QUEENSTOWN

Queenstown isn’t just about the
gorgeous scenery. All sorts of people
come to take advantage of everything
that this small, but perfectly formed
city has to offer. Gap year students raft
down rapids and brave bungee jumps,
wine-lovers tour the vineyards and
families sunbathe and play along the
sandy strip.

PARTY people

One of the most amazing things about Queenstown is that it’s
as lively and buzzy in the winter as it is in the summer. Every year
around 45,000 people descend on the city ready to celebrate
the Winter Festival. There are fireworks, street parties, ice-
skating, races down the mountain and concerts. In summer, the
place throbs to the beat of countless music festivals held along
the beaches, in the woodland and in Queenstown’s parks.

YUM YUM

Forget McDonalds and Ben & Jerry’s – local kids are
more likely to head out for a Fergburger and some hokey
pokey ice cream! Fergburger is a crazily named eaterie
that started out as a hole-in-the-wall. Since then its
burgers, including the Little Lamby and Mr Big Stuff, have
made it a Queenstown legend. As for hokey pokey – it’s
the city’s second most popular ice cream flavour after
vanilla. Every scoop is full of crumbly honeycomb and
toffee. Scrumptious!

MY, MY, MAORI

Maori culture is woven into
modern life in Queenstown. Maori
art and designs such as tiki pendants
appear in galleries, studios and weekly
craft markets. The traditions of the Maori are
also celebrated daily in song and dance at the Kiwi
Haka, a theatre overlooking the city.

BUNGEE, GLIDE
OR ZIPLINE?

Bungee may not have been invented in Queenstown, but this
is where it first became famous. The Kawarau Bridge is now
one of the best-known bungee spots in the world, and at 134m
(439ft), the Nevis Highwire is the highest. Of course, if hurtling
towards the ground is not your thing, there’s always soaring like
a bird over Queenstown on a tandem paraglider, whitewater
rafting on the Shotover River, or rushing through the air on
a zipline. Eager riders whoosh along wires suspended high
above the trees, spinning and turning as they go.

Treasures Below

Queenstown didn’t have to
wait for 20th century adventure
tourism to arrive in order to swell
its numbers. For centuries, the
Maori people have come to the
city in search of jade. They know
the mysterious green stone as
pounamu . It is highly prized,
especially when carved into
intricate pieces that are passed
down through the generations.
In the 1860s the Otago Gold
Rush also brought tens of
thousands of prospectors to
Queensland, hoping to plunder
the glistening treasures hidden
below Skippers Canyon.

A Real
Tourist Town

It’s not surprising that Queenstown, with its
incredible natural beauty and all those opportunities
for adventure, should attract a few visitors. What is
staggering is the sheer number that flock to the city, compared
to those who live there. Every year the 28,000 inhabitants are
joined by as many as 1.8 million tourists. That’s 64 out-of-towners for
every person that permanently lives in Queenstown!