Skippers Canyon 4wd Adventure Tour - Half Day From Queenstown

Fantastic experience with Justin (a born and bred local). Great stories, history of Queenstown and the gold mining. We got to try panning for gold (and found some!) Stunning views and a thrilling 4x4 ride. Also included a lovely tea time at the side of the canyon. Wonderful to experience this beautiful part of the world with someone who knows and loves it. Would highly recommend this adventure.

6 friends took a private van tour with Kenny and LOVED it. Kenny was great - informative, funny, capable. Skippers Canyon was breathtaking. It was interesting to learn about the gold rush and even panned for gold. Fun for all ages.

Queenstown is surrounded by amazing mountains and this tour gets you up close and personal with amazing views. Our guide was informative, friendly, professional and safety focussed on one of New Zealand’s most dangerous roads. We experienced gold panning while having a welcomed toilet stop. A great half day. We took lots of great photos. Highly recommended.

We just finished an amazing Skipper's Canyon 4WD tour with our guide Justin. It was beautiful scenery and Justin was very knowledgeable, always had some interesting facts about the area and the history and kept the three children and us fully engaged! A really fun trip, with a unique demonstration of gold panning and a nice hot chocolate stop at a viewpoint. We were very lucky with beautiful weather which added to the scenic experience.

Justin is so knowledgeable and friendly, we really enjoyed listening to him & chatting while driving. The weather was beautiful & the sights extraordinary. The kids even found a few specks of gold!

Our guide was very knowledgeable. He was also LOTS of fun!! He knew exactly how to be adventurous and make the ride exciting and safe simultaneously.

Had a great day visiting Skippers Canyon! Nico was an excellent driver, guide while also being very informative! We highly recommend Nico and this team.

What a fantastic trip. Nico was a brilliant driver taking us around this amazing landscape. It was such a wonderful memorable experience and would highly recommend. Huge thanks to Nico his kindness and ...very tasty Banana Bread!

Beautiful views ! A must do. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and made the experience even better.

Amazing morning! Justin our guide was lovely and very knowledgeable! We learnt a lot about the history of Queenstown. Stunning views. Exceeded our expectations! A must do if you’re visiting!

Bruce and I had THE most memorable trip into Skippers Canyon and it was all because of how great Justin was. Justin was knowledgeable, very considerate, respectful and had such a terrific sense of humour. Thanks so much Justin. We will never forget our trip with you.

This tour was fantastic, especially as we’re LOTR fans. We had the lovely Jodie driving us around and she did a superb job. Very informative, took us to some very scenic spots and pointed out the movie spots along with photos. The best bit was the off-roading where we went through rivers and up and down gullies. I would highly recommend this trip!

Finn was the best guide! Had a total blast seeing all the dramatic landscapes and land formations! What a treat this was to step back in history and actually pan for gold! Got two specks and enjoyed the coffee and banana bread! Thank you for a wonderful day!

Gets very bumpy, but extremely enjoyable. Has nothing to hang on to in vehicle. Driver Tom was very knowledgeable and extremely safe in his approach to driving. If you fear heights don't look out of windows over the edge.

Our driver/guide was Finley. He was extremely knowledgeable and an excellent guide. My friend and I had an absolutely wonderful day with memories that will last a lifetime. We highly recommend this tour especially with Findley as your guide. The hot chocolate and biscuits were a perfect touch to a perfect day. Tina and MaryAnn

It change a little from water views...the canyon is amazing . They should tell us in edvance about mosquitos problem .

It was cold and misty but we still had a wonderful time. The canyons are beautiful. Jody, our driver and guide, is from the area. She was quite knowledgeable explaining the history of the area, trees, rock formations, etc. There were some old photos of how certain structures appeared around 1860’s. The rock roads are steep, narrow, and winding, but she handles the 4WD like an expert. There were opportunities to stop and take photos and have tea at Bridal Veil falls. She is very familiar with changes in the landscape and spotted a dead goat up on a high rock. You can pan for gold but we choose not to but still went down to the river to enjoy the scenery.

Tour could not be completed as advertised despite them knowing this at the time of booking. The 4wd adventure was a little lame. It was a bare minimum effort to justify the trip. Don’t recommend skipper township tour and better quality coffee and biscuits could be provided

We booked the Skippers Canyon and got the Lord of the Rings tour too plus the 4wd River experience. Thanks to Nick for his expertise especially on 2wd drive vehicles driving the Skippers Canyon 4wd track!

As we plunged into the Arrow river creating a tidal wave I did have a big smile on my face. The drive through Skippers Canyon was another highlight as our guide Dan expertly navigated the tightly winding gravel road clinging to the cliffs with a sheer drop down to the canyon floor. He clearly enjoyed the experience as much as we did. A wonderful, fun way of exploring the varied and dramatic landscape around Queenstown.

Amazing experience, 1000/10 recommended ✨ we went to Skippers Canyon and it was one of the most outstanding sceneries I’ve ever seen. Josie our tour guide was so sweet, friendly and fun. Definitely worth the trip and it’s the perfect time length, not too short not too long. Safari Nomad thank you for such a rewarding experience!

A fantastic trip through Skippers canyon and views of the bridge and village at the end. Our guide Hayden was very informative, friendly, and great fun, we were able to get to the beach for gold panning. Some more awesome fun river crossings around Arrowtown. Thanks Nomad and Hayden for a perfect day seeing a beautiful part of the world.

Great experience. Finly is the great tour guide, informative, great driving skill. Beautiful & spectacular view. Really enjoy the activity.

Stunning scenery. Different scenery than other tours. Learn history of a specific group of settlers.

Fabulous trip with friendly and informative drivers. This was my second time in Skippers Canyon with Nomad Safaris and well worth it.

We only got to see the first quarter of the Skippers Canyon trip- there were several slips blocking the road and the swing bridge had been closed. But that didn't stop Justin from giving us an all out wonderful half day trip. We went as far as the road allowed- and based on that- we will have to return to Queenstown when the canyon road is fully open because it is beautiful and exciting! Justin more than made up for what we couldn't do by taking us to additional locations- lookout above Queenstown, Arrowtown and more. Justin was an absolutely fun guide- we even photo bombed a bride and groom getting photos made- and we laughed a lot. If you get Justin as your guide, he's a local treasure!

The weather was horrible but the tour guide made it a fantastic time. Jenny was very informative, friendly, and knowledgeable and fun. Because of the bad weather and slips on Skipper's Canyon Road we could only drive part of it. Jenny made up for it with alternate routes. It was a great experience.

Our tour guide/driver Hayden was very accommodating and knowledgeable. His extensive training was impressive and certainly comforting during a breathtaking but intense drive.

Nico was awesome. Let us take as many photos as we liked. Great small group of us and the weather held no rain. The land was great to see the historic trails. And the little adrenaline from the 200ft drop on the side of the road was healthy.

Justin was an incredible tour guide! He is so knowledgeable about the area and has a great sense of humor. He also took great photos of us from all his years of experience (10 years at the time of writing this). He's very personable, warm, and friendly. And an amazing driver, too! The roads are extremely bumpy and dangerous, but he handled them like an absolute legend. If you get motion sickness, this is not the experience for you unless you have something like a Reliefband or other medication or supplements to help you through it. Highly recommend this trip though! Halfway through, he had tea and coffee and hot chocolate and snacks for us to enjoy!

Nick was great, he made an enjoyable scenic drive into a truly memorable day. With interesting stories and local info and hstory

Justin is a great guide, he knows so much about this area plus he is friendly and chats away with you on the not so interesting bits. He happily takes photos for you. Even though the ride can be scary Justin was very professional and we all felt safe with him

I had a wonderful morning in Skippers Canyon, what a wonderful memory to take home. I’m so glad I was driven on this exhilarating ride. I loved seeing New Zealand from this vantage. Jordan was a great guide

An amazing experience to Skippers Canyon, a very special tour that i highly recommend. Our driver Nicko made us feel very safe the whole journey and knew a lot about the road and its history. We couldn’t go the whole way due to the recent weather but i still felt the experience was memorable.

Roger’s afternoon excursion was our favorite part of our Queenstown trip, hands down. His enthusiasm for the history, geography, and culture made an impact on us as we took in the once-in-a-lifetime views. Roger is also a super impressive driver! He made the ride fun and exciting while still having our trust he was in full control. He was incredibly kind and patient with us when we had trouble panning for gold. Lastly, Roger is an amazing photographer; he took fabulous pictures of us and we loved hearing his stories of shooting aerial scenes for movies. Thank you Roger for an afternoon we will never forget!!

We were lucky enough to have a private tour with Justin, he was knowledgable and friendly, chucked in a hot drink and bikkies and cake for morning tea. We panned for gold on the way out, no luck unfortunately lol. The scenery is spectacular, well worth going off the beaten track!! Justin was also happy to take pics for us. Do this tour, you won't be disappointed!

Great day out. Jennie was a great driver and tour guide. Really interesting and exciting. My brothers were painful at times but just bearable.

I went on this tour last week on the 21st of August 2025. The views were amazing around this time of the year with the snowy mountains. Benjamin was the guide of the 4WD tour who presented the best tour guide experience. Definitely recommend for something to do other than skiing.

Stunning experience with our excellent tour guide Dan,looked after us so well. previously had been cancelled due to bad weather but well worth the wait.

Our driver was very kind, funny, patient, knowledgeable and friendly. We had heaps of fun and learned about the rich culture through the tour. Our son loved the tour and highly recommended to the family with children over school age (because they would understand and enjoy more) The weather was great to us so very lucky. We had a wonderful day. Thank you.

Jordan was a brilliant guide, the whole family had an amazing time! Loved the panning for gold, getting a glimpse of arrowtown and sinside knowledge on where to eat and drink and getting to drive up the road to nowhere. Thanks again!

I was a little anxious as I don't normally like heights, but I didn't have a problem. It was everything I thought it would be plus 100% better. I went for photography, and the low cloud, mist and views were to die for. Thanks Dan, for making such a memorable day.

Our tour guide Nick was phenomenal and this excursion far exceeded our expectations. We are a family of 4, with 2 kids, ages 7 and 10, and they were engaged the entire time. Nick took extra care to engage them, educate them and went exceedingly out of his way to ensure that our daughter got the photographs she wanted and that our son got a really hands on gold panning experience. We even found a few gold flakes (glitter really but our kids immediately started trying to calculate their new fortunes), and the kids are beyond delighted. Nick was also generous with his willingness to take family photos for us and his driving skills were incredible on one of the most dangerous roads in the world. He was patient and flexible with the tour and even went back to the gold panning site to get our 7yo’s gloves. We were highly impressed with his expert driving. The beauty of the canyon is beyond anything we’ve ever seen (and we travel often). Every minute of our tour was exhilarating and captivating. The pictures are epic and don’t even begin to capture the beauty of the canyon. Don’t hesitate, book this and you will have a memory for life. We won’t forget this day, thank you Nick and thank you Nomad Safaris!

I had such a wonderful experience thanks to our amazing guide “Darryl”. Even though we couldn’t continue the trip through Bridge due to dangerous road conditions, he made sure we didn’t feel disappointed. Instead, he took us for a scenic walk to the bridge, and it turned out to be just as special. He was incredibly kind, humble, and full of fascinating stories about the area—it felt like exploring with a good friend rather than just a guide. His genuine care and effort made the day unforgettable. So grateful for the experience and highly recommend him to anyone looking for more than just a tour, but a meaningful journey. 🙏✨

An absolutely amazing tour. Rachel was very friendly, informative and a very safe and careful driver. I highly recommend this tour.

This was the most awesome experience I had on the South Island. I was very nervous before we set off but our guide Jenny made me feel confident with her skill and ability to safely drive this road. She had a calming influence and I very soon forgot my stupid fears. It was fabulous. The scenery was other worldly. And Jennys knowledge of the history and ecology of the area was very interesting.

Great tour, Lucy our guide was an excellent driver and gave informative commentary. Well worth doing this tour. I would recommend it.

We had mountain canyon ride first and then went to Arrow town across the river. Was great ride of about 2 hours. It's fun and must have it. Drivers were very friendly and informative too.

This tour was excellent, it gave us a great insight into the gold mining times, our tour guide was great, the 4x4 was very capable and the scenery was stunning.