Winter - What to do in Queenstown

The Milford Cruise

We boarded the “Spirit of Milford”, our vessel for the next 2 hours and 15 minutes for an Encounter Nature Cruise. The guide on our boat provided us with an informative commentary and had many stories to tell about the local wildlife – we soon encountered our first species for the day.

A few little blue penguins that quickly disappeared when the boat came too close. Milford Sound is famous for it’s many waterfalls and sure enough – we went up close to them and a few people got quite wet feet. We cruised along the full length of the Sound (which technically is a Fjord and not a Sound because it was carved out by glaciers a long long while ago) before heading out to the Tasman Sea  because our guide Jaime had discovered a very rare species the other day and wanted to show us.

Yay we saw the famous Fiordland Crested Penguins.  On our way back through the Sound we were joined by a pod of dolphins, that enjoyed surfing the bow wave of our vessel and even gave a good show by jumping around.

Antony welcomed us back at the Harbour and we made our way back to the airport with a short walk and the chance to take a few more pictures of stunning Mitre Peak. The 30 minute flight back to Queenstown went as smoothly as the first flight and I got promoted to be the co-pilot so had an even better view than before – which was even better when we had to run a few extra loops over Lake Wakatipu due to the airport being busy. 

Skiing - Cardrona & Coronet Peak

Ready to hit the slopes? Take a look at our self drive snow tours and strap on the skiis.

Having collected my hire ski gear te evening before, I was up early to catch my bus to Cardrona Skifield for my first ski experience here in New Zealand. I have hit a few of the Austrian skifields before but I would not describe myself as an advanced skier so I decided to start gently with a group lesson to refresh my skills. Upon arrival at the skifield we were sorted into skill groups and before I could even think about it we were on our way in the lift.  The first lift ride ended with a proper landing in the snow – including laughter and having learnt that ski lifts over here work different than the Austrian ones…

Coronet Peak

The views from the top were stunning and after a few little exercises we went down the first slope of the day – a very scenic ride aptly named Skyline. We continued our skiing on a few more beginner slopes before enjoying the winter sunshine during our well deserved lunch break.

The skifield offers several picnic tables in and outside and it was not a problem to find a seat, even during peak lunch time. The afternoon continued with several more runs down the slopes before heading back to Queenstown. 

The narrow and windy road down the mountain was mastered by our bus driver and lots of people took the free car park shuttle service that is on offer. A little bit later than the day before I caught my bus to the next skifield – Coronet Peak. Here again the drive up the mountain was very narrow but fully sealed so our bus driver went up in no time.  The skifield in Coronet Peak greets you with two black slopes – making quite an impression if you are more of a beginner / intermediate skier like me. After a thorough look at the trail map I found the more suitable slopes for me and enjoyed once more a few scenic rides down the hill.

Central Otago Wine Tour

My last day in Queenstown was spent on a wine tour – first stop - Gibbston Valley Winery, where we enjoyed a guided tour through their cave including a tasting of 4 of their famous Pinots. Of course we did not miss out tasting a few of the artisan local cheeses from the adjoining creamery.

A scenic drive brought us then all the way to Cromwell to Amber Wines, a certified organic winery where we had the chance to taste another few of their famous wines. We took our lunch break at the Wooing Tree Winery – starting off with some European style bread with pesto and hummus and some home smoked salmon before being spoilt with our main – duck confit with ricotta raviolio – yum. Of course everything paired to matching wines.

On our way back the final stop was at Akarua (Aka=wine, Rua= two) where we enjoyed some nice afternoon sun before being safely transported back to Queenstown.

Unfortunately this also marked the end of my winter trip to Queenstown – but I can say Queenstown is worth a visit year round and offers some nice activities not only for skiers during the winter time.

Queenstown comes alive during the winter months -  by the time your trip ends, you'll already be planning your next visit.

Ready to Plan Your winter trip to Queenstown? See our winter self drive itineraries here