Queenstown to Dunedin in 4 days

Four days is the perfect amount of time for exploring the lower South Island with a little road trip from Queenstown to Dunedin. Kicking things off in Queenstown means you will be exploring the adventure capital of New Zealand so strap yourself in for a hectic start to this road trip – from there we start to chill out a little bit, finishing up in historic Dunedin. Let’s get GOing! If you’re still in the planning stage of your trip, make sure you check out the great deals on rental cars in Queenstown or our car hire in Dunedin – we’re not one of New Zealand’s favourite rental car companies for no reason!

Contents

1. Recommended vehicle for this trip
2. Trip itinerary
   • Queenstown
   • Wanaka
   • Oamaru
   • Dunedin

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Trip Itinerary

1Queenstown and around

There are few places in New Zealand that are more exciting than a trip to Queenstown. To put it simply, there’s not much that Queenstown doesn’t offer as a holiday destination. Great scenery, incredible food and wine, adventures, thrills and spills – the list goes on.

There are only a couple of days in this itinerary to make the most of it however so you’ll have to be selective. That’s why we’ve done the selection for you with our top highlights that offer a bit of everything for your visit below:

Queenstown Complete Guide

Some alternative activities in Queenstown

Those three were just to get you started and we’ve got three more cracking options below.

4) Queenstown Hill – a 3-hour walk to the peak of Queenstown Hill through an amazing pine forest is a great way to get your fix of nature. There’s also a great sculpture near the summit to grab a few selfies too.

5) Jet Boating – One of the biggest and most successful tourist attractions is the jet boats in Queenstown with a number of operators offering rides at ridiculous speeds with equally ridiculous manoeuvres. Awesome fun!

6) Kiwi Birdlife Park – You can also enjoy amazing animal encounters at the Kiwi Birdlife Park, one of the highest-rated places in the city. The Kiwis are the main stars but they also do a great conservation show during the week and have many other native species of bird too.

Nightlife

Queenstown has a thriving nightlife with over 150 cafes, bars and restaurants to choose from. It’s a great place to be able to unwind, especially given how active you’re likely to be throughout your day of adventuring. Everything from busy clubs to quiet wine bars and late-night coffee can be found so you’re completely covered!

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2Wanaka (67kms – 1 hour 6 mins)

Day 2 is a tricky one. If you are still not done with your adventure activities in Queenstown, you can use this second day of your road trip for ticking off everything you wanted to get done. If, however, you are exhausted after a crazy-busy first day, then a little road trip over to Wanaka is a great way to take a step back and chill out. Wanaka is often known as Queenstown’s chilled-out little brother – still lots going on but not quite as full-on.

Only an hour’s drive from Queenstown, it’s really easy to get to Wanaka and has a number of great attractions and sights to see when you’re there.

Lake Wanaka

One of the reasons Wanaka is so well known in recent times is because of its lake and the iconic and hugely Instagrammed Lone Tree of Lake Wanaka (also known as #ThatWanakaTree). It’s actually a little off the beaten track in the foothills of the Mount Aspiring National Park and wasn’t given too much notice by the locals originally. After a few great snaps, however, the tree has pretty much become immortalised.

Sky Diving

With your GO Play Card, you can get some great discounts on some fantastic things in Wanaka including Sky Diving with SkyDive Wanaka. From 15,000ft you’ll be strapped to a complete (but highly experienced) stranger before taking the ultimate plunge. After reaching 200 kmph a parachute will (hopefully) be deployed and you’ll be able to spend the rest of the journey in the best seat in the house floating gently towards the ground while taking in the unbelievable view. You can then share the news with your parents who will react the way all parents do without a doubt.

Kayaking and SUP

If you’d rather keep both feet a bit closer to the ground then there are plenty of on-water activities you can do. Some of the more popular include Kayaking and Stand Up Paddleboarding (SUP). The great crew and Paddle Wanaka are fully equipped to sort you out with rentals and they also do guided tours as well. Once again they are a GO Rentals partner which means our customers get a discount with their GO Play cards.

Roys Peak Track

Another famous Instagrammed sight can be found on the Roys Peak Track, itself a beautiful 3+ hour walk with some amazing wilderness to take in. The views you enjoy of the Mount Aspiring National Park and Lake Wanaka itself are simply breathtaking. You might have to join a bit of a queue to get a photo at the exact iconic spot but there are other spots you can discover for yourself for photos that’ll be just as good.

Wildwire Wanaka

Another great and unique attraction to try and tick off in Wanaka is rock climbing with Wildwire Wanaka. Although your own inexperience might put you off slightly, Wildwire Wanaka caters for beginners and families just as much as those with experience with different levels of course to choose from. Furthermore, the courses are set up alongside one of the most picturesque sights in Wanaka, the Twin Falls. It’s a great challenge and stern test of the body and mind but the feeling you get afterwards makes it well worth it.

You can choose to do a stayover in Wanaka but if you have nice accommodation in Queenstown, you might want to head back over there after a spot of dinner ready for day 3 of our road trip.

3Queenstown to Dunedin (282kms – 3 hours 41 mins)

After a little day trip out in your GO Rentals hire car, it’s time to put it to the test today with the longest leg of this 4-day itinerary. It’s still a pretty short drive by New Zealand standards and it’s only just under 4 hours to Dunedin from Queenstown, however, we’ve got a day full of great stop-offs planned so you can take your time and enjoy some amazing destinations along the way.

Arrowtown (20kms – 22 mins)

The first stop off of the day comes just 20 minutes into the journey. Arrowtown has strong roots from the Gold Rush Era, much of which can still be seen today. The main street of this quaint little town is a great tribute to the period with restored European and Chinese buildings from the time. Autumn is an especially nice time to visit as the tree-lined street turns a beautiful amber courtesy of the leaves all around.

That’s just the beginning of Arrowtown’s offerings which include but are not limited to the historic Arrowtown Chinese Settlement, Sawpit Gully Trail, Lake District Museum and Art Gallery and the Arrow River in which you can pan for the gold. Who knows, you might even strike it lucky and be able to pay off the whole trip!

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Roxburgh (72kms – 54 mins)

Your final stop of the day before the drive to Dunedin is Roxburgh – a great place to stretch your legs. That’s because Roxburgh has a number of great walking trails for you to stroll including the Roxburgh Gorge Trail and the Clutha Gold Trail. It is also home to the Roxburgh Dam, the first hydro dam built on the Clutha River. This has a great lookout point with great views to admire and appreciate. There are also plenty of places to eat in Roxburgh including Jimmy’s Pies, famous throughout the country.
From Roxburgh, it’s another 152kms to Dunedin which will take you just under 2 hours.

4Dunedin and around

So, the final day of this 4-day road trip has arrived and hopefully, you have left plenty of time before your flight out to explore Dunedin as there is heaps to see and do here.

If you’re from overseas you might not realise that Dunedin has strong Scottish roots with its very name meaning “Edinburgh” in Gaelic. The settlers that arrived between the 1850s – 1900s certainly left their mark and you can experience much of it yourself in a number of different ways.

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Toitu Settlers Museum

A good place to start is the Toitu Otago Settlers Museum. It’s a museum that chronicles the social history of the city including its people, their relationships, art, fashion, culture, transport and more. It gives you fascinating insight into everything behind what you’ll expect to encounter on your travels here and across the region. Hosted in a recently revamped space it’s a great facility from one end to the other.

Larnach Castle and Dunedin Railway Station

Another way to experience Dunedin’s history is through its architecture and there are two fine examples you have to prioritise. Larnach Castle and the Dunedin Railway Station. Larnach Castle is actually one of the only castles in New Zealand dating back to the 1870s, carefully preserved and restored to the time of its creation. It also has magnificent gardens to explore. The Dunedin Railway Station is one of the most photographed railway stations in the country thanks to its exquisite Flemish style facade. It also often hosts exhibitions and galleries too.

Otago Peninsula

As well as its fascinating history and architecture, Dunedin is also close to some amazing natural features like the Otago Peninsula. It received world acclaim when CNN named it one of the Top 10 places to propose for marriage in 2011 thanks to its incredible scenery and natural wildlife. The latter, especially with regards to its birdlife, is something that draws people from far and wide. The opportunity to see colonies of Hoiho (Yellow-Eyed Penguin) and Royal Albatross can be experienced nowhere else in the world which makes it all the more special.

Dunedin Complete Guide

And so that brings to the end this awesome 4-day itinerary from Queenstown to Dunedin. We hope you have loved your time in the lower South Island and got to see and do everything on your wish list. If there’s anything we missed off our itinerary, make sure you drop us a line on Facebook or Instagram and tell us all about it!

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