A temporary ice skating rink is to be built in central Queenstown and organisers of this year's winter festival hope it will provide a "wonderful, magical atmosphere."
Organisers of the American Express Queenstown Winter Festival are applying for resource consent to construct the temporary ice skating rink - complete with a glass carriage - over Horne Creek in the central business district.
Festival director Simon Green said his father-in-law first gave him the idea, having seen a similar structure set up in Times Square, New York during winter.
Mr Green had the idea of establishing an ice rink for Queenstown Winter Festival four or five years ago "but everyone said 'you can't do that"'. However, after speaking to Spars on Ice, an Australian-based company specialising in temporary ice rinks, the dream has become a reality.
A scaffolding structure would be erected over the Village Green, covering Horne Creek, at the entrance to the CBD on the corner of Athol St, Ballarat St and Camp St, and the ice rink established on it.
Mr Green said refrigeration pads would be laid on the platform and water gradually frozen on top.
The glass carriage was on its way from India and would be used to set the scene and available for people to have photographs taken, he said.
"The spirit behind the whole thing is to inject ... this wonderful, magical atmosphere that we have never been able to establish."
Two marquees would be erected on the Village Green, one with an inflatable air roof to provide entertainment, the other to cover the refrigeration units and generator providing power to keep the ice frozen.
Noise levels were not expected to be high.
The rink could cater for between 80 and 110 people at any time. Skating awould be vailable from 10am to 9pm daily , with sessions lasting 45 minutes.
It would be staffed by Spars on Ice, which would also provide skating demonstrations daily.
Providing consent was approved, scaffolding would start to go up on June 17 and the work would be complete by June 20.
While festival organisers initially applied for an extension for the ice rink to remain in place until July 31 to cater for the New Zealand school holidays, Mr Green said a decision had been made to stick only to the festival period for the first year.
"It's going to be pretty exciting.
"It's nothing like the Queenstown Ice Arena. We're hoping it will introduce [ice skating] to a lot of people."
