These trailblazing men and women created experiences so spectacular, that people travel from around the world to immerse themselves in our magnificent mountain scenery and explore adventures like nowhere else.
Meet the people behind those quintessential Queenstown adventures – the pioneers of the Central Otago skies and the mavericks of the alpine rivers. Raise a glass to the visionaries who brought pinot noir to our tables and winter sports to our mountain slopes.
The Best View in Town
Ian Hamilton owned a small touring bus company, and he thought it would be spectacular to drive people to the top of Bob’s Peak to enjoy the panoramic views. In 1961 he built a (very!) steep gravel road up the hill and started to take visitors up in his VW Kombi vans.
Skyline Tours was formed in 1963. First they built a chalet to serve as tearooms for guests. Then, as Bob’s Peak became a more popular attraction, they came up with the idea of a gondola to ferry more people up the hill. In 1967, the steepest cable-car lift in the southern hemisphere opened for business, with cute, multi-coloured bubble cars.
The gondola was a hit from day one, with 56,000 people riding up to Bob’s Peak in its first year. Today more than 800,000 passengers visit the peak annually. The original gondola was replaced in 1987 with a new 4-seat lift from Doppelmayr, and in 2023 it was upgraded again with a new 10-seater gondola and a new base terminal building.
A ride up Skyline is truly an iconic Queenstown experience. Try a ride on the luge if you love a good thrill or book a table at Stratosfare for a meal with the best panorama in town.
The Birthplace of Bungy
At dawn on the 26th of June 1987, AJ Hackett jumped off the Eiffel Tower attached to a particularly well engineered piece of elastic. AJ and his support crew hid on the tower overnight to carry out their audacious promotional stunt for their brand-new Bungy cord, developed in collab with scientists at Auckland Uni.
The next year, in November 1988, Henry van Asch and AJ Hackett opened the world’s first commercial Bungy operation in Queenstown at Kawarau Bridge. The launch attracted media attention around the world and boosted the local tourist market, which was feeling the global downturn following the 1987 stock market crash.
Kawarau Bridge fast became an international sensation and a Queenstown ‘must- do.’ Bungy intensified Queenstown’s growing reputation for extreme thrills and inspired more gravity-defying adrenaline adventures such as canyon swings and zip rides.
Today, AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand continue to innovate with their environmental and community commitments. Experience this Queenstown initiation rite for yourself or simply head along to watch terrified people hurl themselves off the historic bridge into the gorge.
Pop the Cork on a Taste of Central Otago
In 1983 Alan Brady planted the first pinot noir vines in New Zealand, transforming the schist soil of the Gibbston Valley into the international phenomenon that is Central Otago Pinot.
Alan may be Queenstown’s modern wine pioneer; however, he reignited a spark first set in the 1860s gold rush. French immigrant Jean Desire Féraud invested his fortune from prospecting in planting the first grapes in the region and made wines that won prizes at shows in Australia. But over a century would pass before wine was made in the region again.
Cooler in climate and later to ripen than other Central Otago wine regions, Gibbston is famed for full-bodied wines that express our intense climate and distinct terroir. Today, over 100 vineyards make wines acclaimed around the world. Gibbston Valley Wines are home to New Zealand's largest wine cave the original Home Block Vineyard planted by Alan.
New Zealand’s first Commercial Ski Resort
Norwegian goldminers introduced skiing to Queenstown in the 1860s, as the easiest way to reach their remote diggings in winter. But skiing didn’t take off as a sport until the early 1900, when locally-run ski clubs began to appear on mountains across New Zealand.
Coronet Peak high-country farm became a popular place to ski for intrepid locals, who hiked up the mountain carrying home-made wooden skis and poles. It wasn’t until 1947 that Queenstown inventor Bill Hamilton installed the first rope ski tow at Coronet Peak, making it the country’s first commercial ski resort.
Today, Coronet Peak is still Queenstown locals’ favourite, with 280 hectares of skiable terrain including rolling off piste and legendary back bowls, two on-mountain terrain parks, and a great beginner’s learning area. It’s also New Zealand’s only night skiing resort. You don’t have to be a skier to appreciate Coronet Peak. Buy a sightseeing pass and take a gondola ride to the summit of Coronet Peak, then relive childhood fun by hiring a toboggan.
Remarkable Wild Ski Terrain
Coronet Peak was so popular, there was a clear demand for a second ski area. The Mount Cook Group, a major New Zealand transport and tourism company at the time, seized the opportunity. They opened The Remarkables Ski Area 40 years ago in 1985 with a rope tow, three quad chairlifts and a whole lot of exhilarating, wild terrain.
Kawarau Maunga or the Remarkables (locally known as the Remarks), run north to south. They form Queenstown’s iconic backdrop of dramatic snow-clad peaks. The ski field sits 1943m above sea level in an trio of snow-filled, sunny bowls with views over Queenstown.
The ski field is now owned by NZSki, and while there are now plenty of groomed runs, three terrain parks, and excellent beginner slopes, the ski area is a magnet for off-piste adventure lovers. Areas like Sugar Bowl with the challenging Gallipoli chutes offer big mountain terrain with untouched snow. The ski field is expanding into the magnificent backcountry terrain in neighbouring Doolans Basin, increasing the ski area from 385 hectares to over 900ha. The Remarks aren’t only for skiing. Visit in summer for walks in the Remarkables Conservation Area including Lake Alta, a picturesque glacial tarn framed by the mountain’s jagged peaks.
Gateway to the South
Queenstown Airport was granted a license 90 years ago in 1935, two years before commercial flights began in Auckland, and five years before Christchurch airport was founded. For those first pilots, landing in Queenstown was enough of an adventure. The first airstrip was the paddocks of the old Queenstown racecourse and landing was touch and go, depending on the prevailing wind. The airstrip was levelled to make it smoother, but all flights through the 1950s and 60s landed on grass. The runway wasn’t sealed until 1968.
In 1964 Mount Cook Airlines began flying DC-3 aircraft from Christchurch, Queenstown’s first commercial flights. The grass runway was lengthened to 1500m to accommodate larger aircraft, and a small terminal building opened. The terminal was rebuilt and extended with more amenities in 1973, then expanded and upgraded again in 2007 and 2018.
The first direct service between Auckland and Queenstown landed in 1994, followed by the first international flight from Sydney for ski season in 1995. Queenstown continued its legacy of innovation with the first New Zealand after-dark flights touching down in the mountains in 2016. Last year the airport welcomed 2.6 million passengers from around the world.
Early Queenstown Aviators take to the Skies
Captain Trevor White (Tiny to his friends) landed his Simmonds-Spartan biplane on Frankton racecourse in 1931, becoming the first pilot to land in Queenstown.
Rodolph and Henry Wigley formed Queenstown-Mount Cook Airways in 1938 and started flying people to Milford Sound, and Aoraki Mount Cook. Henry also developed the first ski plane to fly tourists to ski fields and glaciers, designing retractable skis that allowed planes to land on hard surfaces and snow. His first snow landing on the Tasman Glacier was in 1955.
Queenstown-Mount Cook Airways were joined by Bill Hewett’s Southern Scenic Air Trips in 1948. By the 1950s, Ritchie Air Services, West Coast Airways, and Tourist Air Travel were all flying scenic flights and servicing the high-country stations with supplies.
Queenstown aviators became more skilled at landing in remote locations. Local pilot Jules Tapper flew hundreds of trips to Hollyford Valley when he founded the Hollyford Valley Walk in Fiordland National Park in 1968. Today, a scenic flight can take you into inaccessible backcountry, to remote mountain huts, or wild West Coast beaches.
Ramp up the Fear Factor
NZONE Skydive’s drop zone at the foot of the Remarkables is described as “one of the best places in the world to jump out of a perfectly good aeroplane”. Skydive enthusiasts Robynne and Lindsay Williams founded NZONE Skydive in October 1990 to share their passion for this adrenalin-fuelled personal challenge with the world.
The first tandem skydive operation in New Zealand, NZONE grew from three staff based in a Queenstown paddock, to one of the largest tandem skydive operations in the world. More than 350,000 people have jumped out of an NZONE plane over the Whakatipu Basin. Today NZONE also operates Skydive Wanaka and Skydive Southern Alps.
When you jump with NZONE, you choose your fear factor, with jumps from 15,000,12,000, and 9,000 feet. Expect breathtaking birds-eye views on your scenic flight to the drop zone. Freefall begins when you step out of the aircraft door with your jumpmaster, before a few minutes of blissful serenity when the chute opens and you drift slowly to earth.
Tranquillity and Adventure Mid Air
Paragliding was introduced to Queenstown in 1987 by Swiss immigrant Rene Schwaller. Rene returned from a visit to family in Switzerland equipped with two modified parachutes and a new skill, which he demonstrated by jumping off Bob’s Peak.
Rene taught local Olympian alpine skier Bruce Grant to paraglide, Bruce invented the first tandem paraglider and the duo set up GForce Paragliding off Bob’s Peak in 1991. Tragically, Bruce died on an expedition to K2 in 1995. Before he left for his last adventure he said, “set your sights high, the higher the better, and wonderful things will happen.” His philosophy could be the motto of all Queenstown’s tourism pioneers.
GForce Paragliding take off from the top of the Skyline Gondola. You soar quietly over Queenstown for the perfect mixture of tranquillity and adrenaline. Flying tandem with skilled pilots certified by the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority, means you don’t need any paragliding experience – your pilot will guide you through the whole flight.
Meet the Lady of the Lake
In 1912 the TSS Earnslaw set off on her maiden voyage up Lake Whakatipu. One of the world’s oldest and largest coal-fired steamships, she is the last of the coal-burning steamers that ferried people, livestock, and goods around the lake from 1863.
When gold was discovered near Arrowtown in 1862, there were few roads in the region, so everything travelled to Queenstown by boat from Kingston at the southern end of the lake. Roads ran from Kingston to Dunedin and Invercargill, and a railway opened in the 1890s.
Built in Dunedin, the TSS Earnslaw was dismantled when construction was completed, her hull plates numbered, and she was transported to Kingston by train. There she was reassembled like a giant steel jigsaw. At 51.2 metres long, she was the biggest boat on the lake and the largest steamship ever built in New Zealand.
The Earnslaw cruises the lake to this day and has never known any other waters. In 1969, she retired from service as a goods vessel and ferry. Now she chugs serenely up and down the lake on pleasure cruises to Walter Peak High Country Farm.
The Original Jet Boat Ride
In 1959, brothers Alan and Harold Melhop introduced Queenstown visitors to a new kind of thrill. Engineers by trade, they were also the local agency for the new Hamilton Jet boat. They started demoing jet boats to potential customers on the Kawarau Falls Dam and soon found that other people wanted a go too. They started offering jet boat joy rides for five shillings a spin. Soon people were lining up.
Trustees for the Lakeland Christian Camp, Alan and Harold had a sharp eye for a fundraising opportunity. The brothers persuaded the other camp trustees to invest in a jet boat, and the world’s first commercial jet boat tour was born.
Kawarau Jet Services (or KJet as they’re now known) proved hugely popular with visitors. In 1960, the council invited them to move their berth from Frankton Jetty to the Queenstown Pier to bring more people into the centre of town. Today, you can blast across Lake Whakatipu and down the Kawarau and Shotover Rivers on an epic 60-minute adventure that takes in 45kms of river and 360° spins.
Electric Jet Boat Pioneers
In 1965, the Melhops did it again, setting up the Shotover Jet. They carried five people at a time up the Kimiākau or Shotover River to the beach at Arthur’s Point. They may have been using a Hamilton Jet30 but that first Shotover Jet wasn’t the ride for speed fans it is today.
Shotover Jet has always been a local treasure. After a year, the Melhops sold to local Herm Palmer, who in turn sold to Trevor and Heather Gamble in 1970, who sold it to Jim and Karen Boult in 1986. Then in 1999, local iwi business, Ngāi Tahu Tourism became majority shareholders, taking full ownership in 2004. It was the first tourism venture Ngāi Tahu acquired, and they still see Shotover Jet as the jewel in their crown.
The business become the thrilling attraction it is today in the 70s and 80s. The Gambles invested in bigger, faster jet boats. The Boults gained exclusive rights to operate in the awe-inspiring canyons of the Shotover River, tearing between cliff faces barely wider than the boat. In 2001, twin-engine jet boats carrying 14 passengers were introduced. In 2022, Ngāi Tahu Tourism converted one of their petrol power jet boats to be fully electric. They are now trialling the world’s first electric jet boat and hope to convert their entire fleet.
Whitewater Rafting on Wild Mountain Rivers
The first Queenstown rafting company Kon Tiki opened in 1974. Graham Tinker took people on relaxed floats down the calm, lower reaches of the Shotover River followed by tea and gingernut biscuits for all. But in 1975 Dale Gardiner set up Danes Rafting and started rafting the whitewater of the upper Shotover, giving the rapids the irreverent names rafters still use today, such as Toilet, Jaws, and Mother. Soon everyone wanted some whitewater action.
There was steep competition in the 1980s with new rafting companies popping up and going under, and brawls and skulduggery between competitors. This wild west approach led to a number of tragic rafting deaths and injuries on the Shotover in the 1990s. The New Zealand Rafting Association was established in 1996 and health and safety standards improved significantly, however there’s no doubt whitewater rafting is still a risky sport.
Today, a small group of experienced operators offer rafting trips in Queenstown. The Shotover River offers challenging whitewater rapids for confident swimmers, while the Kawarau River provides a more leisurely adventure. You can also try river surfing and sledging for a more immersive whitewater experience.
A Treasure Trove of Queenstown Adventures
Totally Tourism is a collective of adventures around Queenstown. Mark Quickfall founded the business in 1999 to consolidate exciting experiences in the region. Today, Totally Tourism operates The Helicopter Line, Mitre Peak Cruises, Milford Sound Scenic Flights, Glacier Helicopters, Harris Mountains Heli-Ski, Challenge Rafting, and Alpine Guides.
Mark started his tourism career driving Shotover Jet boats for Trevor and Heather Gamble and working as an international tour guide. He owned his first tourism business, Pro Jet, by the age of 23. Then he teamed up with Alpine Helicopters, later The Helicopter Line, to offer heli-jetboat combos. After a stint as sales and marketing manager for THL Leisure’s 17 national attractions, he started Totally Tourism.
A stalwart of the local tourism industry, Mark has been a director and chair of Skyline Enterprises, served on the Inbound Tour Operators Council board, chair of Destination Milford Sound, and chaired Destination Queenstown.
The Essence of This Special Place
Since the late 1800s, Queenstown has been home to pioneering adventurers. Pushing the boundaries of what’s possible is in the DNA of people and place. When you visit Queenstown, don’t miss these iconic experiences. They are the lifeblood of this place.