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If you’re looking for a 5-day Queenstown itinerary that’s family-friendly, but not entirely kid-focused, this Queenstown plan is for you! It’s got the perfect balance of sightseeing, exciting Queenstown attractions, unique day trips and plenty of inspiration for foodies too!
This Queenstown 5-day itinerary is based on our second visit to Queenstown in 2026, our first being back in 2019. It was fun to see what has changed and what has stayed the same after 7 years.
We visited with tween/teens, but it’s an itinerary that works with no kids or little kids, too.
Our 5-Day Queenstown Itinerary Quick Guide
- How many days: 5 nights / 6 days
- Best for: Families, adventure lovers, scenic travel
- Getting around: Rental car (or utilise public transport)
- Currency: New Zealand Dollar (NZD)
- Best time to visit: Year-round
- Where to stay: The Glebe Apartments Queenstown
Highlights
- Shotover Jet Extreme Jetboating experience
- Skyline Queenstown Gondola & Luge
- TSS Earnslaw Cruise & Walter Peak Farm
Queenstown 5-Day Itinerary
This is our 5 days in Queenstown itinerary, with a couple of minor tweaks to suit your first-time visit. You can use this itinerary as is, or adapt it to create your own perfect trip!
Queenstown is one of those destinations where booking ahead really matters — especially for accommodation and popular tours.
Our itinerary has 6 days, but technically it was 2 half days. It just depends on when you’re flying in and out or where you’re coming from elsewhere in NZ.
Day 1 – Arrival in Queenstown
Afternoon
- Arrive in Queenstown, pick up your rental car and check into your accommodation.
- Take a relaxing lakeside stroll along Lake Wakatipu
- Stop for gelato at Patagonia Chocolates.
- Grab dinner at a family-friendly eatery such as The Cow, Speight’s Alehouse or Ferburger (worth the wait!).
- Turn in early to recover from travel and prepare for an exciting week ahead.
Optional fun: If you have time, stop by the Queenstown Gardens for a casual disc golf game or playtime for the kids. There’s a great playground right on the waterfront.
Day 2 – TSS Earnslaw & Walter Peak Farm
Morning:
- Board a morning cruise aboard the TSS Earnslaw steamboat – a Queenstown icon
- Do the Walter Peak Farm tour experience with morning tea or lunch to feed farm animals, have a shearing and dog demonstration. They have highland cows, and they are the cutest!
Midday:
- Wander around Steamer Wharf for dining and entertainment
Evening:
- Head out to dinner at one of Queenstown’s top restaurants. There are plenty to choose from. We dined at Sherwood Restaurant, which was for a family celebration with extended family, but you will find loads of options. The food at Sherwood was AMAZING!
Day 3 – Shotover Jet, Skyline Gondola & Luge
Morning:
- Visit nearby Arrowtown and explore the gold mining town with quaint shops, cafes and a museum.
- Explore the charming historic gold-mining village; kids will love gold panning at Dudley’s Cottage.
- Walk part of the Arrow River Trail or visit the Chinese Settlement for a bit of history.
Tip: If you want to try a Fergburger but don’t want to wait for the huge line at the store in Queenstown, you will find FergButcher in Arrowtown. It’s still very busy, but they have several of their popular burgers on the menu. We did this to avoid the huge wait, and it only took around 20 minutes instead of an hour or so.
Midday:
- Shotover Jet experience — this will thrill both kids and adults! It was our favourite experience of the trip, and you only need an hour total.
- Head to Canyon Brewing right next to the Shotover Jet for a cheeky beer or lunch. The menu is simple but good.
Evening:
- Head up the Skyline Gondola after the peak crowds ease (usually busiest between 11 am and 3 pm).
- Enjoy panoramic views of the Remarkables and Lake Wakatipu.
- Luge rides: A huge hit with kids and adults alike — do at least 3 runs to really enjoy it. We could easily have done a few more than this.
- After the luge, go back up the chairlift and enjoy the views and walking tracks near the luge.
- Dine at Stratosphere Restaurant – make sure you book in advance as this buffet is very popular, and it is a fantastic buffet. So many choices, including seafood, a huge dessert bar, carvery and more. Well worth the splurge!
- Ride the gondola back down as the sunsets or wait until dark for city light views.
Seasonal Tip: In Summer, the sunset isn’t until around 9:30 pm or later, so you can fit a lot more into your day than in the winter months. You may wish to head up the Gondola a little earlier in the winter months to make sure you have time to do the luge tracks before dark.
Day 4 – Glenorchy
Morning:
- Drive to Glenorchy from Queenstown. It’s around a 45-drive, but it’s a scenic drive, so you will want to make the most of the drive itself with a few scenic stops along the way.
- Some stops to consider are: Little Sunshine Bay, Seven Mile Rec Area, Wilson Bay for a swim, Bob’s Cove (very busy, arrive early), Bennett’s Bluff Lookout (5-minute uphill walk for epic views).
Midday:
- Head to Mrs Woolly’s General Store for lunch and some shopping. It’s a bit of an everything shop. Good food with a cute little garden out back to sit, groceries, plus plenty of gifts and souvenirs too. The hazelnut brownie was sooooo good!
- Explore Glenorchy – visit the Glenorchy Lake House for the iconic photo, walk out onto the jetty or do one of the many walks in the area.
Afternoon:
- Return to Queenstown
- Visit The Winery in Queenstown Mall and sample a range of wines, whiskeys or gins. They have a swipe card system and automated dispenser machines, so you can sample what you like and pay at the end.
- Relax with dinner at one of the many restaurants or cook back at your apartment before taking a lakeside walk.
Day 5 – Gibbston Valley Wineries
Morning:
- Head toward Gibbston Valley Wine Region (30 minutes from Queenstown). Self-drive or do a Gibbston winery tour so no one is stuck as the designated driver.
- Stop at Kawarau Bridge to watch or try bungy jumping at the world’s first bungy experience – we aren’t that brave!
- Visit the many winery cellar doors in this region.
Midday:
- Lunch at Gibbston Valley Winery. Adults can sample wine while kids enjoy the garden and cheese shop. There are loads of great cheeses for sale in the cheesery and deli, not just from here but elsewhere in the region too. There are several other wineries with food available too.
Evening:
- Return to Queenstown for dinner at a restaurant or back at your apartment.
Hire An E-bike: For something different, do a cycling tour from Arrowtown to Gibbston Valley instead. We didn’t do this as our eldest doesn’t like riding bikes, but the extended family did, so we just met them along the way by car. They loved it, and all said they’d do it again. They hired e-bikes and didn’t do an actual guided tour but you can definitely join a guided tour as well.
Day 6 – Leisure & Departure
Morning:
- Have a relaxed breakfast and maybe some last-minute souvenir shopping in town.
- Grab some last-minute baked goods from Mrs Ferg Bakery or some Cookie Time cookies for the road, and enjoy your last stroll around Queenstown.
If you have more time, Ayrburn on the way to Arrowtown is a great stop for lunch, ice cream or a walk around the gardens. It’s a winery, but there are several restaurants and an ice cream shop on site, as well as a playground, walking tracks and just a really beautiful place to visit.
Afternoon:
- Make your way to the airport for your departure. If you want to eat before your flight, there are more options outside the airport security.
Where To Stay In Queenstown
Choosing the right place to stay in Queenstown can make a big difference to your trip, especially if you want to be within walking distance of the main attractions.
Accommodation (and everything else) is a little pricy in Queenstown, but you can still get some decent deals depending on the time of year you visit and making sure to book as early as possible.
We stayed at The Glebe Apartments in Queenstown, which was close to the centre of town, walkable to most central attractions and plenty of places to dine, and it has large apartments to suit families. Read our review for The Glebe.
Our extended family stayed at Peppers Beacon, which is close to Steamer Wharf on the Lake Esplanade, and has great views, huge family rooms and big patios.
We also spent a night at Pinewood Queenstown the night we arrived in NZ, just because we came in late and needed something close to the airport. It was perfect for that option.
Some other Queenstown accommodation options include:
Search & Compare Rental Car Prices
- Discover Cars: We have used this aggregate site many times to compare rental car prices from big-name companies and get the best price possible.
- Booking.com: This is our other preferred comparison site for finding rental cars (and accommodation).
How Many Days In Queenstown?
Queenstown is one of those places you could easily fill 3 days or fill 7, which makes 5 days in Queenstown a good option.
For a shorter stay of 2 to 3 days, you can still cram in a lot, minus the day trips. This gives you time to experience the best Queenstown attractions and thrills if that’s your travel style.
For 7 or more days, you can explore further beyond Queenstown, such as a day trip to Milford Sound. This is a huge day, but one of the top New Zealand bucket list experiences. We did this on our first South Island visit, and it was incredible.
It also gives you more time to enjoy the many restaurants and take things at a more laidback pace.
And if there’s time to add it to your trip, we highly recommend the scenic drive from Queenstown to Lake Tekapo, our other favourite place in the South Island.
Queenstown Travel Tips
- Pack layers: Summer days are warmer, but evenings can be cool. If visiting in Winter, check out our NZ winter packing list.
- Book Gondola + Luge combo tickets online to save time.
- Carry swimwear — the lakes and river spots are too inviting not to dip in!
- Bring refillable water bottles; Queenstown tap water is excellent.
- Allow some “free time” for spontaneous stops — January weather is perfect for impromptu nature hikes or water activities.
- Happy hour is a big thing here and occurs at different times at different places, so you could easily make your way to a few different bars to take advantage of this. Even Cookie Time has a happy hour.
- If you’re doing a campervan trip through NZ, there are no free camping sites right in Queenstown, so you either need to pay for a holiday park site or stay further out of town.
- Need essentials like warm clothes, activities, snacks – Kmart is open until midnight near the airport.
- Many of Queenstown’s most popular experiences sell out days in advance, especially during peak seasons. Booking ahead matters!
Is Queenstown Worth Visiting?
Short answer, yes, Queenstown is worth visiting! It’s one of New Zealand’s most iconic destinations.
Queenstown is one of those places where every day feels completely different — one minute you’re on a peaceful lake cruise, the next you’re speeding through a canyon on a jet boat.
Consider extending your stay to Wanaka, Christchurch, or Lake Tekapo next.
Plan Your Trip
Here are a few things we always organise before travelling:
- Stay connected: We use Airalo eSIM
- Car hire: Compare options with DiscoverCars
- Travel insurance: Check SafetyWing or World2Cover via Klook
- Airport transfers: Book with Welcome Pickups
- Accommodation: Find the best deals here
- Tours: We always use GetYourGuide