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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.

He’s been a builder, jetboat driver, not so confident horse handler and a very successful tourism events organiser. Geoff Clear may not have excelled academically at school but he did know how to party, which, coupled with a good sense of humour and an enterprising spirit, saw him develop a successful corporate events business with wife Janice some 30 years ago.

Women from across Queenstown gathered on Saturday 19 January for a free community event hosted by Queenstown Medical Centre. The speakers and panel discussion focused on perimenopause, menopause, and sexual wellbeing — topics often overlooked despite affecting women throughout midlife and beyond.

Queenstown Lakes District Mayor John Glover is calling on suitably qualified and passionate members of the community to come forward and apply for one of the three seats on Council’s newly re-constituted Risk and Assurance Committee that are to be filled by independent members of the public.

2026 is shaping up to be another big year for DISHrupt, Sustainable Queenstown’s reusable serveware initiative that’s helping transform how our community runs events.

Local rescuers are again urging backcountry explorers not to rely on information, comments and advice posted on social media before heading into the hills with Wakatipu specialist alpine rescuers called in yet again to help, this time on Rob Roy Glacier, near Wanaka.

People are being sought to volunteer in some of Wānaka’s most stunning homes, while making a difference for breast cancer. With just one month to go, Breast Cancer Foundation NZ is seeking more volunteers for the NZ House & Garden Tours in Wānaka on Friday 13 and Saturday 14 February. The tours offer an exclusive look inside the beautifully curated homes and gardens featured in NZ House & Garden magazine.

Disqualified driver allegedly assaults Police: A 29-year-old local man was charged with assaulting and resisting Police, refusing to accompany an enforcement officer and driving while disqualified after Police were called to Hanley’s Farm by a member of the public concerned about the way a van was allegedly being driven at 12.30am on Tuesday, 13 January.

Workers are arriving in Queenstown and leaving within weeks because the cost of living is too high, recruiters and unions say. Despite record-high visitor spending and hundreds of job listings, data shows a growing gap between average pay rates and day-to-day living costs in the district.

Arrowtown Creative Arts Society’s (ACAS) Remarkable Picnic Opera will return in February. Off the back of a successful 2025, the seventh Opera features seven ‘big’ voices, a varied programme and includes a new, vibrant pre-show performance from renowned electric violinist, Arna Morton.

For more than 50 years he’s played a key role in Search and Rescue at the head of Lake Wakatipu, often in treacherous alpine terrain, with some 100 operations under his pack belt.

A taxi driver was allegedly punched and kicked to the ground in Earnslaw Park by three Rolleston teenagers who’d allegedly taken off without paying their fare – one charged with assault with intent to injure, Police say.

Robert Burns was many things – a poet, a lyricist, a liberal thinker. According to local Scot, Chris Hutton, he was also just ‘a sucker for love’.

The Ministry of Education has decided to keep most of Queenstown's school buses for now, despite finding most students are not eligible for the free services. It signalled last year that routes could be cut where public buses already exist - sparking pushback from parents and principals worried about student safety and attendance.

A body believed to be missing tramper Connor Purvis has been found near Lake Ōhau. Search and rescue teams looking for the 20-year-old in the South Island's Mackenzie Basin said a body was found on the southern side of Mt Huxley about 9am on Wednesday.