Queenstown will celebrate winter after all — at least for one night.
In March, Mountain Scene reported the Queenstown Winter Festival, last held in 2019, was off the table for this year.
Owned by Destination Queenstown (DQ), its chief executive Mat Woods told Scene at the time ‘‘its return is not being considered’’.
For the past three years, DQ’s instead organised a ‘Welcome to Winter’ community celebration — Woods confirmed three months ago there was a ‘‘small amount of funding’’ floating around to bring it back, but what form it would take hadn’t been confirmed.
Enter T Galleria by DFS.
The company behind the luxury shopping destination, which opened in Skyline’s revamped O’Connells last year, is organising the ‘Queenstown Winter Fireworks’ at 6.30pm on June 30, along with a night of pop-up stalls, local entertainers, street performances, kids’ activities and other surprises at Queenstown Bay and along the waterfront from 5.30pm.
T Galleria by DFS general manager Mario Gabriel says he’s ‘‘delighted’’ to bring the event back for locals and visitors.
‘‘When we discovered the opportunity to support such an iconic event, we jumped at the chance.
“As advocates of supporting our local community, we’re thrilled to contribute to the magic of winter festivities and ensure that this cherished winter tradition continues to thrive.’’
Queenstown mayor Glyn Lewers says it’s fantastic to have the event back on the winter calendar, to create ‘‘that buzz and excitement’’ which brings winter to life in the resort.
The event will also support the Love Queenstown community fund, which supports local climate, conservation and biodiversity projects that make an impact — that’ll include a Love Queenstown photo comp, with prizes from DFS, and a silent auction, supported by DFS and other businesses, proceeds from which will go to the campaign.
Gabriel: ‘‘We really want to see locals and visitors immersing themselves in the vibrant atmosphere before enjoying the breathtaking fireworks display at 6.30pm.
‘‘We also extend a warm invitation to downtown businesses to join us in celebrating the essence of winter.’’
