Queenstown

[MotherBear]

Originally Posted by macfod

if you come to dunedin, come for a chat in our cafe and we will point you towards wildlife,

Oh Mark, that's no way to talk about your ex-staff.

Ricky, in case you weren't around when this was going on, Mark had a few 'difficulties' with the staff at his cafe.

[Duke]

Hi Ricky...awesome place QT is.. theres alot of shopping and very nice hotels...They have the jet boat ride which looked AWESOME!!!! but it was cold and rainy there on my visit (end of May)...didnt do it... didnt find much hiking, but again it was rainy hard,, still fun though...walked all the way up to the indoor putt-putt after pizza and found out it was closed...NZ has early lights out.
If I only had 3 days in SI,NZ, I would probably go, which I regret missing, the Queen Charlotte track. You could fly to Welli and take the ferry across...Just thought I would throw out that suggestion
Have Fun

Dunedin became very hectic around 5 pm, I think college was letting out...but WOW the traffic!!! we scrambled to find the Otago peninsula but everything chilled out after that...very nice
The Catlins, is also a gem, with views that would excite the senses.. It was sunny on our visit for a few days and the sea lions were bathing all over the beach...We counted 16 of them...DAMN!!! those sand flys were bothering them... Jacks Blowhole was a very nice, short and sweet walk w/ views

[macfod]

Interesting Duke your comments on the hectic traffic
The other week we had 7-8 cars in a line at tea time...thats about the most it gets too.
Having lived and worked on the M25 dunedin is bliss with few cars and we have a business 100 yards from the very centre of this fine CITY!

And yes, some of my staff have been wild..some difficult to see and others happy to lie on the beach with the seals.
Would you believe 29 to date in 12 months.aaaaaaaaaaaaaah
But, we are chilled now and enjoying life and time out...FIJI in three weeks..yippee for a well earnt rest...

[macfod]

Spent a lovely weekend there last week..bodyboarding down 7km of rapids...............magicccccccccccccccccccccccc

[keeweegal]

The Milford Track might be of interest too. Here's another link Fiordland.org.nz Just google "Milford Track" for more if its "your thing"!

Whatever you decide to do, don't forget to post your pics!

KG

[molly]

We spend every year at least one week in QT and we love it. We go there because we love to hike and because we love nature. I think the area is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen. QT itself is quite touristy, but after a 8 hour or two day hike I don't mind having a nice choice of restaurants available - or a cinema for rainy days. If you go there (as we do) in late March or April, you usually have great weather, lovely autumn colours all around and the big mass of tourists are already gone.

Additionally around Glenorchy there are beautiful tracks as are around Wanaka. All of them are in a easy driving distance from QT. You have also great opportunities to go kayaking or do other fun stuff. There are some lovely wineries in the area, which is not completely wrong either.

Prices are pretty steep during high season, but fairly reasonable in spring/autumn.

If I could choose where to live, my choice would definitely be QT (at least during summer). In the winter months I would rather opt for something a bit warmer.

[ricky_88]

Originally Posted by molly

We spend every year at least one week in QT and we love it. We go there because we love to hike and because we love nature. I think the area is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen. QT itself is quite touristy, but after a 8 hour or two day hike I don't mind having a nice choice of restaurants available - or a cinema for rainy days. If you go there (as we do) in late March or April, you usually have great weather, lovely autumn colours all around and the big mass of tourists are already gone.

Additionally around Glenorchy there are beautiful tracks as are around Wanaka. All of them are in a easy driving distance from QT. You have also great opportunities to go kayaking or do other fun stuff. There are some lovely wineries in the area, which is not completely wrong either.

Prices are pretty steep during high season, but fairly reasonable in spring/autumn.

If I could choose where to live, my choice would definitely be QT (at least during summer). In the winter months I would rather opt for something a bit warmer.

Hi Molly?Nice to see your info...well, after the info given by you, now I decided that to go to QT @ any cost.

I never mind whether it rains or not.

I just want to see the beautiful nature created by god.

So I want to go there in May 15-21,


Molly, could you please let me know that how the weather will be by the time I reach QT and also let me know that what I need to do see the beautiful nature in QT ...some thing like hiking or any guided tours or some thing else...

Mark? This time I want to go QT and next time I will visits your cafe :)...

Thanks guys for all your inputs...

Ricky...

[loopylu]

Hi Ricky,

I am living in Queenstown at the moment and although yes it is a touristy type town with lots of adventure activities for the adrenalin junkies there's also so much more here and the lakes and mountains are just stunning...

I think there are lots of places you would be interested in here. For example Wanaka is only a 45 minute drive away across the mountains and has the national park there too. From Wanaka you can easily access the bottom of the West Coast drive where there are so many lovely walks, waterfalls etc and if you get to just south of Haast there is also penguins/seals to see (they are seasonal and not sure whether they'll be there when you arrive). I don't think anyone has mentioned Arrowtown yet which is another lovely quaint little gem just 15 mins drive from Queenstown and is worth exploring too, particularly as you will be arriving at the end of Autumn and it is just stunning at the moment with all the yellows, oranges and reds in the trees. Fiordland is also easily accessible and you can get to Milford Sound and all it has to offer very easily for a day or two-day excursion. There are certainly buses that go there daily. Glenorchy is also only a 40 minute drive and is away from the 'bustle' of Queenstown and has some lovely countryside to explore, as has Kingston at the other end of Lake Wakatipu.

As for weather... the first snows arrived yesterday and have stayed on the mountain tops and looks beautiful, however over the last few weeks the weather has also dropped considerably and is much more wintery already. You don't get much rain here in Queenstown because of its location and most days have beautiful blue skies and sunshine. When you are in the sunshine during the day it can get pretty warm and t-shirt weather but as soon as you are in the shade it's pretty cold and certainly once the sun goes behind the mountains the temperature drops down to less than 10 degrees C and overnight we're getting some frosts now and probably near to freezing. So I would guess that in another few weeks then it'll be even colder so make sure you bring some decent warm gear...!!!

There are so many places to go walking/hiking/tramping and there are a fair few books that focus specifically on walks in this area... they certainly sell them in the information centres around here so you would easily be able to pick one up when you arrive and choose some walks that suit your needs. There's also a freebee basic one you can pick up in the information centres and include walks that give you awesome views of the lake and mountains. It's such a touristy town that everything is set up for the tourists and easy to arrive and book when you arrive. There are several information centres that you can pop into and will be able to give you specifics on walks and other activities that would interest you.

Hope that's of some help and you have a great trip