There are many things you can do with a long weekend. If you’re a Melbournite, it might include heading to a game at the G, popping into a couple of top-notch pubs and maybe a visit to the NGV. For Gold Coasters, it may be a few sundowners and a surf, along with a trip to the local farmers’ markets.  

For those with limited leave and a desire to maximise their adventure quotient, a hop skip and a jump across the ditch may be an option – if you can swing an extra day off work on either side. Whether that’s in the form of a public holiday or a sickie I’ll leave in your hands, but once you’ve sorted that out: here’s what to do with it. 

One benefit of permanently planning your next holiday is that you become intimately familiar with the flight schedules of your local airport (let’s not talk about the downsides, including the dwindling savings account and the inability to sit still for one lazy weekend). In terms of some of Melbourne’s best flight routes for maximising leisure time and minimising leave-taking, Queenstown has gotta be up there. Departing at 6:00am on a Friday morning – yes, that wake-up hurts – and returning late on a Sunday night, it’s ideal for squeezing as much as you can into just a few days away. Of course, slow travel is better, it’s nice to sink into a place and not rush around, I get it and I agree. However, if you’re working within the confines of a limited annual leave balance then in my opinion, something (a weekend) is better than nothing (staying at home). 

In this instance, I planned our long weekend getaway around two incredible stays, and added an extra day to fit it all in. In saying that, in future I would choose just one place so as to properly enjoy the space and minimise unnecessary rushing around. 

We landed in Queenstown and stopped to grab supplies at the local supermarket, anticipating that there may be little in the way of supermarkets and restaurants where we were headed. This proved to be a correct assumption, and I loved cooking in the cabin’s rustic kitchen. There’s something about cooking in a rustic wooden kitchen that allows for pretending that you’re a world away from civilisation – even if what you’re “cooking” is no more than a cheese platter to accompany your arvo IPA. 

The Temple Cabin 

Nestled in a valley near Lake Oahu, our first stop was the magnificent cedar-clad The Temple Cabin. With vaulted ceilings and cosy furnishings, it’s the ultimate escape for when the weather gets cooler. Our visit in May meant that the nights were definitely getting chilly, and we relished in the cosiness of the wood fire of an evening. I can’t say that I’ve ever visited a rustic hunting cabin (growing up on the Gold Coast, beach shack was more of the vibe), but that accurately depicts the aesthetics – vegans beware, elk-horns abound. Able to fit four comfortably with a ground floor bedroom and a loft space, a visit to The Temple Cabin would be an amazing trip to do with a couple of friends. 

Waking up in the morning, making a cuppa – on the stove with a whistling kettle, of course- and taking it out to sip on the deck while soaking in the mountain vistas is one of the highlights of the stay. As is traipsing up the hill behind the cabin with a couple of coldies at sunset, lying back and taking it all in. 

In terms of practicalities, due to the potentially unpredictable weather in late May, I had hired a larger 4 wheel drive in case there was any ice or streams to cross to get to the cabin. It ended up being totally fine, but this might be something to keep in mind if you were planning a winter trip. 

Sometimes, you get laughed at by customs officers because you are bringing hiking shoes with the tags attached on a holiday to a very mountainous country. Is it embarrassing? Yes. Did it work out fine, despite the rookie energy? Also yes. Just over the valley from The Temple Cabin is the Temple Valley Track, a 10km trail that was perfect for me, who has little hiking experience and was in fact wearing brand new shoes. Only running into two other people when we did the walk meant it was a serene experience, aside perhaps from my screeches when we decided to take a dip in one of the crystal-clear streams – made up of melted snow that had run straight off the peaks.  

One thing I’ve noticed in New Zealand is that, unlike my experiences in Australia, when you see a time estimate for a hike it actually tends to be pretty spot on. I’m not sure if that’s thanks to my constant stops for photography evening out my long-limbed turbo walking pace, or just because there are so many gorgeous hikes that perhaps Kiwis are assumed to be fitter from their constant traversing of trails (??). Regardless, the walk took a fair few hours and kept us entertained for the day. Following the day spent walking in the mountains, it was absolutely blissful to sit back in the tub with a glass of vino. Not that I’ve ever needed encouragement to take a bath and have a drink, but the views down the valley are the kind of thing you can sit and take in for hours. 

Mount Cook and the Hooker Valley Track

On the middle day of our trip, we drove up to Mount Cook, which took about an hour and a half (including a stop at the salmon farm, not to fish salmon but so that I could get a photo with my head in the tourist frame). While the drive was gorgeous and the mountains undeniably impressive, the Hooker Valley walk was a contrast to the Temple Valley track – and not in a good way. Perhaps due to the accessibility of the track – it’s very flat, and only takes a couple of hours – or the bus tours lined up to drop off tourists, it was packed. While it’s fantastic for people with so many different fitness abilities to be able to access it, it became incredibly frustrating when trying to simply walk along and be stuck amongst throngs of selfie stick-wielding, unbelievably impractically dressed tourists (not me! I was wearing my new hiking boots, remember?! It turned out to be a completely flat path… equally embarrassing to be in boots). 

Alpine Cubes 

Having limited time and not wanting to spend the majority of it driving, our second stop was very close to our first. Enter Alpine Cubes, just out of the snow-centric town of Twizel. As the name would suggest, this stay was a compact tiny home, featuring a show-stopping oversized outdoor bath.

The stay was thoughtfully appointed with pinot and excellent coffee, two touches that were definitely appreciated by us. One other element I always appreciate in a stay (aside from booze and caffeine, of course), is good quality linen. I was not disappointed here, and the cabin’s queen bed is perfectly positioned to take in the views of the rugged landscape while remaining comfy and cosy inside. A complete contrast to our first stay, Alpine Cubes is ultra-modern and very sleek, but still offers up massive windows to take in the surrounding landscape.

Queenstown 

Of course, with the late flight out booked, we had time to kill after checking out and driving back to Queenstown to drop the car back and fly home. Having just a couple of hours to burn, we firstly stopped at the local brewery, Altitude Brewing, ideal if you’re fan of a crafty like me. Next up, we grabbed Ferg burgers (naturally) and took them aboard Perky’s Floating Bar. Touristy? Absolutely, but also arguably one of the best spots to enjoy a burger and a beer. While Queenstown can get busy, and on this trip it was busier than our last, I still forget just how magical it can be to take in the mountains and Lake Wakatipu at sunset. 

A whirlwind? Yes. Did it feel like way more than three nights away? Also yes. Is this the best way to travel? We already covered that at the start! While perhaps not the most ‘mindful’, it certainly felt more mindful hiking up the centre of the Temple Valley, feeling the sun on my skin and rinsing in the alpine stream, than going to our old local pub in Melbourne and spending Sunday a little dusty. Go on, there are more than a few public holidays coming up – do it.