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Southern Infrastructure Limited welcomes the early release of the referral application documents for the Queenstown Cable Car (QCC) on the Government’s Fast-track Approvals website ahead of a formal referral decision being made, and sees it as an opportunity for the community to engage with the project as it progresses toward the substantive application stage.

Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) recently teamed up with New Zealand Police to create videos for tourists promoting safe driving in our district. The videos are in Mandarin and will be promoted to tourists ahead of Chinese New Year when the district sees an increase in visitors.

He’s rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous, had a yarn with the Queen and Nelson Mandela, and even donned wizard regalia for an Air NZ Middle Earth TV campaign.

There’s not much that escapes the attention of Queenstown’s vigilant, volunteer Community Patrollers when party town hits full swing. Patrol chairperson Gary Lonsdale is on the hunt for more volunteers with just enough nighttime activity for the 12-strong team to get around at present.

The Cancer Society is set to celebrate the official opening of its new Queenstown–Tāhuna Centre on Thursday, 19 February, marking a major step forward in making cancer support more visible and accessible for the local community.

Queenstown Gardens will be taken over by Remarkables Theatre with stories of friendship, love and tales of the heart. From 13 February, the much-loved annual promenade show will celebrate love in all its forms - romantic, platonic, complicated, hilarious, and heartfelt.

Police are warning the thousands of motorcyclists heading south for this weekend’s Burt Munro Challenge there will be ‘zero tolerance for unsafe behaviour on our roads’, after two motorcycle crashes – one serious, and an alleged fleeing motorcyclist who allegedly clocked almost 200km/hr – twice the limit, in Central Otago last weekend.

She’s managed and partied with tour loads of young Contiki travellers in Europe and Queenstown, helped save the Earnslaw in a record flood and officiated at over 1,000 local weddings, declining an unusual photo request at one.

Police and rental vehicle companies are concerned about accidents waiting to happen on local roads, with increasing numbers of overseas tourists featuring high in near misses, cases of dangerous passing and speeding recently, many headed for Milford.

Pregnancy is often both daunting and exciting. Many friends, colleagues, whānau and, even, complete strangers frequently have lots of advice, pearls of wisdom and opinions to share, which may or may not be welcome or helpful.

Dr Compost’s gardening and compost workshops are back in Queenstown 12th &19th February, and in Wānaka 16th & 23rd February. For tickets, search Dr Compost on Humanitix.com.

Police are appealing to the public for help after a woman’s handbag was stolen from the Hanley’s Farm Playground on Bannister Street around 4.35pm on Monday, 26 January. Constable Amanda Shute says the offender left the area in a blue vehicle, which had been parked on Bannister Street, and the handbag was later located nearby. However, a number of items from inside the bag been taken, she says.

Mental Health by Katherine Froggatt

Social media posts painting ‘walk in the park’ pictures of some of the Southern Lakes’ most challenging climbs and hikes have raised fresh concerns for local specialist rescue volunteers, after being called out to some eight rescues in the past month.

Snow Machine is bringing their frosty festivities back to New Zealand in 2026. From 8-13 September 2026, Snow Machine returns to the breathtaking alpine playground of Queenstown, marking the 5th edition of the festival. Bringing world-class music, snow sports and unforgettable parties to the slopes, join Chet Faker, Ninajirachi, Restricted and many more. Performing across an impressive eight stages, including the Main Arena, on-mountain Apres stages, Coronet Peak and the Remarkables, ski runs by day become dancefloors by night.

She may have left school and her tiny hometown at 16, headed for bright lights and the first career that was on offer - hairdressing, but 40 years later Arrowtown’s Tracy Pool had become the boss of a leading Queenstown hospitality company managing 11 bars.

Local creators putting together a curated walking tour, available in the palm of your hand. That’s the business model for VoiceMap, a downloadable app on your phone, and Virginia Driver is the voice behind the local tours which shine a spotlight on Queenstown and Arrowtown’s rich history.

If you’re into lower bills, lower emissions and higher resilience, then it’s time to go electric.

Wellington-based artist Hana Dean will lead a portrait painting workshop at Te Atamira this weekend.

A former World Bank senior economist says people buying holiday homes and leaving them empty in Queenstown for much of the year are on track to "hollow out" the town, unless authorities take strong action to build more affordable housing for workers.