Tourism – Queenstown’s triple swing action getting closer to reality

Queenstown’s newest adventure tourism attraction at the global home of bungy is getting closer to opening, with construction of the hotly anticipated three-person swing well underway.

The Kawarau Swing is the latest innovation created by tourism pioneers AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand (AJHBNZ). Located at the historic Kawarau Bridge, it will be the first three-person adventure swing in the South Island and is on track open in September.
 
The Kawarau Swing will be accessed off the same viewing deck that receives about 400,000 visitors and spectators a year. Drilling is complete under the viewing deck and this week the steel structure that the swing platform will sit on was lifted into place.
 
Mechanical components and steel structures are being fabricated off-site and, once the foundation work is complete, things are expected to come together quickly, AJHBNZ CEO David Mitchell says.
 
When it opens, the Kawarau Swing will be adapted for single, tandem, or three-person rides, swinging guests up to 43 metres high across the Kawarau River before winching them back to the platform on the southern bank of the Kawarau Gorge.

Ideal for families and people seeking a different experience at the world’s first commercial bungy location, the swing will complement AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand’s existing bungy and zipride experiences at the historic Kawarau Bungy Bridge site.

“Not everyone who visits the Kawarau Bridge chooses to do a bungy jump,” Mitchell explains. “That’s why we’ve designed the Kawarau Swing to appeal to people who are seeking a different experience, which hits that sweet spot between the full-on adrenaline rush of a bungy and the pure joy of a zipride.
 
“As the swing comes to life, all stages of development will incorporate AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand’s proven safety systems, built on more than 30 years of experience in delivering thrilling yet safe adventures,” Mitchell adds.
 
About AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand

Ever since it was launched with a buzz by AJ Hackett and Henry van Asch back in 1988, AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand has been in the business of fuelling people with courage and adrenaline. The world’s first commercial bungy operation opened at the Kawarau Bridge in November 1988 and AJ Hackett Bungy New Zealand has remained committed to levelling up the exhilaration across Aotearoa, with bungy, zipride, swing, catapult, skywalk, skyjump and bridge climb across Queenstown, Taupō and Auckland.