Queenstown Glenorchy Arrowtown, Apr 2026

By Beatrice Wong
May 12, 2026
7:30 pm
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I have always wanted to visit New Zealand, the 6th largest island country and the last large habitable land to be settled by humans. New Zealand is made up of two islands, North Island and South Island. My autumn photo trip this time will focus on the South Island. I was told the nature scenery here is unparelled with beautiful lakes, waterfalls, mountains, and fjords. I flew into Queenstown via Sydney and stayed at Quest Hotel in Frankton, close to the airport, just outside town. This is where the photo workshop will stay for the Queenstown portion.

Quest Hotel & Apartments Queenstown

Queenstown

I arrived Queenstown in the southwest past of the South Island of New Zealand a couple days early to relax and check out “the adventure capital of the world” where bungee jumping was first invented. But no, I did not go bungee jumping or paragliding haha. Queenstown sits on the edge of Lake Wakatipu and has magnificent views of The Remarkables mountain ranges. It is a major center for skiers and adrenaline seekers (jet boating, bungee jumping, paragliding, sky diving, etc), as well as a jumping-off point to Fiordland (which I will do after my photo workshop) and the surrounding mountains and lakes. This whole area of South Island is a landscape photographer’s paradise. For my free day, I decided to take the Skyline Gondola up to Bob’s Peak for panoramic views of Queenstown below. Other than the observation deck and restaurant, one can partake in luge riding, paragliding, ziplining, biking, and hiking up top. I did the easy Skyline Loop track through the Douglas firs, but for the energetic, there’s the steep Ben Lomond Track up to the top. From the Skyline upper station, you can see Lake Wakatipu, New Zealand’s 3rd largest lake, shaped like a lightning bolt. The water has been rated 99.9% pure thanks to the 5 rivers flowing into it.

Taking the Skyline Gondola up to Bob’s Peak

Taking the Skyline Gondola up to Bob’s Peak

View of Queenstown from Bob’s Peak

View of Queenstown from Bob’s Peak

Skyline Loop track through the Douglas firs

I didn’t do the lugging mainly because I had no where to store my camera and tripod etc. But looked like lots of fun.

Paragliding from Bob’s Peak

Queenstown’s waterfront is a great place to photograph the Remarkables and Lake Wakatipu, especially at sunrise and sunset. About a 15-minutes walk from town along the road to Glenorchy is the One Mile Carpark which is where I chose to photograph the sunset.

Queenstown waterfront

Queenstown waterfront

Steamer’s wharf at Queenstown waterfront

The TSS Earnslaw is a coal-fired, vintage steamship launched in 1912. It is one of the world’s oldest and largest remaining steamships.

Queenstown waterfront

Queenstown waterfront

Sunset at the One Mile Carpark

Queenstown waterfront

Glenorchy

About a 50-minute drive outside of Queenstown, at the head of Lake Wakatipu, is Glenorchy, a small town surrounded by snow capped mountains. The windy road from Queenstown to Glenorchy is said to be one of the most breathtaking scenic drives of New Zealand. We visited Glenorchy Lagoon for some beautiful autumn colors and reflections. There is a trail that goes around Glenorchy Lagoon with a platform where you can see snow-capped Mt. Earnslaw and surrounding autumn foliage reflected in the calm waters. Another very popular spot for photographers is Glenorchy Wharf and best visited at sunrise when the morning rays hit the Humboldt Range. The weather during my visit was very rainy but the images turned out quite nice.

Glenorchy Wharf

Glenorchy Wharf

Glenorchy Wharf

Right next to Glenorchy Wharf are the Glenorchy Sister Willow Trees.

Glenorchy Sister Willow Trees

Glenorchy

Glenorchy Lagoon

Glenorchy Lagoon

There is a trail that goes around Glenorchy Lagoon with a platform where you can see snow-capped Mt. Earnslaw and surrounding autumn foliage reflected in the calm waters.

Glenorchy Lagoon

Glenorchy Lagoon

Glenorchy Lagoon

There is a trail that goes around Glenorchy Lagoon with a platform where you can see snow-capped Mt. Earnslaw and surrounding autumn foliage reflected in the calm waters.

Glenorchy Lagoon

Glenorchy Lagoon

Arrowtown

A 20-minute drive northeast of Queenstown is the historic gold mining settlement of Arrowtown. Arrowtown was a bustling gold rush village back in the 19th century where many Chinese gold miners were forced to live in ramshackle huts on the banks of Bush Creek on the outskirts of town. The small Chinese settlement became a village of its own of with many of the huts restored to demonstrate the harsh conditions the Chinese workers endured. Arrowtown is especiallly beautiful when fall foliage appears between late March to late May. One of the most photographed places here in Arrowtown is the old Police Hut when surrounded by the fall colors. Unfortunately, a carpark has been built right in front of it. We went instead nearby to get some shots of the beautiful foliage.