NZ 2024 - A Pie Eating, Snowboarding South Island Road Trip

We started the trip in Christchurch, the largest city on the South Island with a plan to drive down to Queenstown. It would be the kid’s first time in the South Island and their first road / ski trip.

Christchurch to Methven

Novotel Christchurch Overnight

Located a short 2 minute walk from the airport. It was pretty cool that you can drive your airport trolley with luggage to the hotel and up to your room. Breakfast was a buffet comprising of a cold and hot food selection with the best bacon, crispy and thick, we have ever had.

Renting a car with Europcar

After breakfast, we headed back to the airport to collect the rental car. We got a free upgrade to a Kia Sorrento. I have rewind all my feelings about people movers because this car is awesome! Dare any Dad to disagree. Hybrid engine with traction control modes for snow and sand. Had more than enough space for all our snow gear. The kids were fascinated by the ambient soundtrack (log fire cabin, snowy village) and the charge ports for their devices. Can’t fault Europcar, the whole rental process was ultra smooth.

Checking out Christchurch

Drove into town to check out the city and the famous Riverside markets. We were lucky because the Mid-Winter Christmas market event was on with bands, fake snow, and stalls selling great smelling pork knuckles and mulled wine. There was so much variety in the Riverside markets from Sri Lankan street food, ramen to gourmet burgers. We settle on fish & chips and oysters from the Little Fish co and an IPA from the Canterbury Brewers Collective which had a range of local beers on tap.

Pie #1 - World Famous Sheffield Pies

Mid journey to Methven we stopped at World Famous Sheffield Pies. All pies are baked on the premises and served direct to you. This was the first of our pies and we were blown away. NZ pies were unlike fast food snacks like back in Aus, they were gourmet meals wrapped in a crispy pastry casing.

Methven

Methven is a ski village during Winter months when skiers and boarders use it as a base to ski nearby Mt Hutt and the Arrowsmith ranges via heli-ski. Its quiet, with most of the apres action taking place in the Blue and Brown Pubs, square in the center of town and the Dubliner pub. Once we checked in at the Mt Hutt motels, we headed to the Four Square to pick up local ham, croissants and cheese scones for breakfast, cookie time (must try NZ choc chip cookies) and central Otago Pinot for Dad. 

Mt Hutt  

Mt Hutt Shuttle Bus

We booked our shuttle up the to Mt Hutt with Methven Travels. Seats are prebooked and they come to pick you up from several locations in town. Mt Hutt motels was one of them so it was an easy walk to the front every morning. The shuttles are big tourist buses with comfortable seats and under carriage storage for your gear and overhead storage for helmets, backpacks etc. No toilets, but the ride isn’t that long ~ an hour assuming no issues. They drop you in front of the mountain center which is very convenient. The road up Mt Hutt spectacularly winds up the ranges and on some corners you catch a view of the cars in front with a massive drop on one side. Not for the faint hearted.

Skiing Mt Hutt

The cloud layer on this day was just below the resort so it was a blue bird day with packed powder conditions.  Though it hadn’t snowed for a week, the runs were nicely groomed and still good to ski on. Off-piste, the conditions weren’t good with clearly visible rocks. A bit of a shame as it looked like there is lots of terrain in between the long winding runs. 

Pie #2 - the Sky Cafe

Though it was our least favourite pie of the trip. It was still much better than the usual re-heated pies. 

Methven to Lake Ohau

Geraldine Cheese Company

Stopped by the Geraldine Cheese company to sample and buy some of New Zealand’s famous dairy products. Picked up some of their Mesopotamia Blue and Mozarella with wild venison salami to go with wine later.

Pie #3 - Fairlie Bakery

Lunch was at Fairlie Bakery which is known for their gourmet pies. Super popular with travelers, there was always a line all the way to the front door. The pies were hot and tasty and they had not just your average offerings like Salmon & Bacon and Venison. By now it was becoming clear that NZlanders have elevated the game while we were content with servo pies.

Lake Tekapo

Lake Tekapo is one of the South Island’s most impressive sights - a vast body of water with crystal clear waters. #peaceful

Lake Ohau

We stayed at Lake Ohau Lodge, a hotel at the base of the ski resort. Its a slight detour, but a good halfway point between Methven and Queenstown. Unfortunately for most of our journey there, a dense fog had settled in. We could hardly see the road and missed most of the views.

The hotel was styled like an old school ski lodge replete with hunting trophies, a log fireplace and ski memorabilia. Very cool and luxurious - the kind of place you would bring out your best apres wool knit sweaters for.
 
The road up to the ski resort is located next to the lodge’s grounds. From what other skiers say, the journey is short but can be a bit hairy with narrow unsealed roads and no barriers. If you would rather not drive, Ohau has a paid shuttle bus leaving every morning. 

Lake Ohau to Queenstown

Lindis Pass

Our journey from Geraldine to Queenstown took us through the notorious Lindis pass, one of the highest mountain passes in the Southern Islands with a 900m+ altitude. Along the way there are really amazing views of the Southern ranges. This stretch is a high accident area, especially during Winter when snow can fall on the road. At the top of the pass we saw a rolled car and highway patrol. On the same day, there were 2 tourist buses which had skidded and rolled on the section between Lake Tekapo and Pukaki. Thankfully no one was hurt but it shows even experienced drivers can find it challenging.

Pie #4 - Arrowtown Bakery

Arrowtown is a gold rush era village known for its historic buildings and surrounding nature. We checked out the bakery in Arrowtown for pies on recommendation from some people we met. There were tables outside where you could munch them down. All the while a flock of tiny birds competed for crust and pastry which you dropped.

Queenstown

Its been over 15 years since I had been back to Queenstown and the first time for the kids. The lakeside location and backdrop of majestic mountain ranges are more beautiful than I remember or I could be getting older and more appreciative of the details. Town center was bustling with travelers from around the world not just Aussies. Ski shops were doing a great trade kitting out first timers with gear. Tours and attractions look like the lifeblood of the town with everything from Jetboats, Wine Tours, hot spas and rides on the Hydro Attack Shark - a submersible capable of jumping out of the water.

The Remarkables

Remarkables Shuttle Bus

Queenstown is well serviced by transport companies. We went with the Info & Snow guys. They had great reviews and their bus stops in front of the Crowne Plaza where we stayed. Service was fast and professional. 

Skiing the Remarkables

My kid was warmed up by now and we headed to the blue trails on Curvey Basin and Sugar bowl chairlifts. Nice runs with some banks and walls, but it was getting rocky the further you strayed off course. The view was pretty epic with a low cloud cover and blue bird skies revealing our surroundings. We stopped at the Snow Bar on the side of Gladiators on the last day just to soak it in.

Pie#5 - Fergbaker

There was time to sneak in one more pie before the flight home and we saved it for Fergbaker wanting to put its reputation to the test. The Fergburger is a Queenstown establishment, and we have had many a cod father and Big Als since it was a hole in the wall. But the bakery was new to us. According to locals, the one to go for is the Pork Belly. We got that and their standard Ferg Pie. They were very very good. The pork combined with the apple sauce and mustard perfectly and the crust was flaky and crunchy. Alas, this would be our fifth and last pie stop before heading home, and it was a great way to end our trip.