Queenstown Pocket · the Queenstown app, free on the web

Queenstown today, in your pocket.

What is on, the weather and the last bus home, checked at each source and rebuilt every hour. The app keeps it on your phone with no signal.

Tonight in Queenstown

Sunday, 1 November · 11:57pm

Nothing more on tonight. The last buses leave from 12:37am.

Getting home

  • 1To Sunshine BayStanley Street Hub A, Liquor King12:37am
  • 1To Remarkables ShopsStanley Street Hub B, Playcentre12:37am

52 places open after 10pm. Nearest food: Brazz on the Green, until late.

Timetabled, not live · $2.50 with a Bee CardTonight in full

Free. One email each morning of your trip, and the app link on 1 November.

Working today, free on the web

Start here, no download needed

The app launches on 1 November. The walks, buses, events and guides already work here. Open a hub and choose Save for offline, and it stays on your phone for when the signal drops.

Results appear below as you type. Arrow down moves into them; Enter opens the first.

Try

Spring 2026, September to November

Queenstown in spring

The season that changes fastest. The ski fields close one by one, the tracks reopen, and the sunshine climbs from 151 hours in September to 218 in November on NIWA’s normals. The guide has the dates, what is still open, and what to book for each week.

  • 18 October Cardrona's scheduled last day, the last of the four ski areas to close.

  • 1 November The Great Walks season opens on the Routeburn and the Milford Track.

  • 14 November The Queenstown Marathon, with road closures around the course on the day.

Read the spring guideOr by month: September, October, November

The whole town, in your pocket

Three of the screens we’re building right now: the trail you’re standing on, the bus that’s actually coming, and the deals locals would tell you about.

Ben Lomond TrackVia the Tiki Trail · start at the gondola
Saved offline
11 km6–8 h returnADVANCED
Offline trail maps
Stanley St departuresQueenstown CBD$2.50 with a Bee Card
1
Remarkables Shopsvia Frankton & the airport
3 min
4
Arrowtownvia Arthurs Point
7 min
5
Lake Hayes Estatevia Frankton Hub
12 min
1
Sunshine Bayvia Fernhill
18 min
Every bus, planned for you
Today's dealsTuesday · 14 live near you
Locals' favouriteLunch special · CBD waterfrontTwo courses, weekdays till 3pm
Today onlyAfternoon jet boat seatsLast-minute spots, book in-app
Happy hourCraft beer flights · Church St4–6pm daily
Off-peakMorning gondola + luge comboBefore 11am
Deals worth walking to

Previews from the build in progress, real screenshots as we get closer to launch.

One app instead of six

Today a Queenstown trip means one app for buses, another for deals, another for trails, another for the ski fields, and a browser tab for everything else. We’re putting the whole town in one place.

The Whakatipu basin from above Queenstown Bay

Buses that make sense

Orbus journey planning, the airport bus at $2.50 with a Bee Card, ferry times and where to actually park. The local knowledge nobody tells you.

Walker on the Ben Lomond summit above Lake Wakatipu

Trails in your pocket

Ben Lomond to the Queenstown Trail: offline maps, elevation, honest time estimates, track alerts and how to reach the trailhead by bus.

Autumn trees over the shops on Queenstown Mall

Genuine local deals

What's cheap, what's on and what locals actually rate, not tourist-trap coupons.

Snow on the Remarkables above Lake Wakatipu

Snow and ski roads

Season dates and road status for all four ski areas in one screen, each line carrying its source and the time it was issued.

Skyline gondola cabin high above Lake Wakatipu

Adventures, bookable

Bungy, jet boats, cruises, gondola, wine tours. Browse and check availability, then book on the operator's own page.

Queenstown Bay waterfront below the Remarkables

Places to eat

Restaurants, cafés and bars with the filters that matter: open now, near me, vegan, cheap eats, kid-friendly.

Built for how Queenstown actually works

Cell coverage dies on the Glenorchy road, halfway up Ben Lomond, and everywhere you most need a map. So the app is offline-first: maps, timetables and trail guides are on your phone before you leave town.

Offline-first

Everything essential works with zero bars.

Live, not stale

Bus times, road status, track alerts and the forecast, each with its source and the time it was issued.

Genuinely local

Made in New Zealand: more buses and trails, less traffic.

This site works the same way: open Walks, Buses, What’s on or Guides and choose Save for offline.

See yourself here

Summit mornings, autumn streets, powder days. Drag through a few of the days the app is built for.

Hiker on a schist ridge above the Wakatipu basinWalker on the Ben Lomond summit above Lake WakatipuAutumn trees over Queenstown MallTramper overlooking Lake Wakatipu under low cloudChairlift above Queenstown and the lakeSnow-covered Remarkables over Lake Wakatipu

Questions, answered

The short version of everything people ask us.

When does Queenstown Pocket launch?+

November 2026, on iOS and Android. Waitlist members get the launch email first.

Is the app free?+

Yes, free to download, and buses, maps, walks, snow and every booking are free to use. An optional Trip Pass, bought in the app, lets one other person plan the trip with you for 14 days; it is one payment and does not renew. When you book an activity through the app we may earn a commission from the booking site, and the card says so before you tap; where we earn nothing it says Book direct.

What works offline?+

The things you need when coverage dies: trail maps, bus timetables and the town guide are stored on your phone before you leave town. Forecasts, events and deals refresh whenever you're back in coverage. Bus times are the published timetable, so they work with no signal.

Which buses does it cover?+

Every Orbus route in the Queenstown network, including the airport bus at $2.50 with a Bee Card, using official Otago Regional Council timetable data.

What do you do with my email?+

We email you when the app launches, and that's it: no selling your data, no spam, and one-click unsubscribe on every email. Privacy policy

Who's building Queenstown Pocket?+

A solo founder in New Zealand, publishing under Tally Sphere Limited, a New Zealand company. Every number on the site is checked against its primary source and dated.

Have it on your phone when you land

Give us the days you are here and we’ll send what is on at 7am each morning, then the app link on 1 November.

Today’s list, every morning of your trip

7am, Queenstown time. The first one arrives now. It stops by itself on your last day.

One email at 7am each morning of your trip, Queenstown time, then the app link when it launches on 1 November. Nothing else. Unsubscribe in any email. Privacy

Queenstown Pocket is built by a solo founder in New Zealand, with the region’s regenerative-tourism goals in mind: more buses and trails, less traffic.

Recently checked guides

Free, dated and sourced: the questions the i-SITE desk answers thirty times a day.

All 58 guides · The FAQ