The trip came about to explore the town and what it had to offer after being quite a years in a row visiting Queenstown for the Annual adaptive snow sports festival. Only coming for the days of skiing itself not actually having the time or confidence to see and do activities in the adventure heart of the south island on my own.
I decided this year 3 days before my 5th adaptive snow sports festival I was going to see the place and enjoy being a tourist. My younger sister Sophia who is also vision impaired accompanied me it was her first time in the south island. The activities we did were researched on Google. recommendations given to us by friends and this helpful free to join Facebook group called New Zealand Travel Trips NZTT which also have discount codes for a range of activities.
Our Queenstown trip at the start of august was fantastic being true tourists for a few days. This is what we got up to;
Day 1
Started the adventure with shotover canyon swing for me, the highest swing in NZ at 109m over the Shotover river. A free fall of 60m before the swing catches you. It was amazing so much fun. I would highly recommend to anyone seeking adrenaline. This activity was booked directly through their website https://www.canyonswing.co.nz/ they offer a shuttle from the centre of town out to the canyon and back. The group activity took us 2 hours. When you arrived there is a dirt track along the edge of the canyon a few minutes walk to the building. I was able to navigate well with my cane following my sister who was in front of me. No obstacles of roots, some rails were up in parts which gave me more confidence. The staff who drove the shuttle was also available to assist if we needed guiding. When I put on my harness the staff were very helpful there were a lot of loops to step through. I had to make my way down a few flights of steps to reach the swing platform. Handrails were on both sides so I was safe. I just took my time no one rushed me, especially good as it was wet and snowing! I was very nervous not having sone anything so extreme before. The staff guided me onto the end of the platform and talked me through what was happening then we counted down to three I took a big breath and I was off flying through the air over the canyon.
We then headed to the Onsen hot pools for an afternoon of relaxation in our own private spa overlooking mountains. The pools offer a shuttle from town to the facility but we took a Uber as we were running late for our booking. When you arrive there has a 100m ramp down to the building well formed gravel path. The staff at the pools were really helpful and guided us to our spa and showed us where the bathrooms were. It was a fun activity to share together. We managed to book the shuttle back to town at the front desk which the staff guided us to the van. I felt very well looked after.
Day 2
we set off early for our Milford Sound Tour. We were on the bus for about an hour and a half to when the snow came rolling in and closed the road. We had to turn back at Mossburn to QT. it was a winter wonderland ride so special snowing like that as well as learning a bit about the region from the driver. We booked the tour through kiwi experience the cheapest tour I found traveling from Queenstown.
We didn’t let the weather stop us though, when we got back to town It luckily cleared up enough for us to enjoy the cruise on the TSS Earnslaw up to Glenorchy and back. We were met with kindness being guided by the boat sfaff on first and helping us find a seat.
We then went to Minus 5 ice bar. That was really fun enjoying a cocktail. We arrived early to our booking the staff helped us put jackets on and guided us in a few minutes before everyone else so we could order our cocktail and find a corner to sit down to enjoy before it got too loud and crowded.
Hannah in the Ice Bar
Day 3
We started early again with breakfast out at Coco caban and then dropped our suitcases off for storage using the service mind my bag easy as website to book through and when we dropped our bags off they were helpful to pre book our taxis for when we came back late in the day
We headed to the gondola a gorgeous day. The gondola was free for people with disabilities.
We then asked the luge manager if it was possible for us to go on the luge and as it wasn’t busy we had the best time on the luge supported by some staff members who tied carts together to take us down. We were supported and guided over construction work to get to and from the luge. I was so thankful for the kindness people showed us to give us that opportunity.
We then went to Ferg bakery for lunch.
We ended the day with a fantastic but cold jet boat ride on the lake and up the Kawarau River over the rapids. We booked with RealNZ. The staff again were so helpful guided us down the small steps to the boat and back up to to the wharf.
Tips on what to do when trying out activities (preparation, research)
Research how you will travel to the activities and be realistic.
We didn’t do helicopter trips as I can’t see that, or hiking as we didn’t have that type of support guide wise, or the right clothing/equipment.
We experienced that when we asked for assistance everyone was so nice willing to help. Save up money though, it’s expensive in Queenstown
We walked majority of the places we went apart from using shuttles Uber taxis to Activities out of town. We used GPS to find places we needed to go. GPS was not the best all the time be mindful that if it says you have arrived the place may be tucked behind where you stand in a alleyway or a few shops down but we managed to find everything with not too much frustration.
It made us feel happy and empowered traveling around independently doing so many bucket list activities. I am excited about the future other adventures to come
Queenstown is a great place to do lots of things as they are accessible in town we didn’t need to worry about trying to find public transport stops and walking for long periods to get to a place. I would recommend Queenstown for travellers wanting to experience the south with poor vision.