Lake Wakatipu is located on the South Island, in the south west corner of Otago and is the third largest lake of New Zealand.

Lake Wakatipu occupies a 80km long glacial trench and therefore is the longest lake on the South Island of New Zealand. The Lake reaches depths of up to 410m, which is 100m below sea level. Due to a standing wave also called a "seiche", the Lake's crystal clear waters are rising and falling regularly by some 20 cm in Queenstown Bay.
A Maori legend has it's own explanation to this natural phenomena. The location of the lake used to be the resting spot of a giant. When this giant stole the wife of a local Maori, this Maori set fire to the giant, burning him and leaving a big reversed N shape hole in the ground where the giant had rested. The hole was filled with the waters of the surrounding mountains forming Lake Wakatipu. The legend says today the giants hart still beats within Lake Wakatipu, causing the fluctuations of the water level.

At the northern end two Rivers enter the Lake: Dart River and Rees River. Lake Wakatipu is drained close to Queenstown, located in the middle of the lake, by the Kawarau River. Also the Shotover River is very well known, mostly because of it's perfect features for jet boating, river surfing and white water rafting.
There are several little lakes close to Lake Wakatipu, such as Lake Johnson, Lake Luna, Lake Dispute, Moke Lake and the two bigger ones, Diamond Lake next to Mount Alfred and Lake Hayes next to Arrowtown.

Queenstown, Kingston, Glenorchy, and Kinloch are the main settlements around the lake shore, offering activities, accommodation, sightseeing and many restaurants and shops as well.