Where to stay in Queenstown

See

The spectacular mountain scenery and Lake Wakatipu dominate the view from most parts of town. Most attractions in Queenstown make the most of the view and it's enough reason to spend time in Queenstown even if you choose not to do anything else. After that though, there are not a lot of things to 'See'. It's in the 'Do' category below where Queenstown really excels.

• Skyline Gondola
• Queenstown Gardens
• Kiwi Park Queenstown
• Queenstown Arts Centre
• Ivan Clarke Gallery

Do

Getting out there and 'doing' is really what Queenstown is all about. Skiing was the first drawcard, but now it shares the limelight with a multitude of ways to test your bravery. If you can think of a way to get adrenaline pumping, Queenstown's budding entrepreneurs have probably tried at some stage to make a tourist attraction out of it. Bring a lot of money. It's easy to get swept up in the excitement, and ring up thousands of dollars of exciting activities quickly. A bungy jump, for example, can cost $200 or more, skydiving $300, jet boating $100, and so on (Mar 2019). And don't forget about the upgrades: a higher jumping-off point, photo and video packages, and more jumps.

• Kawarau Bridge Bungy
• The Ledge Bungy
• Nevis Bungy
• Nevis Catapult
• Shotover Jet
• Luge
• Mad Dog Riverboarding
• NZONE Skydive
• Cruise on the TSS Earnslaw
• Cycling
• Off the Rails
• Horseback riding

Eat

There are a huge variety of numerous eating establishments to be found in Queenstown, from all-hours takeaways to fine dining. Reservations for dinner are important at the best places most times of the year, and most nights of the week. Due to the large number of restaurants, Queenstown is a culinary hub for New Zealand, and you will find regional produce such as pinot noir wine and Canterbury lamb on display in many of the restaurants. Fine restaurants also serve world-class seafood (local mussels, oysters and deep sea fish such as blue cod), game and red meat (farmed venison and beef).

Drink

Nightlife in Queenstown is largely about drinking and there are over a hundred licensed premises, most in the downtown area. It's hard to walk down one of the central streets without tripping over a bar or three. Most bars stay open till around 4AM and it is lively most nights. There are cheap bars popular with backpackers and young locals, and sophisticated and expensive wine, cocktail and imported beer bars. Many bars and pubs have sunny outdoor courtyards in the summer months, and roaring open fires in the winter. Major sports events are normally to be found on screen somewhere in Queenstown. There are two small casinos.

Stay safe

Queenstown is a relatively safe town. The most common offence committed against tourists in the Queenstown area are car break-ins. Although limited in number, the police in the Queenstown area are intolerant of disorderly behaviour and are prepared to arrest for quite minor offences. As with anywhere in New Zealand, they have no tolerance for possession of drugs. Other emergency services in the area operate on a volunteer basis. Occasionally you may hear what sounds like a World War II air raid siren go off in Queenstown.