Kia Ora! The night after the wedding we were ready to jet off to the South Island of New Zealand. This is when all the fun stuff happens. The North Island and Auckland had been brilliant and you will fall in love with the country as soon as you land. With a flight in just under two hours, you land in Queenstown.
Getting around Queenstown
First things first after you exit the Queenstown airport, you should grab a GoCard to get around on the buses in Queenstown for $2 per journey. It costs $5 but you need a minimum top up $10, get a GoCard from the bus driver, Queenstown Airport or at the O’Connell’s Mall kiosk. You can pay for your bus journeys in cash but it will cost $5 per journey.
Blue Peaks apartments
The bus from door to door from the airport to right outside our accommodation in Blue Peaks Apartments within 15 minutes. The two-bedroom apartment costs $375 per night and was worth the money. We had scenic mountain views of the skyline gondolas, and getting into town was only a 5-minute stroll. The apartments are self-catering with free WIFI, laundry machines, complimentary tea and coffee, booking tours desk and luggage storage which I used on my last day.
Blue Peaks Apartments, 8 Coronation Drive, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
Thai Siam
Since we arrived late evening and had plans at night we started off with dinner at Thai Siam. You wouldn’t think much of it from the outside. On the corner of Beach Street, an Irish pub resides above the restaurant. Don’t let the dated furniture put you off, the food is decent. I had a simple pad thai with chicken $23.50.
Address: 24 Beach Street, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
Onsen Hot Pools
After a hectic week of non-stop travelling in Auckland, we needed a spa night before all our non-stop tours for the week ahead. If you check out Onsen hot pools website the photos give you a glimpse of one of the private hot pool room. We paid $161 for a private room with 60 minutes in the evening. Booking the very last session at 10 pm, the Onsen booking comes with a complimentary shuttle from Station building to Arthur’s Point. As with everywhere in New Zealand, the night sky was very clear. You can see a milky way of stars shining brightly in the night. It was very hard to capture on camera.
160 Arthurs Point Road, Arthurs Point, Queenstown, New Zealand
5/5