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Queenstown, New Zealand in 48 Hours (No Daredevil Activities Involved) Part 2

    In my previous post to recommend an itinerary to spend 48 hours in Queenstown, New Zealand, I covered the the skies (Skyline Queenstown), nature (Queenstown Gardens), hot pools (Arthur’s Point) and accommodation (Mercure Queenstown Resort). They technically covered the after-dark and early morning activities, and here are some suggestions to fill your remaining daylight hours in Queenstown.

    New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Ferburger, at the centre of the town, Seen here is the façade of the restaurant with its long queue.

    Fergburger, Queenstown New Zealand

    I listed this to get the obvious out of the way. If there’s only one question you can ask upon reaching Queenstown, it should be “Where do you find Fergburger?”

    It won’t be easy to miss this place when you are in town centre, because it is typified by the long queues (or should I say crowd?) at its entrance and the whiff of grilled meat within a 1-store radius.

    That being said, the queue turned me off and did not make up for the nothing-to-rave about taste of its food. There was literally no space for dining in due to the crowd, so many people were buying takeaways. If you must, visit Fergburger for a been-there-done-that.

    New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips. Seen here is the façade of the kiosk.

    Erik’s Fish & Chips, Queenstown New Zealand

    Fish and Chips in New Zealand is like the Bak Chor Mee of Singapore or baguette of France. And considering that Erik’s Fish & Chips is also tucked at a corner of the corner of town centre, what is so unqiue about this kiosk-esque diner’s?

    Quality of the food wise, the fish is tender and juicy, wrapped in a batter that is crispy and fragrant. Eating this on a cold day is comforting and brings a fuzzy-warm feeling all over. Speaking of warmth, the food seemed to remain piping hot despite the cold weather, even though I took some time to take pictures of the food in different angles!

    A unique item we ordered was Fried Kiwi. As the name suggested, it was a whole kiwi, deep-fried with the same batter for the Fish and Chips, but covered in sugar. To be frank, I think it was a waste to deep-fry fruits, because fruits are meant to be eaten fresh and un-treated. However, I believe this will be a children’s favourite, since it combines fried food with sweet fruitiness 🙂

    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips. Seen here is the battered Fish and Chips. A pair of blue shades can be seen in the background.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips. Seen here is the battered Fish and Chips and deep fried kiwi. A pair of blue shades can be seen in the background.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips. Seen here is the inside of battered Fish and Chips. A pair of blue shades can be seen in the background.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips. Seen here is the inside of deep fried kiwi with sugar coating. A pair of blue shades can be seen in the background.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips. The dining section is in a container.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips.

    Since the place is set in a corner of the town centre, the diner is especially peaceful and quiet. There is limited seating in the dining space made out of container, but I highly recommend one to find a seat and dine-in, because it offers an experience not commonly found in other Queenstown cafes. If you can’t find a seat, they have high tables around the diner, good for groups to huddle and chit chat over some chips.

    Erik’s is just a stone’s throw from Queenstown Gardens, so you can plan for it either before or after your walk in the Gardens.

    New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Winnie's, inside town centre, at 2nd level overlooking the busy street. Seen here is a menu, table settings, looking out of the window.

    Winnie’s Gourmet Pizza Bar

    This is a pizza-centric restaurant, found on the 2nd level (1st floor) of one of the buildings in the town centre. The interior of the diner’s is aviation themed (yes, that plane model hanging from the ceiling is mesmerising!), with a pool table, comfy seats and an “outdoor” seating area (that’s actually a balcony walled up with glass windows).

    Other than a whole variety of pizzas, the place also serves other comfort food like hot wings (a recommended item). For the record, we ordered the Montonara, which has chicken fillet and usual pizza toppings, plus sour cream. With or without the sour cream, the pizza was great, because it was crunchy and yet tangy from the cheese. The hot wings also lived up to the reviews found online.

    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Winnie's, inside town centre, at 2nd level overlooking the busy street. Seen here is a wooden aircraft model hanging from the ceiling, a centrepiece of the restaurant.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Winnie's, inside town centre, at 2nd level overlooking the busy street. Seen here is a pizza with cheese in the middle, and a serving of chicken mid wings. A chocolate smoothie can also be seen.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Winnie's, inside town centre, at 2nd level overlooking the busy street. Seen here is a wooden aircraft model hanging from the ceiling, a centrepiece of the restaurant.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Winnie's, inside town centre, at 2nd level overlooking the busy street. Seen here is a wall mural, alfresco dining.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Winnie's, inside town centre, at 2nd level overlooking the busy street. Seen here is a menu.

    If you only want to have a decent meal, then I recommend you visit this place in late afternoon, before the crowd comes in, so that you can also take a seat at its balcony (where you get to people-watch while enjoying the autumn sunshine).

    However, this is a bar after all, so they have DJs and dancing late in the evening. This will be good for those fun-loving chaps, though it means the chance of getting a good seat is low.

    New Zealand Trip - Onboard Air New Zealand flight on Airbus A320. Seen here on the tray table is a cup with Air New Zealand branding and a packet of Cookie Time cookies, Salted Caramel and Milk Chocolate flavour.

    Cookie Time for the Sweet Tooth

    In between meals and activities, you can drop by Cookie Time. On the flight to Queenstown, you would have been served snacks onboard your AirNZ flight that consist of a Cookie Time cookie.

    If Queenstown is the only place you visit during your getaway, then a visit to Cookie Time is a must, since you get to fill your suitcase with a local popular favourite for your family and friends back at home. Other than a variety of cookies found in a variety of packaging, you can also bring home a plushie or keychain (or whatever that catches your fancy) from this shop!

    New Zealand Trip - pamphlet of Cycle Higher, a bicycle rental shop just by Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown, good for a trip to Queenstown Gardens.

    Bonus 1

    In case you think the already walkable Queenstown is too much for walking, you can rent a bike! Just a turn from Erik’s Fish & Chips, you can find a bike rental at affordable prices.

    New Zealand Trip - View of the apron from Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. The 3-storey high windows offer unlocked views of the expanses and mountain ranges of Southern Alps. Seen in the mid ground is an Air New Zealand aircraft pulling into the bay.

    Queenstown New Zealand Bonus 2

    A lot of people leave just enough time to check in and leave for their flight at the end of their staycation. If that’s the case, you will miss out a very interesting cafe right in the passenger terminal building of Queenstown Airport!

    Airspresso is a spacious cafe that has an extensive view (complete with full length floor-to-ceiling windows) of the apron, beside Gate 1. If that’s not enough, they have a display case of huge airplane models in vintage Air New Zealand livery, and a table doubled as a display case for numerous old, nostalgic aviation magazines.

    In other words, Airspresso is an aviation geek heaven.

    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is a model of an aircraft flown by Air New Zealand, in their modern livery. Smaller models of older aircraft in their older livery design can be seen in the lower and right hand side of the picture.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is are models of older aircraft flown by Air New Zealand in their older livery design. In the foreground, a Boeing B747 while in the background, a Boeing B727.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is are models of older aircraft flown by Air New Zealand in their older livery design. In the foreground, a Boeing B727 while in the background, a Boeing B747.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is a seating with red sofa and open concept kitchen and barista counter.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is a booth seating and open concept kitchen and barista counter.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is a long table with stools. The table top is covered with glass and old copies of magazine covers related to aviation can be seen under the glass.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is a long table with stools. The table top is covered with glass and old copies of magazine covers related to aviation can be seen under the glass.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. In focus is a red 2-seater leather sofa, against a wooden wall and caged cupboard.

    If you are not an aviation geek, the ambience, good coffee and spread of food would add a great ending touch to your trip to Queenstown (notwithstanding that hellava-view you get of the surrounding mountain ranges as you take off and leave the Otago region!). Remember, the flight back to Auckland or Christchurch is a short, domestic one, so eating one’s fill is also recommended before your flight!

    • New Zealand Trip - Fish and Chips at Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. Seen in the background is a cup of cappuccino and Xiong Xiong teddy bear.
    • New Zealand Trip - Eggs Benedict at Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. The eggs are cut with its soft yolk oozing over the ham and meat patty. A cup of cappuccino can be seen in the background.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. Xiong Xiong teddy bear is seen posing flatlay style on the wooden café table, with Fish and Chips and Eggs Benedict and a cup of cappuccino.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the apron from Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. The 3-storey high windows offer unlocked views of the expanses and mountain ranges of Southern Alps. Seen in the mid ground is an Air New Zealand aircraft pulling into the bay.
    • New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. Xiong Xiong teddy bear is seen posing flatlay style on the wooden café table, with a cup of cappuccino and the café menu.
    New Zealand Trip - Queenstown Airport apron, with the mountain skyline of Southern Alps in the background, as seen from inside the aircraft of NZ623 onboard Airbus A320. The wingtip could be seen, as with the lines of snow on the mountain and streaks of cloud in the sky.

    Bonus 3

    OK. this might be a bit of a stretch, but I’ll try anyway.

    Though Queenstown airport is a small outfit, it is an interesting place itself to explore. The mountain ranges embracing the airport notwithstanding, the grounds itself is dotted with sculpture and interesting fixtures.

    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown Airport terminal set against a clear blue sky, with a well-landscaped garden in the foreground.
    • New Zealand Trip - Queenstown Airport terminal set against a clear blue sky, with a sculpture in front of the building, and a wooden bench, on the edge of a plaza.
    • New Zealand Trip - view from Queenstown Airport terminal towards one of the mountain ranges of Southern Alps, against a clear blue sky. The plaza in front of the terminal building is in the foreground.
    • New Zealand Trip - view from Queenstown Airport terminal towards one of the mountain ranges of Southern Alps, against a clear blue sky. The plaza in front of the terminal building is in the foreground.
    • New Zealand Trip - view inside Queenstown Airport terminal, departure hall, with self service check in machines, bag drop counters in the background and staff ready to assist.

    I liked the self-service check-in, which was easy to use, though there was a staff standing by to give a hand to the uninitiated (someone like me, because Singapore is REALLY slow in adopting self-service check in!).

    Unlike a huge airport like Changi, Queenstown is small (walkable) and gives this sense of achievement when one manages to walk the entire public area within 30 minutes. I thought that since we’re going to spend time at Airpresso, you might as well allocate an additional half an hour for the tour!

    Read more about making full use of your time at Queenstown, New Zealand!

    NZ in 48 Hours Pt 1
    NZ in 48 Hours Pt 3

    [Explore] Queenstown, New Zealand in 48 Hours (No Daredevil Activities Involved) Part 1

    [Explore] Queenstown, New Zealand (Extended)

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    [Stay] Wake Up To A Ravishing View: Mercure Queenstown Resort

    And explore Auckland in 48 hours!

    New Zealand Trip, Auckland - the Tidal Steps at Wynyard Quarter, looking at the night scene of Auckland downtown. The Sky Tower is at the centre of the picture, with the sails of the yachts in the foreground.

    Auckland in 48 Hours

    New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Erik's Fish and Chips, at the fringe of the town, just outside Queenstown Garden. This is a kiosk specialising in Fish and Chips. The kitchen and ordering station is in a container.

    Erik’s Fish & Chips

    13 Earl St, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
    eriksfishandchips.co.nz
    +64 3-441 3474

    New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Winnie's, inside town centre, at 2nd level overlooking the busy street. Seen here is the façade of the restaurant. A boy is seen playing around under the watchful eyes of his mother.

    Winnies

    7-9 The Mall, Queenstown 9348, New Zealand
    winnies.co.nz
    +64 3-442 8635

    New Zealand Trip - Queenstown restaurant called Ferburger, at the centre of the town, Seen here is the menu on the wall.

    Fergburger

    42 Shotover St, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
    fergburger.com
    +64 3-441 1232

    Cookie Time

    18 Camp St, Queenstown 9300, New Zealand
    cookietime.co.nz
    +64 3-442 4891

    New Zealand Trip - View of the interior of Airspresso in Queenstown Airport Departure Hall just beside Gate 1. Xiong Xiong teddy bear is seen posing flatlay style on the wooden café table, with a cup of cappuccino and the café menu.

    Airspresso in Queenstown Airport

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