QUEENSTOWN, New Zealand -- There's much more in store here for
meetings attendees than the usual excursion following a general
session.
This lakeside town, known as an adventure-travel capital, offers
the following to meetings planners:
" Canyoning.
" Whitewater rafting.
" Fly by Wire, a flight in a tethered plane -- "The closest
you'll ever get to piloting a fighter plane."
" Queenstown Bungee Rocket, a catapult that shoots customers
"more than 150 feet into space."
" Shotover Jet -- Thrill Therapy, the "world's most exciting
jetboat ride" aboard "canyon thrill machines."
" Vertigo Heli-Adventures, mountain-bike trips emphasizing
drastic drops -- often with access to the starting point by
helicopter.
Some travelers thrive on, and seek out, these types of
adventures. To make adventure shopping easier, a huge visitors
center in the middle of town displays rack after rack of options,
ranging from the low-key to the extreme.
The volume of choices seems outsized for such a small place
(population: 13,000; 16,000 counting outlying areas), but
Queenstown clearly got lucky when it comes to natural resources: It
is within easy reach of rivers, canyons, fiords, mountains and even
a thriving wine country.
Hence, tourism is its business nowadays. And given its history
as a gold-mining camp, this tourist town looks like a cross between
a U.S. frontier outpost and a Colorado ski resort.
My itinerary probably was fairly typical for visitors who are
not sure exactly what keeps a mountain bike upright and don't want
to be catapulted out of a rocket:
" A 40-minute ride each way aboard the Earnslaw
-- a restored, 1912 coal-fired steamer -- across Lake Wakatipu to
the Walter Peak High Country Farm for a bountiful buffet of comfort
foods in the Colonel's Homestead restaurant and a 45-minute
demonstration of sheep-herding and shearing.
The Earnslaw, owned by local operator Real Journeys,
accommodates 350 passengers on lake trips offered during the day
and in the evening.
This steamer trip is a very satisfying tourist event and, as an
evening option with dinner (at about $46 per adult), an ideal way
to wrap up a day's activities.
For more information, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.realjourneys.co.nz.
" A half-day hiking tour led by Richard Bryant, director of his
own business, Guided Walks New Zealand.
One of the numerous Queenstown options focused on nature, this
program took in lakeside forested areas and concentrated on
scenery, birds and plants.
We learned tidbits such as this: The local tree that looks like
a palm is called the cabbage tree -- because of the cabbage taste
of its core, traditionally eaten by the Maori -- but is related to
the yucca plant.
Bryant said two-thirds of his business normally comes from U.S.
visitors. A guide typically leads one to six travelers whose walk
is part of a tour or an optional extra, and he tailors outings to
customer abilities and interests.
The firm also offers private nature walks and, bespeaking the
Queenstown approach, heli-hikes, too. For details, e-mail [email protected] or
visit www.nzwalks.com.
" A half-day wine tour operated by Queenstown Wine Trail. The
itinerary included two wineries for tastings, emphasizing pinot
noirs; a visit and tasting at a cheese factory; and an outdoor
winery lunch. The Gibbston Valley Winery makes the cheese and
serves the lunch.
During the wine-tasting, we also learned a few things. Our host
said there are two reasons to swirl wine at a tasting -- to let air
into the wine and to determine if tasters can keep the wine in the
glass "to prove they are sober enough to go on."
The tour company offers other itineraries, including those for
meetings groups. And, true to Queenstown's penchant for the quirky,
one choice is called the Jetboat Wine Tour. How does one swirl wine
on that tour? For more information, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.queenstownwinetrail.co.nz.
" A 30-minute ride on the Kingston Flyer, a vintage steam train
dating from the turn of the last century. The handsomely restored
wooden carriages are pulled by locomotives on an 8.5-mile fragment
of an old route that once helped link coastal areas to the
inland.
Snacks are available on board. Adult fares are about $12.50 one
way, $15 roundtrip. For details, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.kingstonflyer.co.nz.
" An overnight trip to Milford Sound on the west coast of the
South Island in Fiordland National Park.
Because of the landscape of mountains, lakes and fiords, it took
the better part of a day to travel a relatively short distance,
affording a long look at snow-capped mountains, the rain forest,
clear pools, rushing streams and waterfalls.
We overnighted in the sound aboard the 60-passenger Milford
Mariner, one of several such vessels operated by Real Journeys.
This provided late-day and early-morning views of the sound, a
deep sliver of pristine water that meanders among steep cliffsides
and which is home to dolphins, seals and the tiny Fiord Crested
Penguin.
We saw them all -- and not for the first time, apparently. A
seal (which the staff called Sammie) climbed aboard our boat for a
prebreakfast nap.
Morning activities included kayaking or sightseeing in the sound
aboard the tender craft; then it was time for the journey back to
Queenstown in our glass-roofed coach.
I can only conclude that Queenstown isn't merely an
adventure-travel capital -- it is an activities capital, and some
of the activities just happen to be hair-raising.
To contact Nadine Godwin, send e-mail to [email protected].
Room Key: Mercure Grand Hotel St. Moritz Queenstown
Address: 10-18 Brunswick St., Queenstown, a short walk
from the town center.
Phone: (011) 64-3 442-4990
Fax: (011) 64-3 442-4667
E-mail:[email protected]
Web:www.mercure.co.nz
Manager: Lynne McVicar
Head concierge: David Musk
To book: GDSs; e-mail (above)
Number of units: 144 (half are suites), three
apartments; about 40% have balconies.
History: Built in the style of a European chalet;
opened in 1998.
Daily rates: About $90 to $150 per room, per
night; for one-bedroom suites, about $130 to $175; lakeview
surcharges apply.
Room amenity highlights: Hair dryer, iron and
ironing board, heated towel rack; in suites, kitchen with
washer/dryer.
Services highlights: Sauna and spa; business
services with e-mail; Lombardi Bar and Restaurant, offering views
of the nearby lake and mountains, with meals inspired by Italian
cuisine; limited services for business travelers.
Noteworthy: For those in a high room with balcony,
views so fantastic nothing else matters; good phone rates (about 30
cents a minute to the U.S.) and e-mail rates (about $1 for 10
minutes).
Not worthy: Light switches sometimes difficult to
locate.