Embrace Spring in Queenstown: Ski, Board, and Hike
Spring in Queenstown is the one season you can ski in the morning and walk a lake track in the afternoon. Here is what is still open and where to go.
Spring in Queenstown: Ski in the Morning, Walk in the Afternoon
Spring is the one season in Queenstown where you can be on snow before lunch and on a lake track after it. The fields run into October, the days stretch out, and the low walking tracks come back into use while the tops are still white. Here is what is still open, three walks worth the drive, and how long each of them takes. It is all easier with your own car, and Evolve Rentals delivers one to your accommodation in Queenstown.
Are the Ski Fields Still Open in Spring?
Yes, into October. The published 2026 dates run Cardrona from 26 June to 18 October, which makes it the last of the local fields standing. Treble Cone finishes on 27 September and The Remarkables has its closing day on 11 October. All of them run 8.30am to 4pm, weather permitting, and all of them are subject to conditions on the day.
The snow is softer by this point in the season and the crowds have thinned out, which most people take as a fair trade. Cardrona and The Remarkables both publish daily conditions, and 2026 Ski Season Is Here covers where to head across the rest of the country.
Where Can You Walk Near Queenstown in Spring?
Three that suit the season, easiest first.
- Bob's Cove Track and Nature Walk. Fourteen kilometres from Queenstown on the Glenorchy Queenstown Road. Twenty minutes to the cove, thirty to Picnic Point if you take the loop, so under an hour all in. Easy the whole way, and the most view for the least effort on this list.
- Lake Hayes Loop Track. A two hour loop, easy the whole way, about 20 minutes out on State Highway 6 towards Arrowtown. Start at the North Lake Hayes Picnic Area, which has the parking and the toilets.
- Queenstown Hill Time Walk. One and a half kilometres up, two to three hours return, and it needs a reasonable level of fitness. It starts at a small car park off Belfast Terrace, close enough to the town centre that you do not need to drive to it. The pine forest gives way above the treeline to the Remarkables, Cecil Peak and the length of Lake Wakatipu.
One thing about Bob's Cove. The car park is small, and DOC asks people not to park on the roadside or reverse out onto the highway. Early morning or late afternoon solves it, and in spring that is when the light is best anyway.
What Should You Know About the Roads?
All three walks above are reached on sealed road, which is how they were picked. Plenty of tracks around Queenstown finish up a gravel road instead, so it is worth checking the access before you set off rather than after. Driving in New Zealand covers what the roads here are actually like, and the mountain access roads can still want chains well into spring.
What Do You Do Afterwards?
Lake Hayes puts you a few minutes from Lower Shotover and from Arrowtown, so a walk in the morning and lunch out that way is one trip rather than two. Best Dining Destinations in Queenstown Worth the Drive has the places on that side worth stopping for.
And if your legs have had enough of it, Winter Warmth in Queenstown covers the hot pools and the spas, most of which are better in spring than in the middle of winter because you are not queueing for them.
Why the Car Makes Spring Work
Spring is the season that rewards changing your mind. The forecast turns, the field shuts the top lifts, the track you had in mind is full, and the good version of the day is the one you settle on at nine in the morning rather than the one you booked a week ago. Two of these walks are twenty minutes out and the ski fields are an hour round trip, so the whole thing only works if the car is yours for the day.
In Queenstown we bring the car to you. Nobody else here does that, and it is the entire reason Evolve exists. It is at your accommodation, boots and all, before you have decided which way you are going.
Book Your Car for Spring
Pick your dates and we will bring it to you. Evolve Rentals.
FAQs
When does the Queenstown ski season end?
The published 2026 dates run Cardrona to 18 October, The Remarkables to 11 October and Treble Cone to 27 September, all subject to conditions. Cardrona is usually the last one open.
What is the easiest walk near Queenstown?
Bob's Cove Track, 14 kilometres out on the Glenorchy Queenstown Road. Twenty minutes to the cove and under an hour all in, easy the whole way.
How long is the Lake Hayes Loop Track?
A two hour loop and easy the whole way. The North Lake Hayes Picnic Area is about 20 minutes from Queenstown on State Highway 6 and has the parking and the toilets.
Do you need a car to walk Queenstown Hill?
No. The Time Walk starts at a small car park off Belfast Terrace, close to the town centre. It is one and a half kilometres up, two to three hours return, and it wants a reasonable level of fitness.