Arrowtown is an old gold mining settlement in the central South Island, near Queenstown. Once home to 7000 people during the Gold Rush of the late 1800s, its population is now about two thousand. Arrowtown is home to the Chinese Miners’ Settlement, a group of restored miners’ huts that vividly demonstrate the conditions of the miners. It’s believed that no women were ever part of that community.
The Museum also shows the history of the region from early Maori settlement through the arrival of Europeans and the Gold Rush.
More recently, Arrowtown has been host to the New Zealand Golf Open at The Hills Golf Course, one of the most prestigious and beautiful courses in the country.
It provided a backdrop for filming of some of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies. The sites are close to the town and tours are provided.
Famous also for its foliage, Arrowtown puts on an Autumn festival in April.
