Skip the Traffic and Take the Lake: Getting Around Queenstown by Ferry

8 Sept

When people plan a Queenstown holiday, hiring a car often feels like the obvious choice.

But depending on where you’re staying, there’s a much nicer way to get around - take the ferry across Lake Wakatipu instead.

The Queenstown ferry is not just a sightseeing trip. It’s a proper daily transport service connecting Queenstown Bay, Bayview, Frankton Marina and the Hilton, which makes it especially handy for visitors staying around Kelvin Heights, Frankton and the Frankton Arm.

And after trying it myself on a Saturday night recently, I honestly think more visitors should know about it.

My Saturday night in Kelvin Heights

I was staying in Kelvin Heights on Saturday night and we wanted to head into Queenstown for dinner.

Normally, that means driving around, dealing with traffic, finding a park in town, paying for parking and then making sure someone can drive home afterwards.

Instead, we caught the ferry.

It was so easy.

The boat was fully covered, warm and cosy, which was perfect for a Queenstown evening, and they even had great tunes playing on board. It immediately felt less like public transport and more like the beginning of a night out.

We cruised across Lake Wakatipu, arrived right in central Queenstown, went out for dinner and then jumped back on the ferry afterwards.

We arrived home full, happy and very pleased we hadn’t taken the car.

No driving.

No searching for a car park.

No parking fees.

No worrying about getting home after a few drinks.

And considerably more enjoyable than sitting in traffic.

It’s actually a practical way to get around

The ferry currently runs hourly throughout the day and evening.

Services from the Hilton leave hourly from 8:15am until 9:15pm, while Queenstown Bay departures run hourly from 8:45am until 9:45pm. The journey between Hilton and Queenstown Bay takes around 20 minutes.

That makes it useful for far more than just a one-off boat trip.

You could catch it into Queenstown for breakfast, shopping, activities, lunch, dinner, drinks or simply a day wandering around town.

Then catch it home again afterwards.

For visitors staying near a ferry stop, it can genuinely replace a lot of car trips.

And it can be cheaper than Uber or a taxi

This is another reason I think travellers should know about it.

Current one-way fares are $10 with a Bee Card or $14 using a bank card. You simply scan your card with the skipper when you board, and the service is cashless.

For one or two people travelling from around Kelvin Heights or Frankton into central Queenstown, that can work out cheaper than taking a taxi or Uber, particularly during busy periods.

Then consider what you’re also avoiding:

paying for CBD parking
fuel
sitting in traffic
hunting around for an available park
worrying about who is driving home

Suddenly the boat starts making a lot of sense.

Think of Lake Wakatipu as another road

Visitors often look at a map of Queenstown and automatically judge accommodation by how long it takes to drive into town.

But Queenstown is built around a lake.

Sometimes the quickest and certainly the nicest way to get somewhere isn’t around the lake.

It’s across it.

The ferry currently connects:

Queenstown Bay – right in the middle of the CBD, close to restaurants, shops, bars, activities and the lakefront.

Bayview – useful for properties around the Frankton Road/Kelvin Peninsula side.

Frankton Marina – convenient for Frankton and the surrounding area.

Hilton – a fantastic option for Kelvin Heights and accommodation around that end of the peninsula.

It’s especially good for dinner in town

After using it myself, this would probably be my favourite reason to recommend the ferry to guests.

If you’re staying around the Marina or Kelvin Heights, you can head into Queenstown in the late afternoon, walk around town, have dinner, enjoy a couple of drinks and then catch the ferry back afterwards.

Because the Queenstown service currently runs until 9:45pm, you can have a proper evening out without automatically needing a car.

Just keep an eye on the time, missing the final ferry could turn your inexpensive trip home into an Uber after all.

Try it!