What's Included
- Travel down one of the 25 most scenic roads in the world!
- Visit Skippers Canyon, Skippers township and Skippers Schoolhouse
- Try gold panning in the Shotover River
- Refreshments included
- Pickup from Town Centre or Queenstown accommodation
What's Excluded
Bring drinking water and a camera!
Why Do We Love This
"We love it because this trip is the perfect combination of adventure and history. It's a great chance to experience the past and learn all about the history of Skipper's Canyon and township with little highlights like gold panning, snacks at Skipper's Schoolhouse and visits to original buildings making it all the more authentic! Pair this with the amazing Queenstown scenery and you have a trip you'll never forget."
What to Expect
This exciting 4WD tour along one of the 25 most scenic roads in the world will see you immersed in the historical township and spectacular cliffs and valleys of Skippers Canyon! Enjoy learning about the area's history, all the while marvelling at the stunning scenery that surrounds you!
The day begins with pickup from your Queenstown accommodation. From there, head to Coronet Peak, along the rugged road, hacked by hand into the cliff sides of the Shotover River Valley. A stop at Plane Table will give you stunning panoramic views of Wakatipu Basin and the valleys beyond.
Afterwards, head into Skippers Canyon and pay a visit to Lighthouse Rock, another great viewpoint over the entire canyon. Wander down the winding walking track, and discovering gold panning history at Skippers Bridge.
Continue on into the township of Skippers where you'll have the chance to explore the gold panning history with visits to original, historical structures and sites! Enjoy a delicious morning or afternoon tea at the Skippers Schoolhouse and then browse the photos and artefacts in the restored building.
Next, you'll head back onto the rugged track, ready for a stop at Deep Creek where you'll get a first-hand experience of the gold panning lifestyle. This is one of the richest gold bearing rivers in the world and NOMAD's trained guides will be there to teach you special techniques - so get ready to find some treasure!
This tour departs at 8:15 am and 1:30 pm and takes approximately 4 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
Snacks, hot drinks and pick up and drop off any central accommodation or information centres
Suitable shoes and appropriate clothing. All you need to bring with you is water, a camera and a sense of adventure!
Hot drinks (tea, coffee and hot chocolate) and biscuits and cakes.
We use a mixture of Land Rovers, Toyota Land Cruisers: Ford Transit vans and other 6 seater vans. Our Land Rovers are certified for 8 passengers but we generally take only 6. Our Land Cruisers have 6 seats. Transit vans have 11 seats. We can also provide 19, 21 and 22 seater buses.
The longest walk is about 15 minutes but it is not necessary to participate if you do not want to.
Our trips will depart in all weather conditions unless the operations manager considers it to be too dangerous.
We will pick you up and drop you at any central accommodation or information centre.
Reviews for Gold Heritage: Skippers Canyon Tour
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Policies
Visit: https://www.nomadsafaris.co.nz/terms-and-conditions/
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Outback New Zealand Limited reserves the absolute right to cancel any scheduled departures as a result of road or weather conditions
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Outback New Zealand Limited reserves the absolute right to decline to accept or retain any person as a member of a tour
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Clients will be advised as soon as possible of any cancellation or part cancellation (and will be entitled to a full refund or refund of that part of the trip that has been unable to be completed
- Bookings cancelled more than 24 hours before the trip will incur no cancellation fee
- Bookings cancelled within 24 hours of departure will be subject to a 100% cancellation fee
All customer cancellation & refund requests are also subject to our website’s own refund conditions.
Pickup Locations
Pickup from Town Centre or Queenstown accommodation.
- (The) Last Resort
- (The) Lodges
- (The) Lofts Apartments
- (The) Rees
- (The) Spire
- (The) Waterfront
- Absoloot Backpackers - (MEET AT INFO & TRACK)
- Adventure Q2 Hostel
- Adventure Queenstown - (MEET AT INFO & TRACK)
- Alexis Motel and Apartments
- Amber Lodge
- Amity Lodge
- Aspen Lodge
- Autoline Motel & Apartments
- Azur Lodge
- Bella Vista
- Black Sheep Backpackers
- Blue Peaks Apartments
- Blue Peaks Lodge
- Breakfree the Point
- Browns Boutique Hotel
- Butterfli Lodge
- Caples Court Motel
- Carlin Boutique Hotel
- Central Ridge Boutique Hotel
- Chalet Queenstown
- Colonial Village Motel
- Copthorne Hotel and Apartments Lakeview
- Copthorne Hotel and Resort Lakefront
- Coronation Lodge
- Coronet View Apartments
- Creeksyde Holiday Park
- Crowne Plaza Hotel
- Dairy Private Hotel by Naumi Hotels
- Deco Backpackers
- DoubleTree (by Hilton)
- Earnslaw Lodge
- Eichardt's Private Hotel
- Flaming Kiwi Backpackers
- Garden Court Suites & Apartments
- Haka Lodge
- Heartland Hotel & Scenic Suites
- Heritage Hotel
- Hilton Queenstown Resort & Spa
- Hippo Lodge Backpackers
- Holiday Inn Frankton Rd
- Holiday Inn Queenstown Town Centre
- Holiday Inn Remarkables Park
- Hurley's of Queenstown
- INFO & TRACK, 37 Shotover Street
- Jucy Snooze - (MEET AT INFO & TRACK)
- Kamana Lakehouse
- Lakefront Apartments
- Lakeside Motel
- Lomond Lodge
- LQ Hotel (La Quinta by Wyndham)
- Mantra Apartments / Luxury Lake Suites
- Melbourne Lodge
- Mercure Hotel
- mi-pad Queenstown Hotel
- Millennium Hotel
- Nomads Backpackers
- Novotel Queenstown Lakeside
- Nugget Point
- Oaks Club Resort
- Oaks Shores
- Peppers Beacon
- Pinewood Lodge
- Platinum Queenstown Villas
- QT Queenstown
- Queenstown House Boutique B&B
- Queenstown Lakeview Holiday Park
- Queenstown Park Boutique Hotel
- Queenstown TOP 10 Holiday Park
- Ramada Remarkables Park
- Ramada Suites Frankton
- Ramada Town Centre
- Reavers Lodge
- Ridge Resort
- Rydges Hotel
- Sherwood Hotel
- Shotover Lodge
- Sofitel
- Southern Laughter Backpackers
- Spinnaker Bay Executive Apartments
- St Moritz Hotel
- Sudima Queenstown Five Mile
- Swiss-Belresort CORONET PEAK
- Swiss-Belsuites POUNAMU
- Tahuna Pod Hostel
- The Glebe Apartments
- To be confirmed
- Turner Heights Townhouses
- Villa Del Lago
- Whistler Apartments
- Wyndham Garden
- Wyndham Garden Queenstown
Flexible booking
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