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Bars and Clubs
A small selection of the best and the worst QT has to offer.
Winne Bageos - Easy-going and pretty chilled out. Very popular
at the weekends.
Surreal - A cool bar with good reggae and hip-hop nights
with live DJs
Candy's - Queenstown's very own gentleman's club...
Tardis - Kickin' locals bar with live MCs and PHAT beats.
Red Rock - Its not red and it doesn't rock. Serves a decent
selection of beers though.
The Bunker - classier than most. Open 'til 5am.
47 Sports Bar - NZ's shocking answer to Ritzys. Cheap shots
b4 12.
The World - Another fave of the green bus crew - but has
cheap pitchers and good happy hours.
Rattlesnake - Popular locals hangout, often gets pretty crazy.
The Pig and Whistle - English pub for those who wish they
were still in the UK. Please go back…
Chicos - If you are looking for cheese on a Wednesday night,
this is the place.
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Off-piste*
Remarkables
Toilet Bowl: A 30-minute hike-from-hell directly up from the top
of Sugar Chair. Drop over the other side for one of the best open
powder runs about. Short hike up the road to the pick-up-bus that
will take you back to the base. Worth boot-packing if you are up
to it.
Chutes: Go to the top of Shadow chair and cut left. A short 10-15
minute hike leads to several steep chutes. Hike higher for steeper
chutes. If you can get there first, they are amazing. If you opt
for the higher chutes, you have to hike out over the [hopefully]
frozen lake. Otherwise, you can traverse back round to the piste.
Homeward Bound: One of the only non-hiking powder runs - and hence
the busiest. Traverse high right off the shadow chair and follow
the masses! You end up either back at the shadow chair or on the
road [where a bus will pick you up and drop you back at base] depending
on how far right you go.
Outward Bound: In the same area as homeward bound, but there is
a short, steep hike halfway along the traversing line. You can then
head way out right for freshies until the end of the day. Short
hike back to the bus pickup point.
Coronet Peak
The Exchange: Great on a powder day if it snows low enough and there
is no hiking which is a massive bonus. Just head down the M1 and
cut off left after the first corner. There you will find loads of
natural hits and rollovers to play in.
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Moguls
None that are meant to be there…
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Speed
Not a chance. Remarks lacks anything
even remotely steep - unless you count the chutes, which are strictly
for powder days. The best chance of a fast-ish run is the M1 at
Coronet.
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Snowparks
Remarkables: The park is a
reasonable size and incredibly well maintained, making it very popular.
Consequently, you often have to queue for over 15 minutes to get
a run through. Although it changes every now and again, you can
almost always find two small, but kicky jumps, a 20 footer [which
grows as the season progresses], a hip, a 'not-so-fun' fun box a
rainbow rail, kinked rail and a couple of smaller straight rails.
The park is situated at the top of the sugar chair, but most people
hike it rather than wait for the painfully slow lift.
Coronet: The park is crap and the boarder cross track is
generally too icy to bother with. The pipe is the only reason to
go there if you are into freestyle. This year it was probably only
about 8 feet high with a short transition and not maintained all
that well. Better than nothing though!
Cardrona: This is the place to go for pipe riding. They have
4 half pipes, although only a couple are often reserved for camp
use. They are well maintained. The park is also reputed to be good,
with a number of hits and several rails.
Waiorau Snow Farm: There are plans to build a super-park
& pipe half way between Wanaka and Queenstown ready for next
season.
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Events
Wanaka Big Air: A massive event that
attracts thousands to a muddy field in the depths of winter to watch
NZ's finest snowboarders and skiers compete. It is of the biggest
nights of the season with several stomping after-parties going on
past dawn.
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Away Days
There is so much to do in Queenstown
if you fancy a break from the mountain. In the 'extreme sports capital
of NZ' you can do all manner of life threatening activities such
as bungee jumping, skydiving, luging, jetting….the list is
endless, if your pocket is deep enough.
If you want to get out of Queenstown, Wanaka is definitely worth
visiting. Combine this with a trip to Puzzling World, just outside
Wanaka - a big kids crèche - where, among other attractions,
you can loose hours in the huge 3D maze.
For a totally different skiing experience, visit a club field. These
are privately owned, ungroomed ski fields, normally with one towrope
to which you attach a 'nutcracker' that is attached to you and drags
you up the mountain. Sounds painful…. but apparently riding
a club field on a powder day is incredible, not only due to the
lack of people, but also because of the amazing terrain.
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Internet
Cafés
There are loads of Internet cafés
all over the place, costing around $6 per hour. Most have happy
hours during unpopular periods. The quickest and cheapest is House
of Travel, just off Shotover St, but it only has 5 computers. Of
the biggies, Internet Outpost on Shotover St is popular but Budget
Communications in the shopping mall is cheaper.
More
details
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Eating
Out
Pasta Pasta: The most
amazing pizza and pasta restaurant. Expensive, but definitely worth
it.
Sombreros: Cute, little Mexican restaurant.
Vudu: THE best café/restaurant in Queenstown. EVERYTHING
is incredible.
The Wholefood Café: Sounds unappealing, but is actually
pretty good.
Naff Caff: Another nice café…
Winne Bageos: Famous for its incredible pizzas.
Lonestar: Southern-style food, massive portions, but a tad
pricey.
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Mountain
Restos
As there is only one restaurant on
each mountain, choice is fairly limited. Thankfully they both sell
'Cookie Time' - NZ's fave snack and national obsession.
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McDonalds
Not even a hop, skip or a jump away,
you will find the golden arches slap bang in the centre of QT. And
for those of you who aren't down with burger and fries, there is
even a 'McCafe' alternative, serving sarnies, muffins and cappuccinos.
Predictably though, it all still tastes and looks like plastic....
Nasty neighbours include KFC and Pizza Hut.
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Finding Employment
Because Queenstown is a tourist Mecca, there are always plenty of
bar, restaurant and hotel jobs going, which pay on average around
$10 per hour. Don't bother working for the mountain; the pay is
crap [the only place that pays less is Pizza Hut!], you have less
time to ski and the incentive of a free season pass no longer exists
due to their low price.
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Shopping
There are two decent sized supermarkets.
'New World', in Frankton [7km from Queenstown], is only slightly
better than 'Fresh Choice' which is a short 5-minute walk from the
centre.
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Transfers
Having a car is by far the most
practical and fun way of getting up, around and down. There is a
thriving second-hand car market in Queenstown and you can pick up
a decent vehicle for as little as $1000. Those that don't have a
car and even some that do, hitch. It is easy to find a ride up the
hill (especially for girls) and is widely used method of transporting
oneself.
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Après-ski
Not really a feature of Queenstown
life, thanks to the long commute from sky to sea.
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Living
Queenstown is notorious for
its seasonal housing shortages. Many seasonaires end up staying
in hostels for the whole of their stay or living several kilometres
out of the centre. Because of this, having a car makes things a
lot easier. It is less difficult to find accommodation in Frankton
[7km from QT], which is also a good base from which to hitch up
Remarks. There are a couple of weekly local newspapers that advertise
vacancies, but on the whole, the best way to find somewhere is by
word-of-mouth. On the up side, if you do manage to find a place,
rent is pretty cheap.
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CdS
Search
If you’re thinking of doing a season in Queenstown then why
not search through the Club
des Saisonniers to see who else has worked there and what advice
they may be able to offer.
Discounts
There are numerous benefits
available to members of the CdS.
Join
Anyone who has done a season or has a firm offer from a tour operator
may join the Club des Saisonniers.
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[Thanks to Jenny
Byers for putting this Guide together]
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