Queenstown Mountain Biking FAQs

Queenstown is located in Otago region in the South Island of New Zealand.

Although you can ride in Queenstown year round, the main Queenstown Summer biking season runs from the end of September through May. These dates may vary slightly with the weather/snow.

Queenstown Bikepark is usually open from Sept - May.

Cardrona Bike Park reopens in December 2026 (last season ran mid December to early March).

Coronet Peak Bike Park's 2026/27 season runs from 6 December 2026 to 22 March 2027.

Bike Glendhu's 2026/27 season runs through to May 2027.

We believe the best time for riding is either side of the peak summer season, early November to early December or early March to mid April. During peak summer (December and January) the trails can be dry and town is very busy. During spring and autumn we get regular rain, which keeps the trails in great condition, and the lift queues are often a lot smaller.

All of our Queenstown MTB Accommodation is located within riding distance from central Queenstown and the Queenstown Bike Park. Queenstown is very hilly, so you may have to pedal up some hills to get home after an epic days riding. Or if you have a day booked with our Queenstown Mountain Bike Guides, they'll drop you back to your door as you'll be cooked from so much riding!

It's hard to give a definitive answer but a good car/truck with a bike rack certainly gives you more freedom/flexibility. All of our Queenstown Mountain bike accommodation is centrally located within riding distance to Queenstown Bike Park. 7 mile, Gorge road and Fernhill trails are further away within riding distance. Coronet Peak and Cardrona offer shuttle services which can be booked in advance.

You can also book guiding, shuttles and other services through our Queenstown Mountain Bike Guides.

The local currency is the New Zealand Dollar, so if you're coming from the UK, USA, Europe or Australia the exchange rate helps make things cheaper.

The overall cost of your holiday completely depends on your budget, our Queenstown Mountain Bike holiday options vary from luxury villas to budget dorm rooms allowing you to cover all bases. Here's a quick snapshot of prices below:

Luxury High Queenstown Villa: $2000 - $10,000 per night
Comfortable Queenstown Apartment: $500 - $2000 per night
Bunk Room at a Hostel - $40 per night
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1 day uplift pass at Queenstown Bike Park: $145
1 day pass at Bike Glendhu: $42
Heli bike trip: from $850 per person
1 day bike hire: Giant enduro from $199, Santa Cruz $359
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Price of a beer: around $10
Price of a Fergburger: $12 - $16
Nice meal out: $30 - $100 per person
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There's so much to explore on your Queenstown Mountain bike holiday we recommend a one week trip, if you can push it out to 2 weeks then even better and you can take some time to explore the Bike Parks further afield such as Cardrona, Glendhu, Alexandra etc.

However, if you're short on time and visiting from NZ or Australia, a long weekend will do the trick!

Queenstown offers numerous World Class bike parks all within a short distance, click below to find out more.

Queenstown Bike Park
Wynyard Bike Park
Coronet Peak Bike Park
Cardrona Bike Park
Bike Glendhu
Gorge Road Bike Park
7 Mile Bike Park

On top of these bike parks there are also endless amounts of singletracks and other connecting trails.

Of course! If you and the family are keen mountain bikers, then our Queenstown Mountain Bike holidays are perfect for the whole family. Even if some of the family don't love mountain biking, Queenstown hosts a huge variety of activities to suit everyone.

Bungy Jumping, Skydiving, Whitewater rafting for the adventurous ones all the way to luxury spa days, shopping and fine dining! Queenstown really does have it all.
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There is such a wide variety of riding in Queenstown there is no easy answer to this. It really does depend on the type of riding you enjoy doing.

However, a modern enduro bike really does allow you to ride everything Queenstown mountain biking has to offer, from bike park to heli biking. We would recommend a mountain bike with 150+mm of front and rear suspension, dual ply tyres and capable brakes/components. Anything less may result in pricey mechanical errors.

The one thing we will say is that the trails in Queenstown are generally speaking longer and rougher than the trails you may be used to so make sure your brakes and suspension are up to the task.

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You can ride the vast majority of the trails in Queenstown without buying a lift pass, but buying a lift pass, a guide or shuttles means you'll get a lot more laps in!

Queenstown Bike Park - Free to pedal up the road buying a Skyline lift pass is recommended.

Coronet Peak Bike Park -  Can pedal or shuttle the bottom half of the mountain (Rude Rock, Hot Rod, Carry on, Zoot Track etc). It is possible to pedal the top half of Coronet peak, however we recommend buying a lift pass.

Cardrona Bike Park -  A lift pass is required to ride at Cardrona Bike Park

Bike Glendhu - A pass is required to pedal up at Bike Glendhu. Bike Glendhu also offer shuttles

7 Mile, Wynyard, Gorge Road - All do not require any form of pass to ride but please consider joining or donating to the Queenstown Mountain Bike Club who build and maintain these trails.
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Yes, Queenstown offers a wide variety of mountain biking, from world-class downhill tracks to flowy green singletrack and leisurely bike tracks around the lake. For beginners we'd recommend Bike Glendhu, 7 Mile, Coronet Peak and the Queenstown Trail.
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You can fly directly into Queenstown International Airport from most major NZ Airports (Auckland, Christchurch) and a selection of Australian Airports (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane).

Once in Queenstown airport you can either shuttle/taxi to your accommodation or hire a car from the car rental companies.

Yes, Mountain bike holiday insurance is highly recommended when visiting Queenstown. Mountain biking can be a dangerous sport.

Yes, we have a wide range of Queenstown self catered accommodation for those on a budget or those who prefer to cook for themselves as well as dine out at Queenstowns amazing selection of restaurants. For self catered accommodation we recommend taking a look at our villas and houses.

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All of our Queenstown hotels and hostels operate on a bed & breakfast basis. Our Queenstown apartments and houses are self catered, because we like to keep things flexible by leaving evening dining in your hands. Perhaps you're on a tight budget and eating pasta every night to keep your bike running, or perhaps you're a baller looking to explore Queenstown's restaurants!

We specialise in Queenstown summer mountain bike holidays, so our accommodation packages run through the bike season, from late September to May.

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We sure do! We all know the feeling of your mates not being able to come on a holiday due to work/kids/family commitments, but that shouldn't stop you from having an epic Queenstown mtb holiday.

We offer Queenstown self catered apartments, private single rooms or shared dorm rooms for solo guests.

Depending on the size of your group, booking one of our central Queenstown apartments can be great value if all the beds are full. If not, we offer shared dorm rooms in Queenstown at great rates.

If your own bike isn't up to Queenstown's trails, we highly recommend hiring one through us. We offer a range of downhill and enduro bikes from Santa Cruz and Giant through our Queenstown mountain bike hire. Giant enduro bikes start from $159 for a half day and $199 for a full day, and Santa Cruz bikes are $259 for a half day and $359 for a full day. We also offer electric mountain bike hire.

There is an absolutely huge amount of riding in Queenstown, from the 7 nearby bikeparks to a network of hundreds of KMS of connecting trails. You could ride here for a month and not ride the same trails twice.

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If it's your first time here and you want to ride outside the bike parks, we highly recommend booking one of our Queenstown mountain bike guides. You can book anything from an afternoon of riding and shuttles, all the way to a week-long adventure exploring the best riding the area has to offer, plus some heli drops along the way.‍

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Yes, Queenstown has several great bike shops stocked with mountain bike kit, spare parts and shiny new components. You can find almost anything you need, but if you require something specific to your bike (dropouts etc) we recommend bringing spares. Queenstown bike shops also offer great mechanic services should your bike need them. We highly recommend Vertigo Bikes, whose store is in the centre of town.

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