A country that is widely known to have more sheep than humans, much of New Zealand offers a picturesque setting nestled the heart of nature. But one of the island country’s cities attracts more tourists than any other for adventure sports. Queenstown, in Southern New Zealand boats more than a million tourists every year giving it the title adventure capital of the world. One such tourist this year was none other than Preity Zinta of Kal Ho Naa Ho fame. The actress posted a image of herself just before she did a free fall into what looked like deep blue abyss. Her caption read, “One last smile before jumping off ! Not a clear photo but the thrill of jumping off the edge was clearly Worth it. Bungee Jumping is not for everyone but if you are the adventure type, this is a must try. The minute I jumped off, this song – (Free Falling) automatically started playing in my head on full blast so I have put it here for the right sound effect.”
From bunjee jumping to sky diving, jet skiing, para gliding and river-rafting Queenstown adventure sports roster has all of the popular adrenaline pumping activities on land and water to keep adrenaline seekers coming back for more. But for those wanting a new way to get their dose of blood-pumping, adrenaline rushing action, here a list of the city’s most unique and challenging adventure options.
Bunjee Jumping – The Canyon Swing
Touted as the world’s first canyon swing, the Shotover Canyon bunjee jump is a 109m high, 60m freefall with a 200m swing between 2 canyon walls. It is one of the world’s highest cliff jumps. After leaping off the platform you are meant to free fall 60 metres, rushing past the rocky cliff so close that you may feel that you can touch it. Then there is a transition from freefall to swing, where you soar above a river until you stop swinging and you are hauled back to your jumping off point.
Ziplining Through Treetops
Ziptrek Ecotours is offers a unique experience of a zipline eco-adventure. Starting at 450m above Queenstown, you zip between magnificent treehouses, glide through the treetops and witness breathtaking views on a series of ziplines. You then finishing with a 21m drop leaving you with a heady sense of accomplishment at having embraced nature while getting some action-packed thrills while at it.
Hydro Attack
This is one is definitely not for the faint-hearted. With an aim to mimic the movements of a shark, this semi-submersible machine moves at incredible speeds through the glacial waters of Lake Whakatipu. Imagine yourself zipping across a lake at the speed of a fighter jet or torpedo in this shark-like machine and then suddenly diving underwater for a short while before being propellied into the sky and then plunging back down into the ice cold water.
Human Catapult
Arguably the world’s the biggest human catapult – the Nevis Catapult in the Nevis Valley of Queenstown. After being safely harnessed, you are propelled 150m across the Valley and you soar at high velocity speed through the air, reportedly with up to 3Gs of force. But it’s the exhilarating rebound that follow which is where the real rush is earned. This one-of-a-kind high speed ride is the latest activity to rock the adventure sports world.
Heli-skiing
This sport is for all those expert ski-ers who find that regular slopes don’t pose enough of a challenge for them. You are flown out to mountain tops with exceptional snow coverage that you may not ordinarily find. One of many heli-skiing options in Queenstown, the Harris Mountains Heli-skiing skis over “400 runs from 200+ peaks in 7 separate mountain ranges covering over 3000 square kilometres” in Queenstown and Wanaka Harris Mountains.
Preity Zinta’s freefall has certainly got us researching all the action-packed adventures that Queenstown has to offer and we’re sure it will do the same for you.
