Heading to Electric Avenue? Why Not Turn It Into a Road Trip Adventure.
Electric Avenue's first two day festival in February 2025, and how to turn the drive from Queenstown into a road trip via Twizel and Lake Tekapo.
In February 2025, Electric Avenue did something it had never done in its ten years: it went to two days. On Friday 21 and Saturday 22 February, Hagley Park in Christchurch hosted more than 70,000 people, with Chase and Status and The Prodigy at the top of the bill.
If you were heading up from Queenstown, the festival was only half the story. The drive to Christchurch is one of the great road trips in New Zealand, and with a car from Evolve Rentals it becomes part of the weekend rather than the thing you have to get through first.
When was Electric Avenue 2025?
Electric Avenue 2025 ran on Friday 21 and Saturday 22 February 2025 in Hagley Park, Christchurch. It was the festival's tenth anniversary and its first ever two day edition, and it had been sold out since the previous September, with more than 16,000 people still on the waitlist.
Who played at Electric Avenue 2025?
Chase and Status headlined the Friday, and The Prodigy closed out the Saturday, on their first visit to New Zealand in six years.
Around them was a line up of more than 50 artists, including Empire of the Sun, Khruangbin, The Kooks, Rudimental, Wilkinson, DJ Shadow, Maribou State, Tash Sultana and Real Estate. The New Zealand contingent was just as strong: L.A.B, Fat Freddy's Drop, and Shapeshifter performing with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra and Ladi6.
The weather played its part too. Rain and thunder were forecast for the Friday afternoon, and by half past four the sun had come out. Christchurch in February can be generous like that.
How do you drive from Queenstown to Christchurch?
Head north through the Mackenzie Country. It is roughly six hours of driving without stops, over the Lindis Pass, past Twizel and Lake Pukaki, through Lake Tekapo and down onto the Canterbury Plains. Almost nobody should do it without stops, because it is one of the most beautiful drives in the country.
Our guide to the four stops worth building the Queenstown to Christchurch drive around covers the best of the route in detail, in either direction.
Where should you stop on the way to Christchurch?
High Country Salmon, about three kilometres south of Twizel on State Highway 8, is the obvious lunch. Logans Floating Restaurant serves their own salmon as sashimi, sushi and more from 10am to 7pm, there is a fish shop and deli, and you can feed the fish for free between 10am and 5pm, which is more entertaining than it sounds.
Lake Tekapo is the place to stop for the night. The water is famously blue, and the town sits inside the Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve, which the Dark Sky Project describes as the largest gold status dark sky reserve in the world.
If the sky is clear, book the Dark Sky Project Summit Experience, a guided stargazing tour of about an hour and 45 minutes at the University of Canterbury's Mount John Observatory. A night under that sky, then a relaxed drive into Christchurch the next morning, is a far better start to a festival than six hours straight.
How do you prepare for a day at Electric Avenue?
Treat it like the long day it is. Drink plenty of water, wear sunscreen and reapply it, and wear shoes you can stand in for ten hours.
And plan the trip home before the first drink. Hagley Park is in the middle of the city, so walking, buses or a taxi back to your accommodation are the easy options, and the car can stay parked until the morning. That is all the advice you will get from us on the subject.
How do you make a proper weekend of it in Christchurch?
Stay a night or two either side. Our two to three day Christchurch itinerary covers what to do in the city and the drives out of it, so the festival becomes the middle of a holiday rather than the whole of it.
If you would rather finish in Christchurch than drive back to Queenstown, that can be arranged for the right booking. Our post on finishing your road trip in Christchurch explains how it works, so get in touch with your dates before you book.
What came next?
The two day format stuck. Electric Avenue returned on 27 and 28 February 2026 with Split Enz, Dom Dolla and Kesha, and our post on Electric Avenue 2026 covers that year.
Getting the car sorted
In Queenstown, we bring the car to you. Nobody else in Queenstown does that. Someone from our team meets you where you are staying, walks you round the car and hands over the keys, so the road trip starts at your door rather than at a rental counter.
The journey really is as good as the destination on this one, so book your car with Evolve Rentals and give yourself time to enjoy both.
FAQs
When was Electric Avenue 2025?
Friday 21 and Saturday 22 February 2025 in Hagley Park, Christchurch. It was the festival's first two day edition.
Who headlined Electric Avenue 2025?
Chase and Status on the Friday and The Prodigy on the Saturday, with more than 50 artists including Empire of the Sun, Tash Sultana, L.A.B and Fat Freddy's Drop.
How long is the drive from Queenstown to Christchurch?
Roughly six hours without stops, via the Lindis Pass, Twizel and Lake Tekapo. It is well worth breaking with an overnight stop at Lake Tekapo.
Where can you stop for lunch between Queenstown and Christchurch?
High Country Salmon, about three kilometres south of Twizel on State Highway 8, has a floating restaurant open from 10am to 7pm, a fish shop and free fish feeding.