Queenstown, New Zealand: How a Gold-Rush Town Became NZ's Priciest Place

A little over a century ago, Queenstown on Lake Wakatipu had just 190 residents. Today the average house in its district is worth almost two million dollars, the highest in New Zealand and $671,000 more than in Auckland.\n\nThis video flies over a 3D model of Queenstown built from real aerial imagery, elevation and LiDAR buildings, always facing north, with gold-rush photographs, archive film and hand-built models of the TSS Earnslaw, the Skyline Gondola and the Kawarau bungy bridge: the lake that breathes, the 1862 gold rush, the Chinese miners, the tourist era from skiing to bungy, how the town is laid out and growing, what pays the bills, and where to live — and what it costs.\n\nHouse values are September 2026 averages (district: QV; suburbs: Cotality); check current prices before you buy.