach, and the Milford Sound/Piopiotahi cruise itself – past Mitre Peak, Stirling Falls and Bowen Falls, with seals and dolphins common sightings – is one of the most powerful natural experiences available in the Southern Hemisphere. Wealth Lab
Queenstown Airport has direct services from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and the Gold Coast with Air New Zealand and Qantas. The South Island’s main cities including Queenstown offer modern medical facilities and hospitals – important reassurance for those who factor healthcare access into travel planning. The town itself is compact enough to navigate on foot for most central activities, with taxis and rideshare readily available for the Onsen or Arrowtown excursions.
Pack layers. Wear comfortable shoes. And if you need help booking anything … contact the team at Travel at 60 who can arrange flights, hotels and activities.