It has taken five years to turn the dream of having an ice rink in the Queenstown CBD for the American Express Queenstown Winter Festival into a reality, but organisers learned yesterday resource consent had been granted.
Erecting the rink will start on Friday.
The focal point of this year's festival, the Wonderland Ice Rink will arrive in Queenstown today and take about seven days to erect over Horne Creek on Queenstown's Village Green.
It is expected to open to skaters on the festival's opening day, June 24.
Festival director Simon Green said he was thrilled to see the "masterpiece" arrive and was looking forward to seeing skaters on the rink.
"After coming up with the initial idea back in 2006, it's extremely exciting to think that in a little over a week's time Queenstowners will be ice-skating over our Village Green.
"It's with great thanks to the huge amount of time and energy from the companies working in partnership with us - the Stars On Ice, Red Events and Event Scaffolding and Lakes Environmental - that this dream will become a reality in what is a first for New Zealand."
The 15sq m rink, which was transported to Queenstown from the United States, will be lit at night by fairy lights in trees, "icicle lights" around the rink and be accompanied by a "magical Cinderella carriage" visitors can have their photo taken in.
The rink will host a Stars on Ice show at noon on June 28, featuring Queenstown figure-skater Chris Boyd (18) and other skaters from the Queenstown Figure Skating Club, the Queenstown Ice Arena Skate School and Australian figure-skater Brooke Crawford. The Queenstown Ice Hockey Club will stage an ice hockey display.
Ice-skating sessions will last for 45 minutes and begin on the hour from 10am to 9pm daily. Tickets cost between $10 and $22, including skate hire.
