Helicopter tours Queenstown

See it before you pay for it

What twenty minutes and a whole day each buy

The short flight climbs the ridge above Lake Wakatipu for an alpine landing the pilot picks that morning; the long runs carry west into the icefalls of Mount Aspiring National Park and over Earnslaw Burn, where the helicopter picnic Queenstown listing stops under the hanging glacier. That is two of the three days people mean by heli Queenstown.

Side by side

Over the town, out to the glaciers, or across to Milford Sound

Three products, not twenty. Short flights over town with an alpine landing, $200 to $408; the runs west to the glaciers and Earnslaw Burn, $477 to $644; the Milford day, $739 to $1,077 — the only Queenstown tour on this page that crosses the range. Pick the group first: inside each one, price follows minutes in the air.

Before you book

What the fare covers and what it does not

A seat, the minutes the listing names, a pilot who narrates what is under the skids, and on the short flights an alpine landing in the programme. Nothing to climb, nothing to carry — and the landing depends on conditions the pilot reads that day.

What people said afterwards

1,142 reviews across twenty Queenstown flights

Ratings are the operators’ own numbers on GetYourGuide for these Queenstown New Zealand helicopter tours, shown as published. Eighteen of the twenty carry one; the twenty-five-minute flight has the most, 4.9 across 303 reviews. We do not write reviews or average them into a score of our own.

What it really costs

From $200 to $1,077, and what moves the number

Three things move the number on helicopter trips Queenstown: minutes in the air, how far west you fly, and what follows the flight. Twenty minutes above town costs $200; the glaciers and Earnslaw Burn start at $477; the Milford listings are a Queenstown day trip and run to $1,077.

The honest answer

Is the Milford day worth four times the twenty-minute flight?

One morning, and you want to stand where you cannot walk: the $200 landing on the Remarkables Spur, 4.8 across 219 reviews. If the trip is about Milford Sound, our pick is the $825 day trip from Queenstown — four hours, a cruise on the fiord, 4.9 across 190 reviews. We are paid the same either way.

What it is really like

Three trips, not twenty: the town, the glaciers, and Milford Sound

Twenty listings, three trips

A peak above the town, the glaciers, or the fiord

Every listing lifts off from Queenstown, and the fare mostly measures two things: minutes in the air and how far west you go. Twenty-five minutes reaches an alpine spur above the lake; fifty reaches ice; four hours reaches Milford Sound and adds a cruise.

Practical

Plan the flight

Four decisions: which of the three days, how many minutes in the air, a spare day in case your slot moves, and a week’s notice to book.

Best time

When these flights run

These listings run through the year, so there is no closed season to plan around. What changes is the length of the day, how much snow sits on the landing spots, and how far ahead the short flights fill. We do not forecast conditions; read the listing’s own note.

Worth knowing

Six things the listings do not spell out

Common questions

Twenty minutes or a whole day, and whether you land

Why trust this page

How we put this together