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Updated September 2026

Built on the shores of Lake Wakatipu and flanked by the utterly remarkable Remarkables mountain range, Queenstown is busting at the seams with fun for kids of all ages. 

Whether you want to ski it, jump it, raft it, climb it, zip it, thrill it, chill it or eat it, this adventure capital is busting at the seams with fun for the whole family. From skiing and luge rides to ziplining, sweet shops and lazy lake days, this guide pulls together 29 things to do in Queenstown with kids in 2026. Whether you’re planning a quick holiday or a week-long stay, these family activities tick all the boxes.

Things to do in Queenstown with kids

1. Go skiing in Queenstown with kids

As the gateway to some of the Southern Hemisphere’s best skiing and snowboarding, Queenstown gives families access to its fantastic ski areas, including nearby Coronet Peak and The Remarkables, as well as Cardrona and Treble Cone. The closest ski field is just a 20-minute drive from town.

Along with some of the world’s prettiest alpine scenery, each offers awesome infrastructure, including rental gear, learner zones and a range of terrain for all levels, while advanced trails and backcountry skiing keep the pros happy. Coronet Peak’s early season zone even has a dedicated snow sledding lane via the Magic Carpet lift; no ski skills are required, just a willingness to fall over laughing.

It’s one of the most popular family activities in Queenstown thanks to ski schools so good your children will be out-skiing you before you’ve even finished first coffee. If you’re heading to Coronet Peak or The Remarkables specifically, it’s worth knowing that younger kids ski free, and NZSki’s Parent Pass lets two adults share one lift pass so there’s always someone free to hang back with the little ones. First-timers can save with a Learner Area Pass covering just the beginner terrain, while the Superpass offers flexibility across Coronet Peak, The Remarkables and Mt Hutt, with unused days converting to credit for off-mountain activities in town. Lift and rental access at these two fields now runs through a single MyPass Card, so it’s worth sorting yours out online before you arrive to skip the queue. And if you’re planning a dip at the Time Tripper later in this guide, 3 Peak Pass holders currently get a discount there too. (Note: this is correct at the time of writing, but specials and offers change frequently, so always check before you go.)

2. Go ice skating at Queenstown Ice Arena

When too much ice is never enough head to Queenstown Ice Arena. Set in the Queenstown Gardens, just a five-minute walk from the town centre, the ice centre provides an all-weather activity the whole family can enjoy.

3. Explore Queenstown Gardens with kids

Gorgeous Queenstown Gardens is just a short walk from the centre of Queenstown and is beautiful all-year round with a variety of flora and fauna. The wheelchair-accessible garden has great expanses of lawn, a large water feature and a pretty rose garden and is the perfect space to let the kids loose to burn off a little pent-up energy. And be sure to buy or rent a disc to be beaten at a round or two of (free) frisbee golf at the 18-hole disc golf course by your more co-ordinated offspring.

4. Explore Lake Wakatipu with kids

Lake Wakatipu is the stunning centrepiece of Queenstown. Said to have its own ‘heartbeat’ as it rises and falls by about 20 cm every 27 minutes, the s-shaped beauty, carved by glacial forces, is the third largest lake in New Zealand as well as its longest, at 84 kilometres. It’s one of those classic things to do in Queenstown with family that works year-round, and there are plenty of ways to see the lovely lake. Options include kayaking, aqua biking, or stand-up paddleboarding. Or perhaps you’d rather explore its banks on a rented bicycle. Or just prop yourself up with a warm mug of something delicious at one of the bars and restaurants that line its shores to soak up its otherworldly beauty in comfort.

5. Visit the Time Tripper underwater observatory

Take a peek under Lake Wakatipu without getting wet at the Time Tripper Underwater Theatre. At this underwater observatory, two flights of stairs down under Main Town Pier, you’ll spy trout and the longfinned eel, a particularly unattractive serpentine sort, known to weigh in at as much as 16 kilograms, that I’m fairly certain would scare the bejesus out of anyone they should encounter in the actual water. Visitors can also watch eager scaup ducks diving, dodging the creepster eels as they dive amongst the fish for their next meal.

6. Go cycling in Queenstown

Rent a bike and pedal along the Queenstown Trail, cruise around Lake Wakatipu or, if you’re a bit of a closet drunk like me, head out towards Gibbston for an off-road cycling adventure through the vineyards. Families can choose from plenty of gentler cycling options, while older kids and confident riders can tackle mountain bike trails around Queenstown. For serious downhill riders, the Skyline Gondola provides bike uplift to the Ben Lomond Trails, with a 450m vertical rise from town to the top terminal.

7. Ride the Hydro Attack shark boat

Climb aboard the Hydro Attack semi-submersible shark for an adrenaline-packed over-and-underwater adventure. The fierce shark boat accelerates from 0 to 80 kilometres per hour in just 3.9 seconds and reaches heights of up to five metres out of the water and 1.5 metres below. Like a stunt plane on water, you can expect 90-degree rolls, a few tight turns, loads of laughs and, if you’re anything like me, soiled trousers.

8. Cruise Lake Wakatipu on the TSS Earnslaw

The TSS Earnslaw is a gorgeous 1912 Edwardian vintage coal-fired steamship that chugs across the waters of Lake Wakatipu. One of the oldest tourist attractions in Central Otago, the lovely vessel is the only remaining passenger-carrying coal-fired steamship in the southern hemisphere and even made a cameo in the movie ‘Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull’ as an Amazon River boat. Take the half-day cruise to Walter Peak High Country Farm for a demonstration of sheep shearing and mustering. Get up close and personal with the farm’s furry residents, including donkeys, deer, a couple of ambivalent alpacas and a few slobbery Scottish Highland cattle. Finish your visit with a delicious country-style morning or afternoon tea before cruising back to town. It is, in our humble opinion, one of the top things to do in Queenstown with kids, especially littler ones.

9. Try indoor skydiving at iFLY Queenstown

Take flight at the indoor skydiving centre, iFLY Queenstown, where you can simulate a 3,000-metre free-fall in a multi-storey indoor wind tunnel. Step-by-step training means daredevils from five to 95 can head into the vertical wind tunnel to be swept away. Or you can just check out the aerial action through the glass… like I did.

10. Ride the Skyline Luge

Ride up Bob’s Peak on the Queenstown Gondola for incredible vistas and ride the purpose-built luge carts at the Skyline Luge. One of the best things to do in Queenstown with kids, visitors can tackle almost a kilometre of tight turns, tunnels and dips all the way down the hill, then leap on the chairlift and zoom all the way back down, over and over and over again until their parents collapse in an exhausted heap.

11. Go white water rafting in Queenstown

Exploring Queenstown’s rushing rivers on a raft is sure to get your heart thumping. There are rapids for everyone, from beginners to advanced whitewater enthusiasts. Families might like to check out beautiful Skippers Canyon or go on a family white water rafting tour with Family Adventures New Zealand, while more adventurous souls who aren’t me might prefer to tackle river boarding down the Kawarau River or heli-rafting down the wildly churning rapids of the Shotover River. I’ll just wait over here.

12. Ride the Shotover Jet through the canyons

The world’s most exciting jet boat ride, Queenstown’s Shotover Jet has been thrilling folks for decades. Indeed, I first experienced the adrenaline-pumping jet boat ride through the spectacular Shotover Canyons 25 years ago, and the 360-degree turning, stomach-churning ride is as pant-wettingly terrifying as ever. Proudly owned by the Ngāi Tahu Māori people, this is hands-down one of the best Queenstown attractions for kids who love adventure and nature.

13. Go ziplining with ZipTrek Queenstown

ZipTrek EcoTours offer fun eco-adventures through the forest canopy high above Queenstown on a series of fast and vast ziplines. Located on Skyline Gondola Hill, there are three courses to choose from. The Moa 4-Line Tour is a great starting point and perfect for kids (minimum age six) with four exhilarating ziplines that go longer, higher and faster. Two guides accompany all tours and not only teach kids and their adults all the tricks of the ziplining trade, like hanging upside down from the wire like a loon while doing 50kph, but also educate them on sustainability and the local environment along the way.

14. Try the Shotover Canyon Swing

Kids (and adults) aged 10 and over can fly over and into the Shotover Canyon on the Shotover Canyon Swing, the world’s highest cliff jump at 109 metres high. Once you’ve experienced the gut-dropping 60m free fall, you’ll swing 200 metres out and over the canyon on a zipline. If you’d rather walk on the mild side (and by ‘mild’ we mean only moderately terrifying), tackle the Canyon Fox, starting 182 metres above the river, there’s only a five-metre drop before you speed across the canyon and back again on a superfast zipline. Whether you choose one or both, we’d advise packing a couple of extra pairs of undies.

15. Try the Ledge Bungy at Skyline Queenstown

Take the Skyline Gondola high up Bob’s Peak to the AJ Hackett Ledge Bungy & Swing. Soak up the sensational views of Lake Wakitipu and the surrounding mountains to distract yourself while the A.J. Hackett Bungy team get you harnessed up. The specially designed harness allows you to do it your way, twisting, flipping, spinning, running or jumping off the purpose-built jump base. Once your heart stops racing, you can get it pumping all over again on the Ledge Swing. But we’ll do it our way and watch.

16. Swim at Alpine Aqualand

Head indoors for a dip at Alpine Aqualand, an indoor swimming complex that has something for all ages. Whether you want to muck about in the leisure pool with the inflatable floatation rings, in-pool netball hoops and toddlers’ area, zip down the two hydroslides, get serious in the 25-metre lap pool, relax in the adult spa, or do as I do and get your sloth on in the lazy river, this watery wonderland is the place.

17. Explore the Odyssey Sensory Maze

Odyssey Sensory Maze is a super cool walk through dark spaces, physical obstacles and challenges with illusions, lighting effects, sounds and smells to accompany you along the way. Best for kids aged eight and over, this 30-minute quirk fest is a must visit for those who love a little sensory overload.

18. See native wildlife at Kiwi Park Queenstown

The Kiwi Park Queenstown had the kids in a flap. Home to 20-plus species of native New Zealand wildlife, this wildlife conservation park is right in the heart of Queenstown and, along with kiwi viewings in a special nocturnal house, visitors can see endangered kea, a variety of kakariki (parrots), New Zealand falcons and the not-so-feathery tuatara, a local lizard rocking a prehistoric vibe, and more.

19. Take a day trip to Arrowtown 

Take a drive 20 minutes out of Queenstown to the delightfully restored gold rush village of Arrowtown, nestled on the banks of the sparkling Arrow River. This ridiculously pretty town is a living historic settlement with a rich heritage and many a tale to tell. Take a stroll down its tree-lined avenues to see the old mining cottages or kick back with a bevvy and a bite at one of the town’s too-cool-for-school restaurants and bars.

20. Visit Lord of the Rings film locations

Little Hobbits will be excited to head “far over the misty mountains cold…” through ancient beech forests and glacier-carved valleys to see some of the stunning Queenstown sights that starred as Middle-Earth’s in the Lord of the Rings movies. On a half- or full-day LOTR location tour with Nomad Safaris, you can visit the film locations of Minas Tirith, the Misty Mountains, Argonath, Amon Hen, Isengard, Ithilien, the Lothlorien Forest and more. Plus, you’ll see locations featured in Wolverine, X-men Origins and the Narnia movies. Squee.

Properly obsessed Ringers can make the Middle-earth pilgrimage to the North Island too, with Weta Workshop Unleashed in Auckland and the real Shire itself at the Hobbiton Movie Set near Matamata.

21. Find indoor adventure at Thrillzone Queenstown

Thrillzone is the kids’ top choice for indoor fun and a smart choice for rainy day family activities in Queenstown. This high-energy, adrenalin-fuelled indoor action centre has it all. From the immersive Vortex 12D Motion Theatre, virtual reality games and laser tag to paintless paintball and 360° Drift Karting, there are hours of action under the one roof, so you can be humiliated multiple times by your more agile, athletic and co-ordinated children, as they beat you at everything over and over again. Or is that just me?

22. Visit the Queenstown Arts and Crafts Market

Every Saturday, Earnslaw Park is a hive of creativity as artists and craftsmen set up stalls along the waterfront, spruiking everything from handmade jewellery to quirky homewares and one-of-a-kind souvenirs. It’s a great place to pick up a gift while supporting local talent. The atmosphere is lively with friendly vendors, tasty nibbles and buskers providing a soundtrack to the day.

23. Visit Fear Factory Queenstown

A Queenstown attraction for kids who love a proper scare, Fear Factory is not your average haunted house. You’ll navigate dark corridors, jump at clever surprises, and maybe scream a little… or a lot. Actors, props, and unexpected twists make it a full-on thrill maze for teens and adults alike. It’s chaotic, hilarious, and the perfect chance to test your bravery or hide behind your more courageous kids (or perhaps that’s just me).

Fear Factory has different experiences and age requirements, so check the current rules before booking. Children 12 and under must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

24. Soak in Queenstown’s Onsen Hot Pools

Queenstown’s Onsen Hot Pools are the ultimate soak spot. The private, steamy cedar-lined tubs perch over the Shotover River, offering jaw-dropping alpine views while you relax in perfect warmth. Day or night, sunrise or sunset, any time is perfect for a little soothing soak. Ideal for families or small groups, each pool fits up to four people, so you can relax, splash a bit, and maybe even sneak in a cheeky hot chocolate while you watch the river rush by. There’s a minimum age requirement of five years old. Children aged five to 11 can only visit before 5pm when accompanied by an adult. Evening sessions are for guests aged 12 and over.

26. Eat a Fergburger in Queenstown

There’s so much great food to find in Queenstown, but visiting and not joining the queues at Fergburger is like visiting Rome without stopping by the Colosseum or New York without spying Lady Liberty. The iconic burger shop is an institution, and with around 20 interpretations of the humble burger, including a mighty fine venison number and options for vegetarians, some would even say it’s the best burger shop in the world. Having not tasted every burger in the world, I can neither confirm nor deny this rumour.

27. Try the sweets at Remarkable Sweet Shop

Packed with confectionery from around the world, The Remarkable Sweet Shop had my sugary sweet daughter in a spin. With sweet treats sourced from all around the world, you’re sure to find your favourite. But our tip is to go straight for their selection of fabulous in-house fudge. My kids could argue forever over whether the Passionfruit, Salted Caramel or Hokey Pokey flavours were the best, so I say just get them all.

28. Visit the Cookie Time Cookie Bar

Queenstown is home to one of Cookie Time’s Cookie Muncher Cookie Bars, which first opened here in 2010, and keeping children (and their cookie-loving mothers) from its siren call is impossible. My advice is to just give in and prop yourself up at Cookie Time Cookie Bar with a giant fresh-baked hot cookie, steaming hot chocolate or a cookie-stuffed mega shake.

29. Eat chocolate and ice cream at Patagonia Chocolates

Established by a couple of ex-pat Argentinians who were missing real South American chocolate, Patagonia Chocolates is a chocoholics dream come true. But along with to-die-for hot chocolate (we like the chilli version), they knock out awesome house-roasted coffee and what my kids insist is the best ice cream in town. Though this accolade may be as much due to the fact that they dip the cones in your personal choice of chocolate and tasty toppings as it is to the quality of the ice cream. Five locations in and around Queenstown means you’re never too far from your next chocolate hit.

Quenstown for families: need to know before you go

Is Queenstown good for families?

Absolutely. Queenstown is one of New Zealand’s easiest destinations for a family holiday, with activities for toddlers through to teenagers, plenty of parks and outdoor space, family-friendly restaurants and accommodation for different budgets. Many of Queenstown’s famous adventure activities also have age-appropriate options for younger travellers.

Do you need a car in Queenstown?

No, not if you’re staying in central Queenstown. The lakefront, Queenstown Gardens, shops, restaurants and many attractions are walkable. while shuttles, buses and tour operators can take families to attractions further afield. A car is handy if you want to explore Arrowtown, visit wineries or drive to the ski fields.

What are the best free things to do in Queenstown with kids?

There are plenty of ways to enjoy Queenstown without spending a cent. Take a picnic to Queenstown Gardens, play frisbee golf, explore the lakefront or follow the trails around Arrowtown. In winter, families can also find snow play opportunities around the ski areas, although access and conditions vary.

When is the best time to visit Queenstown with kids?

The best time to visit Queenstown depends on what your family wants to do. Summer, from December to February, is ideal for hiking, cycling, lake activities and long days outdoors. Winter, from June to August, is the main ski season and brings snow sports and snow play. Spring and autumn tend to be quieter, with cooler weather and fewer crowds, while many activities continue to operate.

How many days do you need in Queenstown with family?

Three days in Queenstown is enough to see the main sights and fit in a few family activities. Five days gives you more time for day trips, cruises and adventure activities without rushing. A week works well for families planning to ski, explore the surrounding region or simply build in some downtime between activities.

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An award-winning travel writer and photographer, Aleney de Winter was fresh from school when she first set off to explore the far reaches of Australia with a two-man tent and a beaten-up Kingswood for company. Three decades, and two kids later, and she's still on the go, with her itchy-footed offspring in tow.