Queenstown
Shaped like a cartoon lightning bolt, Lake Wakatipu is NZ's third-largest lake. It reaches a depth of 372m, meaning the lake bed actually sits below sea…
Must-see attractions in South Island
Dunedin
Although it's a youngster by European standards, this spectacular 1906 mansion provides a wonderful window into Dunedin's past. Entry is via fascinating…
Christchurch
Strolling through these 30 blissful riverside hectares of arboreal and floral splendour is a consummate Christchurch experience. Gorgeous at any time of…
Dunedin
Storytelling is the focus of this excellent interactive museum, which traces the history of human settlement i
Christchurch
Damaged in the earthquakes, Christchurch's fantastic art gallery has reopened brighter and bolder, presenting a stimulating mix of local and international…
Queenstown & Wanaka
Enter past the fence of bras (Bra-drona!) and you'll find the beautiful cellar door of this fledgling single-malt distillery inside a building made of…
Christchurch
A must-visit for anyone interested in understanding the impact of the Canterbury earthquakes, this compact museum tells stories through photography, video…
Westland Tai Poutini National Park
On a good day, the famous 'mirror lake' reflects extraordinary views of distant Aoraki/Mt Cook and Mt Tasman in its forest-shaded waters. The best time to…
Queenstown
Hop aboard for fantastic views as the gondola squeezes through pine forest to its grandstand location 400m above Queenstown. At the top there's the…
Christchurch
Dating from 1877, this enclave of Gothic Revival buildings was originally Canterbury College, the forerunner of Canterbury University. The buildings are…
Queenstown
Set on its own tongue of land framing Queenstown Bay, this pretty park is the perfect city escape right within the city. Laid out in 1876, it features an…
Christchurch
Yes, there's a mummy and dinosaur bones, but the highlights of this museum are more local and more recent. The Māori galleries contain some beautiful…
Dunedin
Featuring mosaic-tile floors and glorious stained-glass windows, Dunedin’s striking bluestone railway station (built between 1903 and 1906) claims to be…
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Christchurch
Christchurch's city square stands at the heart of the rebuilding efforts, with the remains of ChristChurch Cathedral emblematic of what has been lost. The…
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Wanaka
Wānaka Station Park is a piece of Wānaka that existed before Wānaka did. This remnant of the sheep station that once covered the entire south side of the…
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International Antarctic Centre
Christchurch
As one of only five 'gateway cities' to Antarctica, Christchurch has played a special role in Antarctic exploration since expeditionary ships to the icy…
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Dunedin
The centrepiece of this august institution is Southern Land, Southern People, showcasing Otago’s cultural and physical past and present, from geology and…
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Christchurch
Historic Riccarton House (1856) sits proudly amid 12 hectares of pretty parkland and forest beside the Avon River. The grounds host the popular…
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Dunedin
This street proudly held the title of steepest street in the world until July 2019, when Ffordd Pen Llech in the Welsh town of Harlech was officially…
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Westland Tai Poutini National Park
Follow Cook Flat Rd for its full 21km (the final 12km is narrow, winding and unsealed) to this remote beach, a ruggedly beautiful, wind-blasted length of…
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Dunedin
Speight’s has been churning out beer on this site since the late 19th century and is the oldest operating brewery in NZ. The 60-minute tour gives an…
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Queenstown & Wanaka
Apart from its impressive Star of David–shaped rose window, this 1874 stone Gothic Revival church, built from local schist rock, wouldn't be worth noting…
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Milford Underwater Observatory
Milford Sound
Run by Southern Discoveries, this small observatory is NZ's only floating underwater observatory, with displays on the unique natural environment of the…
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Dunedin
Even in Presbyterian Dunedin, the 'established church' (aka the Church of England) gets the prime spot on The Octagon. A Romanesque portal leads into the…
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Te Papa Ōtākaro/Avon River Precinct
Christchurch
One of the city's key post-earthquake redevelopment projects is reinvigorating the area around the Avon (Ōtākaro) River. Running along the river as a self…
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Queenstown & Wanaka
Strung along the creek, near the site of Arrowtown's first gold find, is NZ’s best example of an early Chinese settlement. Interpretive signs explain the…
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Westland Tai Poutini National Park
It's a very long way from the actual glacier, but this parking area provides a surprisingly good view over fields to Fox Glacier (weather permitting)…
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Dunedin
Dunedin's original Scottish settlers founded Otago's first Presbyterian congregation upon their arrival in 1848 and built this grand church 25 years later…
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Dunedin
This impressive brick-and-glass structure is the flash home of Emerson's, the microbrewery founded by local-boy-made-good Richard Emerson in 1992. Forty…
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Wanaka
Push past the Barbies to get to the beer – the tasting room for the Wanaka Beerworks is rather incongruously at the rear of the toy museum gift shop. Get…
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National Transport & Toy Museum
Wanaka
Mixing Smurfs with Studebakers and skidoos (and an authentic MiG jet fighter flown by the Polish Air Force), this completely eclectic and absorbing…
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Dunedin
Founded in 1869, the University of Otago is NZ's oldest. Today the university is home to some 21,000 students, and is well worth a wander, with many…
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Dunedin
Dunedin's second grand Presbyterian church sprang up in 1876, only three years after the equally imposing First Church, and quickly became an emblem of…
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Christchurch
Take a ride to the top of Mt Cavendish (500m) on this 862m cable car for wonderful views over the city, Lyttelton, Banks Peninsula and the Canterbury…
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Queenstown & Wanaka
The area's oldest commercial winery (established in the early 1980s) offers tours of the winery ($35) and NZ's largest wine cave ($20). It also has a…
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Dunedin
Built to recognise the contribution of Dunedin's Chinese community, this walled garden was constructed in Shanghai before being dismantled and reassembled…
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Christchurch
Wrapped around the Botanic Gardens, Hagley Park is Christchurch's biggest green space, stretching for 165 hectares. Riccarton Ave splits it in two, while…
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Queenstown & Wanaka
With gold rushes came lawlessness. Arrowtown's prisoners were originally manacled to logs, but in 1876 this schist jail, now surrounded by homes, was…
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Lakes District Museum & Gallery
Queenstown & Wanaka
Exhibits cover the gold-rush era and the early days of Chinese settlement around Arrowtown. Kids are kept engaged by the likes of an 'Odd One Out' game…
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Queenstown
These 2 hectares are home to 10,000 native plants, geckos, skinks, tuatara (an endemic reptile) and scores of birds, including kiwi, kea (alpine parrots),…
