Queenstown or Christchurch

We have been trying to book a multi stop flight from Los Angeles, Auckland, either Queenstown or Christchurch then to Melbourne. Air New Zealand doesn't want to let me do that. So not sure how to go about it but it will have to be either Queenstown or Christchurch. Which should we plan on doing? Any input will help! Thanks so much.

How long are you planning on staying in NZ on the way to Melbourne? If it is simply a stopover then go through Chch, but if you will be staying for a couple of nights then Queenstown would be the better option, given it has more to do and see for a traveller. I'm a bit confused by your post however...

I don't understand your OP. I went to Webjet and found flights Auckland to Queenstown with several airlines including Air New Zealand. I just put in a random date (Wed 12 March).

Agree with the above poster, if it's just a stopover, choose Christchurh, if you're staying a few nights, go for Queenstown. There's are buses running between the two cities, try Intercity and Naked Bus . The thing to remember about Naked Bus is the earlier you book your fare the cheaper it is. You could also look at Atomic Travel .

You may find it cheaper to fly from Christchurch to Melbourne rather than flying out of Queenstown.
Good luck.

So sorry for the confusion. It's just we have never gone overseas and the planning is confusing to me. We are doing a week in NZ after flying into Auckland from Los Angeles. Some people said we should go to Queenstown before we head to Melbourne but I couldn't get a stopover there using Air New Zealand. I could get a stop over in Christchurch. It does same money using stop overs instead of separate tickets. Thanks for taking the time for answering. Hopefully 3 or 4 nights in Auckland and the same in Queenstown or Christchurch.

They say that Christchurch is still being rebuilt after the recent earthquakes, so maybe go for Queenstown this time round.

QT is in an extremely scenic area, so if you love scenery, that's the way to go. Chch is nice, cool city to see (especially to see how it's rebuilding after the quake), but I think QT is more impressive and has more options… IF you have a few days.

Spotty at #4 does have a point. Life in Christchurch after the earthquake "We’ve got a city now that’s 80% demolished in its center. The buildings are just… gone. There are vast stretches of rubble and demolition next to these pockets of activity. It’s like a scorched earth.”

This is what Christchurch looks like now
With this in mind, and the fact you intend to spend 3 or 4 days, I would choose Queenstown.

This is what Christchurch looked like before the earthquake.

I take issue with people who say Chch isn't worth going to because it's 'rebuilding'. The draw of this city was never the inner-city, which is the only part still affected, and even so there are interesting aspects such as restart, cardboard cathedral etc. Although I stand by my advice to spend your few days in Queenstown, that's not to say you couldn't easily spend a few awesome days in Chch, with Akaroa, the Port Hills, Sumner, Hagley Park etc

Agreeing with the above - and I actually thought that seeing Christchurch Cathedral and the Re:Start Container Mall (a response to the city's slow rebuilding process) were two of the highlights of the city.

Just got back from first visit to South Island yesterday. Spent 5 days in Q'town and 1 hour in Chc. Unless you do lots of hiking (free), you need lots of money in Q'town to do the activities on offer. In Chc there is nothing to spend your money on. There is nothing there. Very sad situation still in Chc. It would not be worth flying from Auckland just to see Chc. But definately worth going to Q'town if you have a few days.

I dispute that ther is nothing to do in Chch! Apart from driving around there are
1. Botanic Gardens -looking lovely at present & will be ramping up for the big flower show end of Feb;
2. Punting in the Park (or hire a xanoe & DIY);
3. Canterbury Museum, esp the Antarctic Section; also Quake City in Cashel Mall
4. Antarctic Centre;
5. Willowbank Wildlife Park (kiwi & kea esp) + Te Kotane Maori Culture Show
6. Transitional ("cardboard") Cathedral
7. Restart Container Mall, until April when rebuilding starts
8. Port Hills Gondola - fabulous views from the summit of an extinct volcano
9. Historic Tram
10. The many "gap-filler" art works including the Pallet Pavilion.
Possibly the reason you couldn't find the ticket you want is that there are no flights direct from ZQN to MEL. In a week a good choice would be to book flights LAX-AKL-CHC-MEL and then add a domestic flight to ZQN, stay 3-4 days and coach back to Chch, possibly including a night at Mt Cook enroute.
Or book open jaw: LAX-AKL-ZQN and CHC-MEL.

We were able to book a multi-stop on Air New Zealand from Los Angeles, Auckland, Queenstown, to Melbourne on Oct 1.