AAT Kings

• 3 Breakfast (B)
• 1 Dinner (D)

• Day 1: Flights to arrive prior to 4.00pm into Queenstown AirportDay 4: Flights to depart anytime from Queenstown Airport
  Airport to Hotel transfers are available to purchase on request.
  Flights to and from your tour are not included in the tour price.

• Comfortable walking shoes
  Warm layers
  Water bottle
  Camera

• Low level of fitness required.

Meet your Travel Director for a welcome to Queenstown and an introduction to your short break. Hear local tips on where to dine and what to look out for around the town.

Set beside Lake Wakatipu and framed by the Remarkables, Queenstown has a lively centre with plenty of choices for an evening out. The welcome offers a useful local perspective while leaving your dining plans in your own hands.

Meet a Southern farmer at Real Country and get close to the practical skills of rural New Zealand. Watch working dogs muster, learn about communication with horses and take part in hands-on farm activities, with sheep shearing and a chance to try whip cracking among the featured experiences.

This MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience brings the region’s farming traditions to life through direct contact with the people and animals behind them. It offers a grounded view of country life beyond Queenstown’s adventure scene.

Explore Arrowtown, a former gold-mining village near Queenstown, and wander streets whose historic buildings recall the 1860s gold rush. Its compact centre invites a closer look at the shopfronts and mountain setting that give the village its character.

Gold discoveries along the Arrow River drew prospectors from around the world, including Chinese miners whose history remains an important part of Arrowtown’s heritage. The visit reveals a different chapter of the region’s past from its modern resort-town identity.

Cruise Lake Wakatipu aboard the TSS Earnslaw, a vintage steamship travelling between Queenstown and Walter Peak. Take in the lakeshore and surrounding mountains from the water, with the Remarkables forming part of the alpine panorama.

Launched in 1912, the Earnslaw once carried passengers, goods and livestock to remote lakeside communities. Its continuing service gives the crossing a distinctive sense of place: this is both a scenic cruise and a journey aboard a working piece of regional history.

Enjoy a gourmet barbecue dinner at the Colonel’s Homestead at Walter Peak High Country Farm, on the shores of Lake Wakatipu. The lakeside setting and views towards the Remarkables make the meal a distinctive part of the Queenstown experience.

A farm show at Walter Peak adds an introduction to high-country life, connecting the homestead visit with the area’s rural traditions. Together, the dinner and show offer more than a restaurant meal: they bring food, landscape and farming heritage into one evening.

Journey to Piopiotahi (Milford Sound) through the mountain landscapes of Fiordland National Park, with an opportunity to cruise the fiord beneath steep cliffs and waterfalls. The route and time on the water bring travellers close to one of the South Island’s most dramatic natural settings.

Carved by glaciers, Piopiotahi is known for its sheer rock faces and rainforest-clad slopes. This is an Optional Experience at additional cost, bookable on tour; ask your Travel Director about available arrangements.

Experience jet boating in the Queenstown region for a more active encounter with its waterways. Purpose-built boats use jet propulsion to navigate shallow water, combining speed and precise manoeuvring with views of the surrounding alpine landscape.

Jet boating has deep roots in New Zealand: the technology was developed to travel the country’s shallow rivers. Exact routes and operators depend on availability. This is an Optional Experience at additional cost, bookable on tour; your Travel Director can advise on the choices offered.

Taste wines from the Queenstown region and discover the flavours associated with Central Otago, one of New Zealand’s southern wine-growing areas. A local tasting offers a relaxed way to explore the region beyond its lakes and mountains.

Central Otago is particularly noted for Pinot Noir, shaped by a continental climate with warm days and cool nights. The wines provide a connection to the area’s landscape and producers. This is an Optional Experience at additional cost, bookable on tour; tasting arrangements depend on availability.