Cycle | Queenstown | New Zealand
Cycling the Queenstown Trail Great Ride in 3-4 days
Text | Anninka Kraus
Photography | Tobias Kraus
New Zealand Otago
Allegedly the most popular of New Zealand’s 22 Great Rides, the Queenstown Trail is a network with over 130kms of off-road cycle trails that crisscross Otago’s Wakatipu Basin between Queenstown, Gibbston, Jacks Point, and historic Arrowtown and showcase the area’s sublime mountain-lake panoramas, braided rivers, tussock-covered hillsides, and early settler heritage buildings.
Officially opened in 2012, the trail is a joint initiative of the Queenstown Trails Trust, the Queenstown Lakes District Council, and the New Zealand Cycle Trail project, and a great way to escape the busyness of Queenstown and see its quieter sides.
Advertised as the one Queenstown Trail it is however much easier to think of the trail as individual trails, such as the Twin River Trail or Jack’s Point Trail, joined together. Otherwise, the signage on the trail will be confusing when you come to intersections where ‘Queenstown Trail’ is signposted in several directions.
When it comes to sorting out trail logistics, you have two options.
Bike hire, shuttle services, and guided cycle tours are readily available on the trail, particularly in the key hubs, so you can ride the trail in one go and stay at a different place along the track every night like you would on most Great Rides (the West Coast Wilderness, Alps 2 Ocean, and Otago Central Rail trails for example).
We did not find a tour operator offering luggage transfers for self-guided cyclists however when researching this trail, so you might have to look into that again if you’re interested.
With public buses available to many points along the trail, using public transport is your second option, which allows you to do this trail a little differently from other Great Rides and stay at one accommodation.
We enjoyed not having to rely on shuttle services, but the experience was more that of several day rides than one continuous multi-day cycle ride.
related
jump ahead
Karwarau Bridge Bungy, the home of bungy jumping on the Arrow River Bridges Trail.
what to expect.
The most popular of New Zealand’s 22 Great Rides flaunts the beauty of the Wakatipu Basin: aquamarine lakes and rivers, award-winning vineyards, and historic mining towns set against the backdrop of the Southern Alps
Ranging from Grade 2-4, the Queenstown Trail Great Ride caters for most riding abilities and lends itself well to day rides
Push your limits at the Karwarau Bridge Bungy, the home of bungy jumping on the Arrow River Bridges Trail
The Gibbston Valley – nicknamed the Valley of Vines – that you’ll pass through on the Gibbston River Wine Trail is well-known for its Pinot Noir and offers great wine tasting and cellar door restaurants
Stroll through the charming gold rush village of Arrowtown on the banks of the Arrow River with its well-preserved heritage buildings steeped in early settler history
location & trail information.
Where & getting there: Queenstown is set on the shores of Lake Wakatipu in Central Otago’s Queenstown Lakes District in the south-west of the South Island and is the gateway to hikes in Fiordland and Mount Aspiring National Park. Queenstown is easily accessible by car and Intercity bus from Dunedin (3.5-hour drive) and Invercargill (2.5-hour drive) and served by Air New Zealand with daily flights to Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch.
When to go: all year, but expect snow and ice on the ground in winter and cycle to the conditions | peak season is December – April when you will have to arrange shuttles, bike hire, accommodation, and tours well in advance
Transport on the trail: Bike hire, shuttle services, and guided cycle tours are readily available on the trail, particularly in the key hubs (Queenstown, Frankton, Arrowtown and Gibbston), but unlike most places in New Zealand, Queenstown also has a great public transport system.
The public bus network connects Queenstown city centre with the main suburbs and trail sections of the Queenstown Trail, Arthur’s Point, Jack’s Point, Arrowtown, Frankton, and Shotover Country, and the buses have bike racks and can carry up to two bikes (for free).
Difficulty: Grade 1-4, easy-moderate | the trail is a mix of purpose-built cycle track, lakeside paths, and quiet backcountry roads | the only Grade 4 section is Jack’s Point Trail
Permits: none required
How to prepare: in peak season, book accommodation, tours, bikes, and shuttle services well in advance
Options: also suitable for walking and trail running | you can easily do shorter sections of the trail, like the Lake Hayes Trail
Further information: Official Queenstown Trial website You can pay in cash on the bus, but fares are cheaper with a tag on tag off bus card, called the Bee Card which is valid in nine regions in New Zealand. You can order a Bee Card online or buy one on the bus.
Day 1 | 25km | 2-4 hours
Jack's Point Trail and Frankton Track & Kelvin Peninsula Trail
Lake Wakatipu is never out of sight for long on the trails that hug the lakeshore between Jack’s Point and Queenstown and offer this Great Ride’s most outstanding lake vistas, down the mustard yellow tussock slopes and across to Cecil Peak.
This is a point-to-point trail section requiring transport between Jack’s Point and Queenstown either at the start or finish. We start with the bus ride and take number 4 to Jack’s Point and get off at Jack’s Point Golf Course, where the trail cuts across the golf course and leads towards the lake.
The Jack’s Point Trail is the only Grade 4 section on the Queenstown Trail, a narrow, undulating gravel track that cuts through schist and tussock on the steep slopes skirting Lake Wakatipu’s eastern lakeshore.
The trail is well-graded but has some slightly more technical sections with sharp bends and steep descents. The views however are marvellous and we both consider this section one of the most beautiful on the entire trail.
At Jardine Park on Poplar Drive, the trail connects with the more leisurely Grade 2 Frankton Track and Kelvin Peninsula Trail that swoops around the Queenstown Golf Club on Kelvin Heights peninsula. Past the Yacht Club and Kelvin Grove, the trail continues through the Frankton Recreation Reserve, a narrow strip of lakeside greenery lined by water, beaches, and jetties to the left and stately lakeside mansions to the right.
At the end of the Frankton Arm inlet, we pass the Hilton Hotel and cross over the historic Kawarau Falls Bridge where the lake empties into the Kawarau River.
Across the bridge, the trail takes us past Frankton, the beach and marina, to the opposite side of the Frankton Arm of Lake Wakatipu. The views of the lake against the backdrop of The Remarkables mountain range on the homestretch as we’re cruising southwest towards the finish in the Queenstown Gardens are outstanding.
track details.
Start: Jack’s Point Gold Course (take bus number 4 from Queenstown)
End: Queenstown Gardens
Route: Jack’s Point – Kelvin Heights – Frankton – Queenstown Gardens in the city centre
Distance: 25km
Time: 2-4 hours
Elevation gain: 280m / loss: 315m (lowest point: 310m / highest point: 415m)
Note: Jack’s Point Trial is rated Grade 4 (medium difficulty)
Day 2 | 37km | 4-6 hours
Countryside Trail and Lake Hayes Trail
After a day cycling around Lake Wakatipu and never straying far from the lakeshore, we don’t see the lake at all on day two on the Queenstown Trail, which takes us to Arrowtown, Lake Hayes, and the Shotover River instead.
If you’re using public transport like us, hop on number 2 to Arrowtown and get off at the Adamson Drive (Ramshaw Lane) stop in the village centre.
The start of the Countryside Trail at Dudley’s Cottage is only 400m from the bus stop, but historic Arrowtown with its beautifully restored heritage buildings and the Arrowtown Chinese Settlement dating to the gold mining days of the 1960s deserve a visit first. It’s difficult to imagine nowadays that in 1962 when gold was first discovered in the Arrow River fifteen hundred miners were camped on these riverbanks.
And that when these miners moved to the West Coast goldfields, lured by new riches, thousands of Chinese miners were recruited to take their place.
From Dudley’s Cottage, we follow the Tobin Track to Manse Road and through the beautiful landscaping of the luxurious Millbrook Resort. South of the resort, the trail allows beautiful views running down to Lake Hayes against the backdrop of The Remarkables range from the top of Christine’s Hill.
There’s a short on-road section along Speargrass and Slopehill roads to the top of Rutherford Road that connects with the 8km Lake Hayes Trail. This side trip is not part of the Countryside Trail but I highly recommend the pretty loop trail circuiting Lake Hayes for its lake and mountain panoramas (going in an anticlockwise direction is easier) and mirror images of surrounding mountain peaks reflecting in the calm water.
If you can’t fit the loop into today’s ride, consider coming back another day to walk the circuit and while you’re there pay a visit to the award-winning Amisfield Winery & Bistro.
After completing the Lake Hayes Trail, we re-join the Countryside Trail at the top of Rutherford Road for a beautiful cross-country ride to where the trail meets the Shotover River and meanders along the riverbank on a sandy path flanked by yellow willow trees and even brighter yellow gorse to the Old Lower Shotover Bridge.
We finish at our accommodation in Lower Shotover, but you can also easily continue into Frankton (+8km) on the Twin Rivers Trail that connects with the Frankton Track following the shore of Lake Wakatipu back towards Queenstown (+15km).
track details.
Start: Arrowtown
End: Queenstown
Alternative finish: Lower Shotover or Frankton (take bus number 2 back into Queenstown)
Route: Arrowtown – Lake Hayes – Lower Shotover – Frankton – Queenstown
Distance: 37km
Time: 4-6 hours
Elevation gain: 260m / loss: 360m (lowest point: 310m / highest point: 450m)
Day 3 | 53km | 5-7 hours
Arrow River Bridges Trail, Gibbston River Wine Trail and Twin Rivers Trail
On day three on the Queenstown Trail, we make our way to Arrowtown again, but this time head south-east on the Arrow River Bridges Trail towards Arrow Junction and the Kawarau River.
This is a picture-perfect stretch on a wide trail along the riverbanks lined with willow trees that frequently crosses back and forth over the river on long suspension bridges, like the purpose-built, 80m-long Edgar Suspension Bridge and the Southern Discoveries Bridge. At the confluence of the Arrow and Kawarau rivers, the trail enters the Kawarau Gorge and arrives at the Kawarau Bridge and Kawarau Bungy Centre, home to the world’s first commercial bungee jumping operation.
At the bridge, the trail connects with the Gibbston River Wine Trail that runs down the eastern banks of the Kawarau River and through the Valley of Wines facing the Pisa mountain range. The ride along the Kawarau River is one of the trail’s most scenic but if wine tastings are not on your agenda, I suggest you turn back where the trail meets the SH6.
It’s quite sad really because that last stretch through neat rows of vines running the width of the valley to the official end of the Gibbston River Wine Trail at Gibbston Back Road would also be very pretty if it were not for the constant traffic noise from trucks thundering past at full speed.
When you turn back, retrace your steps to the Kawarau Suspension Bridge and the eastern starting point of Arrow River Bridges Trail, then follow the path to Morven Ferry Road and the start of the Twin Rivers Trail.
If you’re interested in sampling some of the renowned Gibbston Pinot Noir, several wineries offer luxurious accommodation, cellar doors, wines sales, wine tasting sessions, and restaurants, like Gibbston Valley Lodge and Spa, which operates daily shuttle transport between Queenstown and the winery, Kinross and Peregrine Wines, and Bald Hills. Taking a shuttle into Cromwell will offer you yet a greater choice of wineries, including Gate 20 Two, Te Kano Estate, Mt Difficulty, and Terra Sancta wineries.
From Morven Ferry Road the trail climbs to the top of Thompson’s hill at 406m, then ambles along the Kawarau and Shotover river banks on a wide track to the Old Lower Shotover Bridge. The historic bridge has been recently restored by the Rotary Club of Queenstown and provides views up and down the river towards Coronet Peak in the north and The Remarkables mountain range to the south.
Returning to the Shotover Delta on the opposite river bank, the Twin River Trail passes underneath State Highway 6 and takes you all the way into Frankton, entering through the Kawarau Falls Scenic Reserve.
To make your way back to Queenstown, you can either catch a bus at the Frankton Hub (bus numbers 1,2, and 5 in the direction of Sunshine Bay, Arthur’s Point, and Queenstown respectively) or, if you’re still keen, cycle into town on the Frankton Track.
track details.
Start: Arrowtown
End: Queenstown
Route: Arrowtown – Arrow Junction – Kawarau Gorge – Gibbston Valley – Kawarau Gorge – Lower Shotover – Frankton – Queenstown
Distance: 53km
Time: 5-7 hours
Elevation gain: 420m / loss: 515m (lowest point: 310m / highest point: 410m)
Day 4: Make use of private transport operators to split day 3 into two shorter day rides
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