Six New Zealand Red Cross volunteers walked the streets of Queenstown on Friday to collect donations as part of the humanitarian organisation's annual appeal.
The appeal will be followed by a Red Cross fundraising night at the Boiler Room in aid of earthquake survivors in Chile on Wednesday, from 8pm.
More than 50 volunteers knocked on Wakatipu doors last week and over the weekend as part of a national effort to improve on last year's total of almost $300,000.
New Zealand Red Cross service centre co-ordinator Richard Garden, of Queenstown, said some donations would go into the organisation's standby disaster relief fund for national and international crisis.
"Some will go towards funding our hospital transport service, emergency response equipment and meals on wheels projects."
Mr Garden said the total raised in the Wakatipu was expected to be known later this week.
About $8500 raised for disaster-relief efforts by music festival Rock 4 Haiti had been spent on medical care and emergency shelters in Haiti.
The organisation has also launched an emergency appeal in the aftermath of the 8.8-magnitude earthquake in Chile.
The New Zealand wing has already sent $20,000.
