As your plane approaches Queenstown in New Zealand, you will realise that you are heading towards a beautiful and exciting place.
Your plane will thread its way through valleys before straightening out over a stretch of sea with imposing mountains on both sides, then glide over the blue sea and bingo – you will be in the prettiest little town that you ever saw.
Queenstown is nestled amidst the dramatic southern Alps (The Remarkables Mountain range) and the deep blue Lake Wakatipu, in the South Island of New Zealand. Whether you stay on a higher floor in a condo in Frankton or a cottage in Fernhill, the views of the mountains, especially at sunset and sunrise, are unbeatable.
Queenstown is a hit with travellers. It is famous for adventure sports – bungee jumping, white water rafting, tandem sky jumps, jet boating – and also has plenty of scenic quiet places to walk, and relax – plenty of parks, gardens and scenic getaways. Also, Queenstown has become a popular digital nomad hotspot today due to its spectacular mountain views combined with great cafes and bars.
For us, it had a special attraction – it is a great base for day trips. During our 3-week drive in South Island, we spent 4 days in Queenstown and found some lovely day trips in different directions.
Here’s a map showing three easy day trips.
Day Trip # 1
Glenorchy Lagoon Walk
The best thing about going on a day trip to Glenorchy from Queenstown is the picturesque drive there.
Drive westward from Queenstown towards the Lake Wakatipu and then northward along the lake.
It is just a 45 mins scenic drive to the Northern tip of lake Wakatipu but the views on theway are jaw-dropping and if you are a photo op lover, you will want to stop every now and then.
There are several must-stops en route. Moke Lake, Bob’s Cove track and nature walk, and Mt Crichton Loop track are all short stops and easy hikes with awesome views.
The walk is well-marked starting from the lake front. It takes a bit of time to reach the first lake but the views are simply to die for.
If you are a Lord of the Rings fan, you will love Glenorchy where many of the famous scenes from the movies were filmed. Incidentally there is also a dedicated full-day tour of Lord of the Rings that you can book.
DAY TRIP # 2
This trip takes you eastwards from Queenstown and stops come one after the other, offering lookouts and short walks.
Arrow Junction Lookout
Just a very short drive from Queenstown towards Arrowtown to reach this spectacular lookout.
Watch out and drive carefully through the switchbacks up the Crown Range road and you reach this lookout.
At the top, you are rewarded with scenic views of rugged peaks, green farmland and villages. You may also see snow capped mountains or just expansive wildflowers depending on the season.
Kawarau Gorge Suspension Bridge
The famous Kawarau River flows through the Kawarau Gorge and was once one of New Zealand’s most popular gold mining sites.
Stop at the Kawarau suspension bridge to enjoy the incredible views. Watch the Bungy jumpers!
There are several signboards on the making, history and restoration of this bridge from 1879 through 2004.
Enjoy the views of the bridge and the river.
Roaring Meg Lookout
Roaring Meg is a turbulent stream that drives a hydroelectric powerhouse and flows into the Kawarau River.
It is an awesome lookout with many vantage points for views and photographs from different perspectives. Many information boards too.
On a clear day, the views from the lookout are unbeatable.
Bruce Jackson Lookout
An amazing view of the Lake Clutha and the city of Cromwell. A convenient parking lot features an information board giving details of all the surrounding areas that are visible from here. Altogether, a very picturesque scenery with water and land – including the Cromwell township.
If you are ready for a short hike, there is the old reservoir loop track here. Starting from Bruce Jackson Lookout, follow the way across the highway SH8 and up the reservoir track. Follow the route to Northburn station, and you will reach the other side of the lookout on SH8 (Firewood creek) – with rocky landscape.
Enjoy expansive views of Lake Dunstan and Cromwell basin. The hike takes about 45 mins to one hour, and is totally worth it.
Incidentally, Cromwell is lovely little town to stay and might be another base to explore these spots in detail.
Clyde Dam
It is the largest concrete gravity dam in NZ, and the third largest hydro-electric dam in NZ, built on Clutha river.
There is a lot of historical information on signboards at the dam site. In addition, there is a nice lookout on the side where you can see the Clyde township, Lake Dunstan, Clutha River and the Central Otago landscape from high above.
The historic city of Clyde has quaint buildings and cafes on the banks of river Clutha.
Day Trip #3
Devil’s Staircase and Lake Wakatipu Lookout
Driving southwards from Queenstown towards Invercargill you will come across two lovely stops at the bottom of the lake Wakatipu.
Devil’s staircase lookout point can be hard to spot. Keep watching as you drive along the winding road by the lake towards Kingston. The Devils Staircase is the ridge which extends from the lake north of the Staircase Creek. There are sweeping views of the lake on one side and the Remarkables mountain ranges on the other.
A great stop, with nice views on a clear day – a lovely combination of blue pristine lake at foreground and snow-capped mountains at horizon background. You can find this winding road, with a rocky wall at one side and Lake Wakatipu at the other side, some 40km from Queenstown
If you drive around further, you will have the opportunity to get out of your car and walk by the lake or take your deck chair and admire the view.
The water is crystal clear and the pebbles are beautiful. Make sure you spend some time here.
Kingston
If you still want to do something more, drive into Kingston – a small town with an interesting iconic Kingston Flyer steam train – a popular visitor attraction. In addition, there is a nice sandy beach to soak up some sunshine.
At the end of the 4 days, it was time to drive further south towards Invercargill to check out the mystical Southland!
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What a jaw-dropping itinerary. I’d love to visit New Zealand in the near future so I’m definitely saving your road trip itinerary from Queenstown. Just love a scenic road trip, so this will be perfect. Thanks for sharing.
We want to plan a long visit to New Zealand. It looks like Queenstown would be a great spot to use as a base and take some great day trips. The outdoor scenery is simply stunning. Can’t wait to get this on our travel planning board.
Liked the post and the lovely photos clicked with professional touch! Wakatipu Lake appeared to be to be the real place with nature’s beauty and bliss! Thanks for taking us to the journey with you through this post and photos.
Queenstown is my favorite places in New Zealand, so much beauty and heaps to do in the area
This is such a great post! I lived in Queenstown for 6 months so reading this was very nostalgic! I love all of these drives, I think Queenstown to Glenorchy has got to be my personal favourite though as there are so many great stops and lookouts on the way 🙂
The suspension bridge and Bruce jackson lookout would be my favorite day trips to try first. The views from both look incredible and your photos show it well! I’ve never been to New Zealand so reading this is very helpful for a first time visitor. We also enjoy doing road trips so this has given me plenty of inspiration!
I would love to visit New Zealand one day. Queenstown looks like a perfect place for a base, to explore the surrounding areas. Glenorchy Lagoon Walk looks so beautiful, the scenery there is stunning. I would also like to go see the turbulent waters of the Roaring Meg. The colour of the water is such a beautiful shade of turquoise. Devil’s staircase offers some pretty incredible views as well.
Thank you so much for sharing this incredible guide! New Zealand is high on my bucket list and this is really good to know how many day trips can be fit in from a central location!
What incredible views. I would certainly want to take a Lord of the Rings tour. I have seen the trilogy 3 times! And even though I am a tad bit scared of bridges, I would like to walk across the suspension bridge. That Devil’s Staircase has some stunning views. And yes, I would love to see the Kingston Flyer steam train too.
I want to visit this place when I travel again! Queensland in New Zealand seems to be a truly breathtakingly gorgeous state that everyone would adore. I would surely take part in their adventure sports and spend some time admiring their stunning natural surroundings if I had the chance. There is no denying the beauty of the places you visited on your day trips!
Great post! Adding this to my reference list for when I make it to NZ!
New Zealand is so beautiful!! Glenorchy would definitely be top of my list because I’m a huge LOTR fan but I’d like to do all of these if I ever get to Queenstown!
This is simply a great guide to a beautiful place. Queenstown is definitely on my list to visit sometime and this list is super useful. I have to admit that I would most likely take that Lord of the Rings Tour. I simply love visiting places used for movie location shooting.
Love everything about New Zealand. Queenstown is a wonderful location to base yourself to explore the surrounding area. Truly love the sweet little township of Arrowtown.
Yes, my sister is based in Queenstown and we love the place. The view is breathtaking and yes, as a Lord of the Rings fan, we had so much fun. It was surreal to visit the places where they shot the film.
We can’t wait to be back soon and explore more areas. Kingston is part of our itinerary.
Loved all your pics. Just those are enough to increase the wanderlust for these places. Kawarau Gorge looks amazing with the river cutting through it. As does the Roaring Meg look-out. I love the simple names of these places – they kind of describe the place itself. And yes please, for the Lord of the Rings points.
I have never been to NZ and want to visit this country as this country is serene and there are great places to visit. If I travel to NZ I would love to visit all of the day trips and enjoy the scenic beuty. especially Kawarau Gorge Suspension Bridge it looks so mesmerizing and definately worth the hype.
Looks like a great base for day trips with some WOW scenery along the way. I love maps. They say that a picture says more than a thousand words; for me it is similar with maps. So, thank you for including them!
Dunedin is New Zealand has so many highlights. I’d love to see the Bruce Jackson Lookout. The color I’d the water is so pretty.
These all looks sooooo fun! I remember seeing the Devil’s Staircase on the map when we were driving through this area… it looks even better than I imagined!
I really love the look of Kawarau Gorge and the roaring meg lookouts!! <3