NEW ZEALAND: BETTER THAN OLD ZEALAND! (Part 1 of 3: Queenstown)
Hiking up the Remarkables Mountain range overlooking magical Queenstown, New Zealand – a truly remarkable experience!
I recently returned from the trip of a LIFETIME with my hubs to the most magical land on (middle) earth: Lord of the Rings Land, AKA New Zealand’s South Island! OH. MY. GOD. It’s like being in a real-life screensaver or movie set! Every single square meter of this country is breathtaking, filled with lush, verdant rolling hills, turquoise waters and meteoric volcanic mountains with waterfalls gushing unexpectedly at every turn along its winding one-lane roads… Where the water flows from glaciers atop mountains and has a turquoise blue color enriched from mineral deposits that is truly indescribable! I have dreamed of going here for nearly a decade, ever since I became obsessed with Flight of the Conchords 🙂 I even learned how to do a Kiwi accent over the years, and couldn’t wait to go practice in real life kiwi-land! I’ve dreamed of cruising through Milford Sound under sunny skies and dipping my feet in the alpine lakes of the Southern Lakes region for years and years… My husband is from Australia and had already been to New Zealand several times and never felt the urge to visit during our trips to visit his family and friends in Oz… Still, each time we visited his home in the land down under, I made him promise to take me to their friendly neighbors in the land down underer! After many trips to the magical land of Oz, he was finally bitten by the kiwi travel bug as well and we doubled our pleasure with a trip to both of the southernmost lands on earth! As you can imagine, packing was a breeze [insert Lucille Bluth eyeroll here!]! 😀
Keep reading below for part 1 of 3 in my NZ travel series – this post will focus on the remarkable city of Queenstown and its surroundings, including packing tips for remote (non-tropical) island trips!
QUEENSTOWN and LAKE WAKATIPU
A view of beautiful Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu from atop The Remarkables mountain range
Queenstown is one of the only two cities you can fly to in the South Island, and is the perfect spot to use as a base if you really want to explore the Lord of the Rings landscape! Your other option is the city of Christchurch on the Northeastern coast of the island, which can work out well if you have a couple of weeks or more to spend driving or flying around – most of the truly magical locations are much closer to Queenstown, which is an extraordinarily beautiful town well worth a visit of its own. Honestly, you could spend a solid 2 weeks exploring this region without running out of adventures to experience (it’s especially great for skiers in winter)! We happened to get here in the middle of autumn, which was perfect since tourism was at its lowest (summer brings lots of visitors for water sports and winter draws the hugest adventure sports crowds) and it felt like we had the entire south island all to ourselves! Panoramic views of the city in all its fall foliage glory, surrounded by mountains and forged around the beautiful blue Lake Wakatipu await you below!
We were greeted by beautiful fall foliage and the most perfect weather we could’ve imagined! Layering was essential though, since the temps did change pretty dramatically throughout the day, with mornings in the 50s, daytime highs in the 60s and nights dipping into the 30s and 40s!
A blazer over a light sweater was perfect for daytime – but I made sure to carry a light coat with me as an added layer!
Basking in the morning sun on the beautiful shores of Queenstown on Lake Wakatipu before breakfast/brunch… A light-to-midweight coat like this tweed boyfriend jacket by Pam & Gela was the perfect layer for warming up the early morning chills, worn over blazers and light sweaters or tees.
Seriously – have you ever seen anything more beautiful!? Queenstown is surrounded by the most diverse array of mountain ranges (from colorful fall foliage-tree lined slopes to soaring, steep rocky mountains to rolling green hills) and rests upon the shores of the turquoise-blue waters of Lake Wakatipu – the largest lake in the South Island!
The view from our gorgeous suite (with a working fireplace and large terrace overlooking Lake Wakatipu!) at the Hilton Resort in Queenstown (many many thanks to the staff for our sweet suite upgrade!) was the most incredible sight for our astrophotography eyes! We could see the Milky Way formation, the Southern Cross and all the other magical stars in the vast expanse of the clear night sky through the naked eye as if we were looking through a NASA-powered telescope! The hotel itself was the perfect, idyllic retreat from town with an unobstructed view of Queenstown on the lake and the Remarkables behind us… PS – this image was not photoshopped!!
SHOP THE LOOK
QUEENSTOWN EATS
The beautiful Amisfield Winery and Restaurant, perched upon a hilltop overlooking the idyllic Lake Hayes.
The cool, hip Toro Kitchen & Bar was a great spot for a quick brekkie and coffee before starting a big day trip out to the Central Otago lakes region. I had the poached eggs with corn fritters and a strong flat white… The staff were incredibly great and accommodating too – offering helpful tips and guides on the area, as well as letting me take photos of this insta-worthy interior space!
Breakfast for 2… plus 10?! Toro Kitchen had plenty of room to accommodate us inside their gorgeous space!
As lovely as Toro is, I thought the food and coffee at nearby Vudu Larder was even better! Their french toast (pictured above) was nothing short of a work of art. Their pastries and savory treats were a road trip savior as well! Every day in Queenstown on our journeys outside of Queenstown, we stopped by Vudu Larder to pick up some take-away treats for the road! Their communal seating is also a fun way to make new friends with some of the locals!
SHOP THE LOOK
BUNGY JUMPING and KAWARAU RIVER
On our first day’s trip outside of Queenstown, we had a bit of a Gollum moment – mesmerized by the reflections in the truly unreal turquoise waters of the Kawarau River along our drive to the Central Otago Lakes district, we stumbled upon the world’s first ever bungy jumping site at Kawarau Gorge! We thought we just found an amazing suspension bridge to take in views of the river from way way way above, but as soon as we walked up, we saw three dudes bungy jumping into the river – one right after another! It was seriously the coolest (and scariest!) thing to see! The river views weren’t bad either 😉
This is the beautiful Kawarau River with its alpine blue waters that made us stop along the road before we stumbled upon the bungy jumping suspension bridge across the way!
The jump is surprisingly super super fast before the bungy adventurers climb into a raft waiting for them below the bridge in the river… so by the time I managed to pick up my jaw off the floor, the jumpers were safely in the raft back to land and all I caught was the end of their rope 🙂 I did manage to capture a video of the jump – you can view it HERE if interested!
The South Island can be a breezy place, especially by the water and especially when you’ve got chills after watching a bunch of dudes plunge 43m off a bridge! 😀 I recommend always carrying a layer with you in unpredictable weather like a light jacket. Leather jackets go with pretty much anything and provide the perfect amount of warmth without being overwhelming (so if you can only pack one jacket, I’d take a go-with-everything leather moto jacket)!
SHOP THE LOOK
THE REMARKABLES
Our friends at Scotty’s Rentals in Queenstown told us if we miss everything else Queenstown has to offer, be sure not to miss The Remarkables! We thought, how remarkable could they really be?? Well… all I have to say is I was left SPEECHLESS and in tears at one point by the truly remarkable majesty of these mountains perched high above Queenstown, its glacial blue rivers and alpine lakes… You can see what looks like all of Middle Earth from up here – be sure to give yourself at least 3-4 hours to make the drive and stop as often as you can for breathtaking views, quiet vistas and landscapes that will leave you in sheer awe. Oh, also – don’t be like me and try to climb these mountains in vintage loafers (they were insanely comfortable but not the most intelligent choice of footwear :D)!
Halfway up the Remarkables and I thought I’d enjoy a nice hike in my vintage Miu Miu loafers and giant YSL bag (brilliant, right?!) 😀
Regardless of my choice in fancy footwear, the views from the top were totally worth it and my feet still felt comfy as cushions thanks to my gel insoles (if you do opt for silly shoes like me, I recommend adding some Dr. Scholl’s gel inserts to help with the hikes)!
These views were totally worth every slippery slope and crazy drive on the edge of reality (most of the road up the mountain was curved every 5 or so meters and rarely had a guard railing in sight!)… Lake Wakatipu and the outskirts of Queenstown below.
The mountain ranges extend for miles both vertically and horizontally – the extreme razorback edges of the mountaintops give it its name and its one of only two mountain ranges in the world to run directly north to south. Take your sunnies because the light shines bright up here!
On the road to the top of the mountains reaching the highest point, Double Cone which sits 2,319 meters high in the sky (here’s what it looks like in the winter snow, some true LOTR $hit!). No guardrail to protect our little car from the ferocious winds which swept us left and right along this road (and scared me half to death, tbh)!
As we neared the apex of this remarkable mountain range on our way to the Double Cone, the road turned from pavement into gravel and we hadn’t spotted a single human or car for nearly 1.5 hours… The winds were so intense up here that our car door nearly got knocked off when we opened it (and it took both mine and my husband’s force to close the door shut against the roaring, howling winds)! At this point, I was beyond grateful for my OCD overpacking habits and the fact that I’d brought about 17 extra layers because I needed them desperately up here 🙂 This aztec cape worn over my tweed car coat, worn over my blazer, worn over my striped long-sleeve tee provided all sorts of warmth and seemed pretty fitting exploring this rugged terrain! 😀
On the lookout for any sign of life beyond the vast expanse of sky and mountain rock…
Needless to say, I was quite relieved at the sight of anything other than sky and rock on our descent back to Queenstown! This view was especially remarkable to see 🙂
SHOP THE LOOK
Stay tuned for next week’s post on Part 2: our journey through the Southern Lakes district, where I’ll show you my unbelievably magical explorations of alpine lakes bluer than the sky, snow-capped mountains, and real glaciers atop volcanic mountains suspended above a land that can only be described as Mordor’esque 🙂 Part 3 of this blog post will culminate with the ultimate Lord of the Rings fantasy trip: Milford Sound and all the wonders along the road to and fro’! Travel packing tips below:
PACKING LIST:
- Lightweight sweater in a neutral color like navy or grey that can be layered with almost anything (shop my picks here
)
- Light-to-mid-weight jacket that’s roomy enough in the sleeve to wear over other layers if needed (like a boyfriend jacket or car coat)
- Dark skinny jeans – these will go with everything and can be easily dressed up if needed for a nice dinner on the town! (shop my picks here
)
- Flats or flat ankle boots in a neutral color, like a light brown or cognac (shop my picks here
)
- Short-sleeve and long-sleeve tees – you can layer these with blazers, sweaters, leather jackets, or wear them on their own when it’s warm enough or you’ve hiked up sweat on those mountains! Personally, I always like to travel with a striped tee because they look great on their own but are similar to a neutral that goes with everything (except these have a little something extra that makes them stand out, especially with a red lip!) (shop my picks here
)
- A giant tote bag that’s lightweight enough that it won’t weigh you down, but roomy and sturdy enough so you can stuff those extra layers when needed and carry essentials like a bottle of water and some snacks for those hikes (shop my picks here
)
xoxo –pari–
- Lightweight sweater in a neutral color like navy or grey that can be layered with almost anything (shop my picks here )
- Light-to-mid-weight jacket that’s roomy enough in the sleeve to wear over other layers if needed (like a boyfriend jacket or car coat)
- Dark skinny jeans – these will go with everything and can be easily dressed up if needed for a nice dinner on the town! (shop my picks here )
- Flats or flat ankle boots in a neutral color, like a light brown or cognac (shop my picks here )
- Short-sleeve and long-sleeve tees – you can layer these with blazers, sweaters, leather jackets, or wear them on their own when it’s warm enough or you’ve hiked up sweat on those mountains! Personally, I always like to travel with a striped tee because they look great on their own but are similar to a neutral that goes with everything (except these have a little something extra that makes them stand out, especially with a red lip!) (shop my picks here )
- A giant tote bag that’s lightweight enough that it won’t weigh you down, but roomy and sturdy enough so you can stuff those extra layers when needed and carry essentials like a bottle of water and some snacks for those hikes (shop my picks here )
xoxo –pari–
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