Driving Tours

En Route to Te Anau

Te Anau is a 172km (107-mile) drive from Queenstown on excellent roads. Follow State Highway 6 to Kingston at the south end of Lake Wakatipu, where you'll have the option of taking a ride on the historic Kingston Flyer (tel. 03/248-8848; www.kingstonflyer.co.nz), a pre-1930s passenger train pulled by steam engines. The train departs daily at 10:15am and 3:45pm from October through April. The round-trip takes 1 1/2 hours and costs NZ$40 (US$28/£14) for adults, NZ$20 (US$14/£7.20) for children ages 5 to 14. The train is owned and operated (on track set in 1878) by TranzRail.

Continue on State Highway 6 through the tiny township of Athol and then turn west onto State Highway 94 over the summit of Gorge Hill, along the Mararoa River, and through sheep and cattle country to Te Anau, nestled beside the largest lake on the South Island.