Queenstown: The Adventure Capital of NZ

There’s no question about it: Queenstown is the adventure capital of New Zealand. Home to a number of adrenaline inducing activities such as skydiving, bungee jumping, mountain biking, and skiing & snowboarding, Queenstown hosted nearly 4 million visitors in 2019 – which is 80% of the whole country’s population. It might not be record-breaking in 2020 with the current pandemic, but Queenstown is centrally located on the South Island so that even the locals love it as a central hub for mountain sports and exploring the surrounding natural landscapes. Situated just a couple hours or less either side you have Milford Sound, Mount Cook, the rugged West Coast and Cromwell’s summer fruit orchards.

In the summertime, Queenstown is stunning with the Remarkables towering over a vividly blue Lake Wakatipu and the bustling town. It’s truly remarkable. While I can’t say much about the winter, I do have an idea as to how amazing the scenery and the skiing would be, along with being a great town for connecting with other avid snow enthusiasts.

With just a couple days to explore the town, we did a couple of hikes in and around the area. The popular and (not very) originally named, Queenstown Hlll Walking Track, is a breathtaking walk (quite literally) ascending up the hill, through forest, and along a mountain-top track. This is where you can see what Queenstown looks like from above without having to take a gondola or a scenic flight. It’s a bit of trek with an incline of 600m but it’s worth it – no ski town is without its hills! From the top, you have panoramic views of Lake Wakitipu and the surrounding mountains.

After we did the Queenstown Hill Walk, we were famished and thought we’d go to the world renowned Ferg Burger. Ferg Burger is famous for its creatively designed and high quality burgers. On any given day, the place is heaving with tourists. However, if you time it right to go at off-peak meal times, you can be in and out in no time.

My take: While it’s widely praised as one of the best burger joints in the world, I felt that it was simply a good burger. 

Worth a try? Definitely. 

Worth waiting a long time in a queue of over a hundred people? Nah.

I’ve had equally delicious, if not more, at low-key places such as Ekim in Wellington and Burger Geek in Auckland. If anything, it just goes to show how location and tourist hype can take a business’s success to the next level.

Turning back to hiking – because we needed to offset the 5 pounds we just packed on – we drove 20 minutes out of Queenstown to do the Bob’s Cove Walk. This track takes you alongside Lake Wakitipu, winding through forest, occasionally opening up to scenic views of the turquoise blue lake and surrounding mountains. The most stunning views can be seen from picnic point loop, where two adjacent lakes coincide with a stretch of forest and beach extending down the middle against a backdrop of mountains rising above the horizon.

That sentence might have sounded confusing but this is what I mean!

If you wanted to see just how beautiful and reflective the water can be, there is a jetty where you can just sit and appreciate your surroundings.

Featuring the Missus.

I sat there for awhile just looking at my reflection (narcissistic, much?) as big white, fluffy clouds floated above my head and the occasional raindrops pitter-pattered on the water’s surface. It was mesmerizing.

If you’re feeling like another walk, Moke Lake Track is also only just a short drive from Queenstown. It’s very similar to the other walks in that it’s welcomed by mountainous views and a beautiful lake. However, this one feels much more rustic and rugged to explore, with the local sheep population and horse stables to boot. The option of camping here offers up a certain attractiveness to it. And absent from light pollution, I can only imagine how beautiful the starry night sky would be.

A visit to the Queenstown area isn’t complete without a visit to Wanaka, it’s neighbouring town. I like to think of it as Queenstown’s youger sister, less developed and less people but more serenity! On our way to Wanaka, we visited Cardrona for a horse ride with Backcountry Saddles. It was a nice 2-hours on horseback and because my horse was content to take the ride at his own pace, with the occasional nibble on my toes, I got to sneak in an extra 15 minutes from the rest of the group.

Nearly falling off and getting my foot stuck in the horse’s mouth had nothing to do with it… The Cardrona valley was incredible – with the sweeping views, stunning valleys and winding trails to explore, I truly felt like I was in a Western.

The main draw of Wanaka, however, is the Roy’s Peak hike (which I did not do) and the Wanaka Tree. It’s also known as #ThatWanakaTree on google maps because it’s not legit unless it’s hashtagged the heck out of. This tree is famous because it’s a lone willow tree growing in a lake.

I still don’t understand the draw of it, but then again, I don’t understand much of the reasons people are social media famous either. On the day we went, people were hovering along the shoreline to get photos of the tree and it’s mountain-meets-sky background.

Roy’s Peak is a main draw for tourists because of its views of Wanaka, the mountain ranges, and lakes, especially at sunrise. The parking lot is often filled to the brim early with tourists queueing up to take photos from the famous peak. If you’re not feeling as adventurous, I can recommend Rocky Mountain Summit Track which offers up views of Lake Wanaka and Roy’s Peak itself. Seeing the kind of terrain people had to endure to get to the top, I didn’t feel too bad about not doing it, but I have lots of respect for their efforts! The Rocky Mountain summit track was enough for me and quite honestly, I can’t imagine any view that would rival it.

For a more low-key hike, Mt Iron can give you a panoramic view of Wanaka’s town centre and Lake Hawea. It’s quite pretty but very subtle compared to the previous hikes we did.

All in all, Queenstown and Wanaka – I understand why they’re so loved by locals and visitors alike. Queenstown has everything for everyone and Wanaka is a great option to get away from the crowds. I can see why this adventure capital is ALWAYS on every traveler’s New Zealand itinerary. It’s too good to miss!