Festival director Martin King said numbers taking part in the 10-day celebration of the LGBTI community were up 30% on last year's estimated 3000 people.
"It makes Winter Pride a seriously significant event in the Queenstown calendar."
As well as having two days added to extend it across two weekends, this year's festival had a "greater diversity of events that's appealed to a broader range of people".
The Pride in the Park event on Marine Parade on Friday was a hit with visitors and residents, as an estimated 15,000 people attended - triple last year's numbers, Mr King said.
The support of the community and the quality of the performers made the day a "little piece of magic".
He doubted any other place in New Zealand would embrace the festival as well as Queenstown's residents and businesses had.
"If you didn't know there was a Winter Pride event in Queenstown, you'd probably be living under a rock."
The festival reached a crescendo at the weekend with the "two biggest pride events in the country" - the Leather & Lace Party on Friday night and the Propaganda White dance party at Queenstown Memorial Centre on Saturday night.
The annual festival, now in its eighth year, was formerly known as Gay Ski Week. It was renamed Winter Pride last year under the ownership of Mr King and his husband Mike Hughes.
