At Odysseum in central Queenstown, you’ll navigate a course with obstacles, illusions, and strange lighting, sound effects, and smells. As the name suggests, this unusual attraction requires visitors to engage all their senses as they move through various rooms. The maze is just as popular with adults as it is with older kids and teens.
The Shotover River, which drains into the Kawarau River beneath the famous Kawarau Bridge, is renowned as an aquatic playground for visitors traveling to Queenstown. Even the drive toward the Shotover River is an outdoor adventure in itself, as the road leading into Skippers Canyon is a winding, mountainous route.
Every Saturday in central Queenstown, artists and artisans from all over the South Island display their wares at the Queenstown Market. If you’re looking for unique souvenirs or gifts to take home, you’re bound to find something amidst the handcrafted jewelry, knitwear, bone carvings, pottery, paintings, and so much more.
Head underground and back in time on the Queenstown’s Time Tripper Underwater Experience, a 15-minute animated show that takes you on a journey through Queenstown’s history. The animated cinematic show starts in the dinosaurs’ time, when Queenstown’s mountains, lakes, and glaciers were forming. After the show, continue to the underwater observatory to see Lake Wakatipu’s ducks, eels, and trout.
Thrill-seeking travelers are never short of attractions in New Zealand, and Queenstown’s Nevis Swing is certainly one of the most thrilling. The jumping-off platform is located 524 feet (160 meters) above a river. After a 229 foot (70 meter) free-fall, you’ll swing in a 984-foot (300-meter) arc. Jump solo or tandem, forwards, backwards, or upside down.
On the scenic western shore of Lake Wakatipu, just across the water from Queenstown, Walter Peak High Country Farm serves up an authentic slice of rural life in New Zealand. Dating back to the 19th century, and still a family-run, working sheep and cow ranch, it’s now a popular attraction for travelers. Cruise across the lake to meet the farmyard animals, watch a sheepdog display, and sample farm-to-table cuisine.
