Queenstown bus planner
Pick where you are and where you are going: the Orbus route to take, the ride time and the first and last bus, or the one change at Frankton Hub or the town hub when no bus goes direct.
Published 18 September 2026 · Last checked 18 September 2026 · By Queenstown Pocket
Queenstown town centre to Queenstown Airport
1 direct route, no change needed.
Route 1 towards Remarkables Shops
Board at Stanley Street Bus Hub B, Playcentre; get off at Airport.
- Ride
- About 19 min
- Weekdays
- 6:14am to 12:37am, 66 trips, about every 15 min
- Weekends
- 6:14am to 12:37am, 66 trips
Fare: $2.50 with a Bee Card, or $10 cash on the airport leg.
Fares from the Otago Regional Council fares page, checked 24 September 2026.
Get the Thursday email
One expensive Queenstown decision a week, settled with dated prices and the free alternative, plus three things the week favours. Free. It also carries the one launch email, so you are on the app waitlist too.
One email every Thursday at 6am: one Queenstown decision settled with numbers, and three things the week favours. Plus one email when the app launches. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy
What the planner covers
15 places on the Orbus bus network: the town centre (the Stanley Street hub), Queenstown Airport, Frankton Hub, Arrowtown, Remarkables Park, Five Mile, Kelvin Heights, Jack's Point, Lake Hayes Estate, Sunshine Bay, Fernhill, Arthurs Point, Queenstown Events Centre, Hilton and Kawarau Village, and Amisfield and Lake Hayes. Times come from the Otago Regional Council timetable feed, version 260408-1230, published 8 April 2026. A direct route is one bus that stops at your start and then at your destination. Otherwise the planner picks the quickest single change at Frankton Hub or the Stanley Street hub, with at least 3 minutes to cross, inside the 45-minute free transfer. Ride times are the median scheduled weekday time; buses run late in peak traffic on Frankton Road.
Route 1 is the airport bus. Route 1 from Stanley Street Bus Hub B, Playcentre to Airport, about 19 minutes, roughly every 15 minutes, 6:14am to 12:37am on weekdays.
How to pay: $2.50 with a Bee Card on every bus route, $4 cash, and $10 cash on the airport leg. Tag on and off; transfers are free within 45 minutes of tagging off (Bee Card only). The Bee Card guide covers where to buy one.
Every route with all its stops is on the bus hub: Route 1 (Sunshine Bay to Remarkables Shops), Route 2 (Frankton Hub to Arrowtown), Route 3 (Quail Rise to Kelvin Heights), Route 4 (Jacks Point to Arrowtown via Queenstown), Route 5 (Lake Hayes Estate to Queenstown) and Route 6 (Queenstown to Hilton, the ferry).
Questions people ask
Which bus goes from Queenstown town centre to the airport?
Route 1 from Stanley Street Bus Hub B, Playcentre to Airport, about 19 minutes, roughly every 15 minutes, 6:14am to 12:37am on weekdays. The fare is $2.50 with a Bee Card, or $10 cash on the airport leg.
How do I get from Queenstown Airport to Arrowtown by bus?
Route 1 to Frankton Bus Hub, then Route 2 to Arrowtown (Ramshaw Lane): about 40 minutes door to door, including a typical 12-minute wait at Frankton Hub. Transfers are free within 45 minutes of tagging off (Bee Card only), so with a Bee Card it is one fare.
Where do the planner's times come from?
From the Otago Regional Council's Orbus timetable feed, version 260408-1230, published 8 April 2026. They are scheduled times, not live ones, and ride times are the median weekday time between the two stops.
Computed from ORC GTFS feed version 260408-1230 (published 2026-04-08), pack built 2026-09-03. Bus timetable data: Otago Regional Council, licensed under CC BY 4.0 (orc.govt.nz). Queenstown Pocket is not affiliated with or endorsed by Otago Regional Council, Orbus or Bee Card. Fares from the ORC Queenstown fares page, retrieved 24 September 2026. Spotted a change? Email hello@queenstownpocket.com.