TSS Earnslaw
Lady of the Lake
The TSS Earnslaw is one of the world’s oldest and largest remaining steamships and has graced Lake Wakatipu since 1912. In the days before any roads existed, she ferried people, sheep, cattle, mail and supplies to remote lakeside destinations.
View on map
The Story
The TSS Earnslaw is an integral part of Queenstown’s pioneering history and to this day a Queenstown icon. Launched in the same year as the Titanic, the TSS Earnslaw’s maiden voyage was on 18 October 1912. She was commissioned by New Zealand Railways to provide an essential link between the outside world and farming communities along the shores of Lake Wakatipu. Often referred to as the Lady of the Lake this grand steamship is 51.2 m long which even then made her the biggest boat on the lake.
Nearly scrapped in 1968, she was rescued and purchased by Real Journeys and put to work once again carrying passengers around the Lake. Since then the TSS Earnslaw has been painstakingly restored to its original condition – everything you see is pretty much like it was a 100 years ago.
The TSS Earnslaw is proudly owned and operated by Real Journeys.
See & Do
A 90 minute lake cruise on the TSS Earnslaw across Lake Wakatipu showcases some of Queenstown's spectacular alpine scenery. Take time to explore the vessel, view the engine room and study the historic displays of the steamship's former life.
Turn your trip into an all-day adventure by getting off at popular Walter Peak High Country Farm for a guided farm tour, horse trek, independent cycling, and gourmet barbeque lunch or dinner.
Plan your visit
Real Journeys Visitor Centre,
Steamer Wharf, 88 Beach Street,
Queenstown
Other Tohu Whenua in Otago
Kawarau Suspension Bridge
Historic Kawarau Suspension Bridge is an innovative feat of engineering that has withstood notorious canyon winds for over 140 years.
Olveston
Built for the wealthy Theomin family who lived here from 1906, Olveston has been loved by visitors since it was gifted to the City of Dunedin in 1966.
Totara Estate
It was from this once grand estate just south of Ōamaru that the first shipment of frozen mutton was sent to England in 1882. This marked the start of an export industry that has underpinned New Zealand’s economic prosperity and is now worth billions.
TSS Earnslaw
The TSS Earnslaw is one of the world’s oldest and largest remaining steamships and has graced Lake Wakatipu since 1912. In the days before any roads existed, she ferried people, sheep, cattle, mail and supplies to remote lakeside destinations.
Larnach Castle
Larnach Castle is the ultimate expression of ‘my home, my castle’, where William Larnach spared no expense to build his grand vision.
Bannockburn Sluicings
The Bannockburn Sluicings are a spectacular landscape of cliffs and pinnacles that remain from large-scale water blasting during the 19th century search for gold.
Historic Ōamaru
Ōamaru’s remarkably intact and distinctive Victorian streetscapes reveal a once majestic colonial outpost that played a key part in Otago’s industrial and agricultural heritage.
Otago Central Rail Trail
Aotearoa New Zealand's original Great Ride, this popular 152km cycle journey follows the Otago Central railway line that once connected isolated communities in Central Otago with Dunedin.