Luxury hotels and helicopter tours on a long weekend in Queenstown & More News Here

There are many nice bars in Queenstown however The Dirty Nugget must be essentially the most unique. You will not discover it the city’s important streets or offshoot alleyways, it is not at a vineyard’s cellar door or on a ski subject. In truth, the one option to get there may be by way of personal helicopter. But it would simply be the most effective place for an apres-ski whisky, mulled wine or glass of bubbles you are ever more likely to discover.

Ben Lomond is among the peaks dominating Queenstown’s world-famous vista, with the gondola and Skyline restaurant twinkling from the highest. But a lot of the guests ogling the view or throwing themselves off the Ledge bungy leap or down the luge would do not know of what is on the opposite aspect. At simply 20ha, McConnachie Station is New Zealand’s smallest high-country station nevertheless it’s one of many showcase experiences of Over the Top’s helicopter itineraries. The firm, in operation for greater than 35 years, presents guided tours and bespoke itineraries. “The only limits,” says founder and proprietor Louisa “Choppy” Patterson, “is your imagination”.

If you suppose that is an exaggeration, let Choppy inform you in regards to the par 3 golf gap she put in on Cecil Peak. It’s 1300m above sea degree, with 4 tee packing containers and a vertical drop of about 450m. Former Prime Minister John Key was the primary to tee off from it again in 2014.

The thought got here from a calendar belonging to Choppy’s father – additionally a pilot – with footage of beautiful pure landmarks all over the world (suppose Mt Everest, the Grand Canyon and so forth), all with spectacular wanting golf-holes superimposed on them. Choppy thought it was really a nice thought to be put into actuality, so after session with Land Information New Zealand and the homeowners of Cecil Peak Station, the dream turned a actuality.

You can play the opening your self by reserving a tour with Over the Top, and you actually do not must be a professional golfer to present it a go. But if golf’s not your factor, different experiences embody scenic flights, heli-wine tours and cruises, heli-skiing, heli-e-biking, and even flying over to the West Coast for fish and chips, with a bone or jade carving demonstration thrown in from one in all Choppy’s Coaster associates.

Or, like me, you would whizz over to McConnachie for a drink at The Dirty Nugget. It’s undoubtedly one for the want checklist.

[DROP CAP] I used to be purported to take my helicopter tour on the second day of my Queenstown go to but when there’s one factor Covid has taught us, it is the must be adaptable. Plans do not all the time go, nicely, to plan and it all the time pays to have a plan B … typically even a plan C. And so it’s for me – heavy rain and excessive winds imply my day of high-end luxurious actions must be cancelled, leaving me to ponder what to do in New Zealand’s journey capital when you’ll be able to’t actually go on an journey. Like any good luxurious weekend, the reply begins with champagne.

Steps away from the lapping waters of the lake entrance, Eichardt’s Bar is a cosy area with roaring log hearth and the tantalising aroma of mulled wine. It’s buzzing on a Saturday afternoon, with an eclectic vary of company having fun with cocktails and tapas, readying themselves for a night of all Queenstown has to supply.

I’m having a welcome glass of champagne with Eichardt’s common supervisor Kylie Hogan, who has been with the corporate for a little over three months. Her earlier roles have included stints at Matakauri, one other of Queenstown’s fabulous luxurious properties, in addition to The Hermitage Hotel at Aoraki Mt Cook. We’d opted for a glass every of Bollinger however a huge group of company drank the bar dry the evening earlier than, so as a substitute we’re “making do” with Perrier Jouet. It’s no hardship.

Hogan says it is an thrilling time for the resort, with Australian company starting to float again, and worldwide bookings in the pipeline now our borders are open once more. It’s been a robust couple of years however the luxurious market has remained fairly buoyant and locations like Eichardt’s have managed to remain afloat and retain lots of their loyal, passionate worldwide workers base. As a visitor, it is fantastic to be surrounded by a various mixture of accents once more, with my first few hours bringing me into contact with Brazilian, French, Irish and Argentinean workers. This is what Queenstown is all about – a enormous vary of cultures all coming collectively in the beautiful scenic alpine setting.

The resort has been welcoming company since 1862, catering to the sudden inflow of individuals introduced right here by the gold rush. Registered as a Category 2 historic place by Heritage New Zealand, the resort’s important constructing is on the location of the unique woolshed – the primary constructing in city – constructed by William Gilbert Rees, one of many earliest European settlers to the Wakatipu Basin and considered Queenstown’s founding father. Rees went into partnership with Albert Eichardt, who took sole proprietorship in 1868. As the gold glint light, the resort’s clientele turned fewer employees and extra vacationers. Change was dropped at its administration group, too – Albert Eichardt died out of the blue in 1882, so spouse Julia took over operations. Her imaginative and prescient and profitable administration of the resort leaves her legacy as one of the vital profitable businesswomen of her time. The resort’s legacy as one of the vital vital native landmarks stays, too.

The resort is so near the lake that, even with my suite’s double-glazed home windows closed, I can hear the waves breaking on the pebble-beach. It’s a good spot for people-watching and protecting a watch on the comings and goings of the busy wharf – jet boat and Earnslaw departures, buskers’ units, individuals gathering on the lake wall to eat their takeaway Ferburgers and watch the sundown.

My suite is luxurious, with a roaring fuel hearth because the centrepiece between two giant home windows looking to the lake and Cecil and Walter peaks. An unique wall of uncovered schist-stone brick reveals the resort’s historic bones.

The bed room is actually a step up, the upper outlook which means I can nonetheless benefit from the views from mattress, this time too excessive for the eyes of passers-by to peek in. The spacious marble rest room is a imaginative and prescient of luxurious, with Molton Brown toiletries and fluffy towels and robes, a deep bathtub and rainhead bathe mounted so excessive it is like showering underneath a waterfall.

On Sunday, I seize a break in the climate to take out one of many resort’s complimentary mountain bikes, making my method by means of Queenstown gardens, following the Frankton Track, out previous the quaint Boat Shed cafe and cool Altitude Brewery, all the way in which to the Old Kawarau Bridge, turning again simply because the rain returns.

I’m scheduled to take a day cruise on the resort’s personal luxurious yacht, Pacific Jemm, however the climate is simply too dangerous. Hogan takes me over for a fast tour whereas it is secured on the wharf. The boat is an absolute magnificence – an 80-foot, Italian-built cruising yacht, which will be chartered for day or in a single day journeys, with full catering, whether or not you need a barbecue, multi-course dinner, or just an antipasto platter and margaritas. If you’ve got received the means to remain in Eichardt’s Penthouse, the $13,000 per evening rack fee will even get you a three-hour cruise thrown in without spending a dime. Friends can be a part of you so you’ll be able to stay the Below Deck life-style, if just for a day.

We head again to the bar and settle in by the fireplace for a day tea and one other glass of “PJ”, as our beautiful Northern Irish waiter calls it (Perrier Jouet to you and me). The three-tier tower has simply the correct quantity of candy and savoury goodies, together with a plate of dainty freshly baked scones with jam and mascarpone cream.

As the rain strikes in so closely the lake nearly disappears underneath a low mist, I head again to my suite for a enjoyable afternoon by the fireplace, cosy underneath a blanket, to learn a e-book and drift into a happy afternoon sleep.

More leisure comes in the type of a full physique therapeutic massage in the resort’s Vault Spa, the place a therapist from native enterprise Body Sanctum soothes away what little pressure is left in my bones. The small spa room is ready up in what was as soon as Julia Eichardt’s workplace, the place she saved visiting miner’s gold. Probably my favorite factor about this therapeutic massage remedy – and it is a robust name – is that it takes place simply throughout the corridor from my suite, so I can pad over prepared ready in gown and slippers, then float again afterwards with out breaking the post-treatment bubble of bliss.

I’m so cosy I determine to not transfer for the remainder of the day, ordering Eichardt’s well-known seafood chowder and a glass of Mount Edward pinot noir to be delivered to my room. Why exit, when room service by a roaring hearth is on provide? Sometimes slowing down and surrendering to the climate is the best possible option to spend a vacation.

There’s no such excuse the following day, nonetheless – I wake to clear blue skies and the sudden heat of blazing late-autumn sunshine, which means it is all on for my journey with Over the Top. Marketing and operations supervisor Pedro Martinez picks me up from Eichardt’s and we drive to Over the Top’s base at Queenstown Airport. Pedro, an expat Brit, has been with the corporate since 2013 and has labored his method up from “hangar rat” to his present function, however on weekends, he is studying to fly helicopters to fulfil his dream of being a pilot.

But right now we’re being flown by Choppy herself, with Pedro and visitor relations supervisor Victoria Jenner alongside for the experience. Sadly, Honeyboy, Choppy’s pleasant labrador, is away, in any other case he’d be becoming a member of us too in his official capability as “greeting officer”.

Choppy, clad head to toe in black with Aviator sun shades and dashing polka-dot scarf, lifts us gently up above Queenstown and out throughout the ranges, over Skippers Canyon and Earnslaw Burn, out to Glenorchy the place braided rivers appear like a tangle of ribbons beneath us. The views are distinctive, nearly unreal, particularly solid in the glow of this wonderful day.

Circling again to Ben Lomond, a tiny cottage and barn come into sight and Choppy expertly lands us on the grass in entrance. It looks like we’re miles from anyplace, suspended in time – the environment are so quaint and picturesque I wish to keep for days, not simply a couple of hours.

Choppy opens up the barn doorways and The Dirty Nugget is revealed, filled with a treasure trove she’s collected through the years. There’s a pianola that performs Billy Joel’s The Piano Man, a wind-up gramophone, leather-based membership chairs and animal skins, and a bar stocked with whisky and gin. In winter, Over the Top’s tours would take company as much as a glacier, the place you’ll scoop out a small globe of ice, then whizz it throughout to the Dirty Nugget to drop it direct into your drink. We’re too early for snow, so I “make do” as soon as extra with champagne.

Pedro cooks lamb and hen skewers on the barbecue, whereas Victoria plates up salads and recent bread, and all of us sit round a picket outside desk in the solar to benefit from the meal collectively. For longer visits, company can take pleasure in archery, clay goal capturing, axe throwing or discover ways to crack a whip. I’m content material to sit down and benefit from the heat of the solar whereas I marvel at this magical secret spot hidden away from Queenstown’s crowds.

Checklist
QUEENSTOWN
ACCOMMODATION
Stay at Eichardt’s Private Hotel begins from $1700 per evening. eichardts.com
TOURS
Over the Top will provide tours and bespoke packages, with costs ranging from $300. flynz.co.nz

For extra journey inspiration, go to newzealand.com/nz.

Check site visitors gentle settings and Ministry of Health recommendation earlier than journey at covid19.govt.nz

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