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The meal at the homestead

Walter Peak gourmet BBQ — lunch or dinner

Cruise across the lake and eat at the Colonel's Homestead. The food carries the reviews — the slot you pick decides everything else.

The gourmet BBQ is the food-first way to do Walter Peak: cruise across Lake Whakatipu, sit down to a barbecue prepared at the Colonel’s Homestead — the lakeside farmhouse — and cruise back, about 3.5 hours in all: roughly 45 minutes each way on the water and around two hours ashore. The meal is what the praise keeps coming back to.

The decision that shapes the day is not whether to book it — it is which departure. Lunch and dinner are genuinely different outings, and this is also a big operation: the notes below about crowds, pace and extras come straight from the reviews.

The gourmet BBQ ticket

Every option side by side, with the same facts for each. Open a card for the full details.

Gourmet BBQ + lake cruise
RealNZ

Gourmet BBQ + lake cruise

Cruise across and eat at the Colonel's Homestead, the lakeside farmhouse — bookable as lunch or dinner.

  • Duration: 3.5 hours (about 45 minutes on the water each way)
from NZ$ 175 ★ 4.8 (3,162 reviews)
Book on GetYourGuide →
Full tour details

About this experience

The food-first variant: cruise across Lake Whakatipu to Walter Peak, then a gourmet barbecue prepared at the Colonel's Homestead, the lakeside farmhouse — bookable as a lunch or as a dinner departure.

Worth knowing before you choose the dinner slot: in the evening the visit is built around the meal, with little of the farm and its animals. Families who want the animal side are usually happier with the lunch departure, or with the farm tour.

Departure point

RealNZ Visitor Centre, 88 Beach Street, Queenstown — Walter Peak can only be reached by boat from here.

Know before you go

  • Bookable as lunch or dinner — the dinner departure sees little of the farm and its animals, so families usually do better with lunch.
  • The crossing runs on the Spirit of Queenstown or the TSS Earnslaw depending on departure — check the boat at booking if the steamship matters to you.
  • The boats are cashless, and there is no parking at the wharf.

Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.

Lunch or dinner — two different days out

The lunch departure

Daylight for the crossing, daylight ashore — you eat, and there is still time and light for some of the farm surroundings and the sheepdog display reviewers mention. Families usually do better here: as one reviewer with young children put it, the cruise is “short enough to be enjoyable but not draining” and watching the steamship’s engine run is part of the fun.

The dinner departure

An evening out on the lake, built around the meal — the dinner slots see little of the farm and its animals. On the late departures it also gets dark soon after arrival; one five-star reviewer on a 5pm sailing notes there was little chance to explore after eating and recommends an earlier trip if you want to see anything of the grounds.

The scale: this is a big operation

!
The food gets the praise. The scale gets the criticism.

The critical reviews barely touch the cooking — they describe the machinery around it. The buffet serves a large crowd, which can mean queues and jostling at the food lines; one reviewer described sharing the trip with “hundreds of other people”, another found the buffet “a little too fast”. Drinks on board cost extra, and the boats are cashless. If a quiet, unhurried dinner is the picture in your head, this is a different kind of evening — closer to a well-run banquet than a restaurant.

Which boat will you be on?

BBQ departures run on both vessels — the catamaran Spirit of Queenstown, or the steamship TSS Earnslaw. Pick deliberately at booking if the steamer matters to you. During the ship’s annual survey, 18 May to 27 June 2026, all crossings run on the catamaran and the BBQ itself continues as normal. More on the timetable and maintenance page.

Cancellation

Unlike the farm tour, the horse trek and Garden to Table, this product’s page does not state a blanket free-cancellation window — the terms for your specific departure are shown at checkout, and that is the binding version. Weather cancellations are rebooked or refunded by the operator.

★
In short

Book the BBQ when the meal is the day. Take a lunch departure if you also want daylight and some of the farm — especially with children. Take a dinner departure for an evening on the lake, knowing the farm side will be minimal. And check which boat your sailing runs on before you pay.

The BBQ against the other variants

Sorted by number of reviews. Tap a column header to re-sort.

Photo Experience What's in it Rating ↕ Price ↕ Book
Gourmet BBQ + lake cruise Gourmet BBQ + lake cruise Cruise both ways, BBQ at the Colonel's Homestead — lunch or dinner · 3.5 h ★ 4.8 (3,162) NZ$ 175 per person Book now →
TSS Earnslaw cruise only TSS Earnslaw cruise only Return steamship cruise, engine room to view, onboard museum — no shore stop · 1.5 h ★ 4.7 (1,405) NZ$ 119 per person Book now →
Farm tour + lake cruise Farm tour + lake cruise Cruise both ways, sheepdog demo, shearing (weather permitting), feeding, afternoon tea · 3.5 h ★ 4.8 (1,128) NZ$ 139 per person Book now →
Horse trek + lake cruise Horse trek + lake cruise Cruise both ways, 40–45-min guided trek, max 6 riders per guide · 3.5 h ★ 4.6 (305) NZ$ 279 per person Book now →
Garden to Table experience Garden to Table experience Cruise both ways, tree planting, garden lunch · 3.5 h ★ 4.8 (16) NZ$ 169 per person Book now →

All prices are live from GetYourGuide and include taxes and booking fees — the number here is the number at checkout. “What’s in it” summarises the product title — check the full inclusions on the product page.

What travellers say about the BBQ

Real traveller reviews from GetYourGuide.

★ 4.8 (3,162 reviews)

“lovely ride across the water in the tss earnshaw. the food at Walters peak was fantastic and the sheepdog show was a bonus”
Michael · United Kingdom · September 2026
“What a wonderful night we had the steam ship was amazing to see running the food was Devine. The show was interesting. The trip back was fantastic with the piano and the sing along. Overall well worth the trip.”
Nicole · Australia · September 2026
“went as a young family for a gourmet BBQ lunch. the food was exemplary. the cruise short enough to be enjoyable but not draining. being able to view the steam ship in operation is exciting for the kids. would highly recommend”
Julia · Australia · August 2026
“Loved it, the boat ride was beautiful, food was incredible and the show was really insightful as well. Only thing doing the 5pm booking was it did get dark relatively quickly once we arrived at Walter peak station so after you ate you couldn’t really explore that much - if you wanted to view things on the way to / from Queenstown I’d suggest an earlier trip …”
Chloe · Australia · September 2026
“We loved everything, from the trip over on the beautiful boat to the most amazing BBQ lunch (so much delicious food). The staff were very professional and friendly. The grounds and surrounds were a photographer delight.”
Ray · Australia · September 2026
“The best bbq I’ve ever had in my life! Ha! The view on the cruise and the food was the best thing I’ve had in a while! Thankyou Walter Peak BBQ chefs! Immaculate service !”
Ilisapeci · Australia · September 2026
Critical review
“The food experience was well organised and managed. … the lunch experience was uncomfortable and more about herding cattle into food lines. I have never understood how the "buffet" experience can bring out the worst in some people.”
Elizabeth · Australia · September 2026
Critical review
“The directions for the boat line were not clear. We figured it out on our own. For the price, offer a drink to everyone on the boat. The buffet was good, but it was a little too fast for my taste.”
Verified traveler · French Polynesia · July 2026 · translated review
Critical review
“Very expensive for a boat trip and a buffet lunch with hundreds of other people. Then a short working dog display which was probably the highlight.”
Jessica · Australia · May 2026

The praise centres on the food and on the steamship crossing. The criticism describes the scale, not the cooking: this is a large operation, so the buffet can mean queues and a crowd, the schedule can feel brisk, and drinks on board cost extra. One more pattern worth planning around — on the late departures it gets dark soon after arrival, which leaves little time to see the grounds. If you want daylight and some of the farm with your meal, book a lunch departure.

Reviews collected from the tours' GetYourGuide pages. Shortened for length (marked with …), wording unchanged; names reduced to first name and country.

FAQ

What food is served at the Walter Peak BBQ?

A barbecue buffet prepared at the Colonel's Homestead, the lakeside farmhouse. Reviewers praise the quantity and quality — "so much delicious food" is a typical line. According to the operator, meats are grilled over a wood-fired barbecue and served with salads, vegetables, seafood, vegetarian dishes and desserts. Drinks on board the boat cost extra, and the boats are cashless.

Should I book the BBQ as lunch or dinner?

Lunch, if you also want to see something of the farm: it runs in daylight and leaves room for the surroundings and the sheepdog display. Dinner is built around the meal and sees little of the farm — and on late departures it gets dark soon after arrival. Families usually do better with lunch; the dinner slot suits an adult evening out.

How long does the BBQ experience take?

About 3.5 hours in total: roughly 45 minutes on the water each way, and around two hours ashore for the meal and whatever daylight allows.

How crowded is it?

This is a large operation, and the critical reviews are frank about it: the buffet can mean queues at the food lines, and one reviewer described sharing the trip with hundreds of other people. The cooking itself is rarely the complaint — the scale is.

Is the BBQ on the TSS Earnslaw steamship?

Only if you choose a TSS Earnslaw departure — sailings also run on the catamaran Spirit of Queenstown. From 18 May to 27 June 2026 the steamship is in its annual survey and all crossings run on the catamaran; the BBQ continues as normal.

Can I cancel my BBQ booking?

The cancellation terms for your departure are shown at checkout on the product page — that version is binding. When weather forces the operator to cancel, bookings are rebooked or refunded.

Related on this site

Which variant fits you? →

Cruise only, farm tour, BBQ or horse trek — the trade-offs, one by one.

More farm, less feast? →

The farm tour puts the animals first, with afternoon tea.

Tickets & booking →

What decides the fare, and what to check before you book.

Hungry already?

Check the BBQ against the other variants first.

See the comparison ↑