Awesome shop. Great to find a store with super knowledgeable staff and tons of personality. Best…read morerange of gear I've seen and some really technical products for people wanting top grade stuff too. Very unique place, can't wait to go back!

I had a pretty frustrating experience shopping here back in December. To make this easy, I'm going…read moreto copy and paste the review I put on their facebook page at the time: --- BUYER BEWARE: this place does not take unused items back. I thought I had forgotten my gaiters at home so bought a pair. Found them in my bag and tried to return. Nope! They even had the audacity to tell me that their policy protects me as the consumer to not take returns. What? The truth came in his following words: "also, protects us if you buy something and then walk down the street and find it for half the price." Their prices are three times the price of everyone else in town. They were charging $30 for butane. Bought the same butane down the street for less than $10. Save your money and shop elsewhere! --- All accurate info. I have no reason to lie. This was certainly a frustrating experience, but when they refused to take the unused gaiters back I ended up exchanging them for a fleece that I now love and wear all the time. Still would have preferred my money back, but happy ending, right? Ok, cut to tonight. A month and a half later. One of the guys (who I assume works at Small Planet Sports, since he refers to the store as "our shop") FINALLY replies to my review. I was expecting the "We're so sorry you had an unpleasant experience" response. Wrong again. He was just replying to troll me! A MONTH AND A HALF LATER! These guys are the absolute worst. Do not shop here. They take horrific customer service to another level. Just take your business elsewhere and sleep well at night knowing that you didn't give your business to garbage human beings.

We got some great outdoor gear at a fair price. They helped us find a good pair of trekking shoes…read morefor my partner. She got a pair of Salomon's for half price on clearance. They also give a 10% discount off retail for being part of their club which is just giving them a name and email. They are a local New Zealand chain.

Terrible service. Didn't appreciate the way I was treated when asking about skis and snowboards.read more

Queenstown Mall is essentially several street blocks of shops, boutique stores, restaurants, gift…read moreshops, a Louis Vuitton, and etc. It's a nice place to walk around in as it is centrally located near the Queenstown Gardens, Skyline Gondala, and Queenstown Bay. Everywhere is clean and there are many alleyways and shortcuts that takes you to discover new places. It's definitely touristy, and a little pricey. Though, if you need some normal groceries and water, I highly recommend 4 Squares Supermarket. We also went to Fergburger, Flame Bar & Grill, Aotea Gifts, took the TSS Earnslaw, and Erik's Fish and Chips. Overall, a nice place to roam around, especially with the beautiful Lake Wakatipu as a background. There are excellent restaurants and stores to eat and get souvenirs.

Hardly a long strip of mall but still the row you want to shop on. Also, in the evening hours the…read moresun doesn't hit the area so it's much cooler. Big-time souvenir shops if you're an out-of-towner. I had pizza at three different stops and "Winnies" is easily the best one. Walk to the end and behold the sunset view of the docks. You get those pink-violet colors at the right time of year, which might be anytime of year it's not raining. #newzealand

As I was planning activities to do while in Queenstown, I stumbled upon this place that offers bike…read moretours that had really positive reviews. However, since I have never really done long distance biking before, I was hesitant to sign up for one of the tours that takes you further in and you bike back to the shop in downtown Queenstown. I decided to just rent an e-bike for half a day which would allow me to go at my own pace and return when I wanted to. Honestly, it was one of the best days of my life-the breathtaking scenery of Queenstown and the comfort of my own solitude exploring the bike paths overlooking Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown trail, Shotover bridge/river, Kawarau River... The person helping me at the shop was really friendly-helped walked me through how to use an e-bike (it was my first time using an e-bike but thought it would be the safest option in case I tired myself out later) and helped to adjust the seat as well when I had some trouble. The e-bike had different levels of support (eco, medium, and high)-I used eco mode for most of the time but used medium and high on my way back and it hardly used any of the battery life at all (there is a level usage on the screen). They provide you with a map which I used along with my phone to ensure I was on the right path but there are also many signs along the way, so I would say it would be hard to get lost. I would totally recommend this bike shop if you want a little adventure during your stay in Queenstown -something not as crazy as bungee jumping but will give you a thrill and some amazing views.

VISIT: end of February 2020 TOUR: Bike the Bridges -…read moreArrowtown to Gibbston Supported Tour VIEWS: 5 stars HELP FROM TOUR GUIDE: 5 stars SUITABLE FOR ALL ENDURANCE LEVELS: 4 stars DEALS: I found them through Chase Ultimate Rewards and several other sites MEETING SPOT: close to Fergburger and Fergbaker This tour was an honest pleasant surprise for us. The videos online looked cool, but mostly we got to experience so much that I don't think we would have seen. I would have never made a special trip to Arrowtown or Gibbston just based on the research I did, but what a beautiful way to view this amazing country! You meet at their meeting spot where the tour guide will drive you to your starting point. The tour guide stayed with everyone until they were comfortable on which path they were following and made sure that bikes and helmets were all sized appropriately. Our tour guide even gave special care to someone in our group that didn't speak English. You can leave items in the van, if you'd like, but my husband and I just had everything in our backpacks as the van is only there during certain check points. After that you are pretty much on your own with the bike tour, which was refreshing that you could go at your own pace. You see your tour guide at regular intervals along your track and that's always refreshing, in case you get tired you can always hop in the van. Along the way, you ride by the AJ Hackett bungee jumpers which was a nice stop to watch and use the restrooms and grab snacks, if you need. Then our tour ended at the Gibbston Winery which was just a nice treat after a good workout. ACTIVITY LEVEL: one of my biggest tenets is that the company dubs the Bike the Bridges tour a relatively easy ride and although it was, I was personally surprised at how much of a workout was. There was a good amount of inclines/declines and I workout regularly and have an active job, so I was relatively surprised. However, I realized after being in New Zealand that many of their residents are so active that I'm sure this would be an easy ride. For those on the fence, they do have electric bikes for rent, so that might be the way to go. NAVIGATION: the navigation is very easy and the trails are clearly marked. As mentioned above, your tour guide also makes sure he's waiting at regular intervals along your trail, so I wouldn't let that deter you I WOULD 100% DO THIS AGAIN: I am not a typical tourist that would return to do things again, but I cannot begin to explain how magical this was. Plus the tour was a half day, so we actually booked this the afternoon of our first full day in New Zealand to give us time to adjust to jet lag and the long tour the day before

Located on The Mall, a little cobblestone lined walkway with shops and restaurants. The Yelp map…read morelabels the street wrong-- Ballarat Street changes its name to The Mall street when it becomes this pedestrian-only cobblestone street. While I do not support Lululemon's attitudes toward full figured folks, it is hard to deny that their clothing is well made and functional. When I went to this store yesterday, both J and I bought clothing because their sale section was so large!!! It was awesome. I've never seen one of the American locations with even 1/4 of the amount of sale/clearance merchandise. They also had a teapot for free samples of their blood orange tea. The pot was almost empty, but boy were those last few cold drops tasty! And if you're American, the prices are in NZD roughly what they would be in USD. A top that is $99 USD in the United States would still be $99 NZD here. That means that you get an additional discount if you're American because the current exchange rate values NZD lower than USD.

In A Nutshell:…read more -Queenstown, wow such a hidden gem. -If you've ever been to Lake Tahoe, Yosemite & Colorado Springs, imagine all those places merged into one. -Queenstown has the blue lakes, crystal clear rivers, sky-high/snow capped mountains & wineries. -If you are the millenial-outdoor-hippie-wanna-be-type then this place should be on your bucket list. -Tons of outdoor sports galore, this is your ultimate playground. -There's even a casino in town. Overall, I would visit this place again once later in life, but I recommend that you visit soon if you haven't been to Southland, NZ.

What is not to like about Queenstown, New Zealand. It's super clean, full of adventure, and it has…read morethe absolute best view when flying into Queenstown airport. If I were to choose any place to live in New Zealand...it'd be Queenstown, but I'm only really familiar with Auckland, Te Anau, Rotoura, and Queenstown. The lake view is almost visible from anywhere in Queenstown. The mountains are amazing, the food is amazing, and you're living with some of the nicest people on the planet. The adventure capitol of the world has everything from hikes, outlooks, bungee jumping, river speed boating, to mountain biking. Spend some quality time here and enjoy this wonderful city. You definitely won't regret it!