KEY POINTS:
It's official - if you stump up the courage to do adventurous hijinks in Queenstown, the heart really does start to pound.
With the word adrenaline linked to Queenstown so often - think AJ Hackett or reality TV star Jack Osbourne's visit to film Adrenaline Junkie 2 - just thinking about the destination is almost enough to raise the pulse.
So when Travel went south to Queenstown's skifields this winter, we took a heart rate monitor to do our own survey of some of the giddy highs in the town.
What our test lacked in scientific rigour - this cardiac monitor is more often used to ensure we're not about to expire while out jogging - it made up for in enthusiasm. We went by ski, jet boat and flew through the air - twice - all in the name of research. Top of the heart-pumping list: skiing.
Heading downhill on hard-packed snow on one of Coronet Peak's finest runs, flicking out the backs of the ol' planks and the ticker is already going at 146 beats a minute.
I don't think fear has much to do with getting the heart pumping in this activity, but perhaps the fact skiing is a first love does.
And the jaw-dropping views over Queenstown must come into it as well.
Next in the heart-racing action: bungy jumping.
Just standing on The Ledge (as the AJ Hackett jump at the top of the Skyline gondola is called) in a harness takes my heart rate up over 100. At the bar a few minutes earlier it was about 60, so it's a huge leap.
I try to keep my cool but it's a case of matter over mind as my heart rate spikes at 133 beats a minute during the 47m freefall in darkness through falling snow. Then the comforting rebound of the bungy cord kicks in.
Must be time for a nice, "relaxing" sit down: jet boating.
Kitted up in a life-jacket, waterproof poncho and a warm hat and mittens as the Kawarau Jet does it's first 360 of this river trip, we all scream with the thrill and the heart rate rises to 95. But after surviving the first complete spin, I seemed to calm down and heed the driver's assurance that he had successfully guided trips for many years.
For all the heart-pumping activities in this resort township, there's also a calmer side.
Among the experiences so restful that I came close to flat-lining was lazing on the leather couch in front of the fire for homemade afternoon tea at boutique hotel The Dairy, a hot and cold pounamu massage at the Sofitel's Le Spa and, surprisingly, parasailing over Lake Wakatipu.
Martha McKenzie-Minifie flew to Queenstown with Air New Zealand and NZSki.com and stayed at The Dairy boutique hotel.
Remarkable proposal spot
It's a view that is nothing less than remarkable.
In a part of the country known for its stunning vistas, locals in the know have made their way to this spot - The Lookout - at the very edge of the Remarkables skifield to pop the question to their beloved.
The sweeping views are humbling and perhaps proved a deal-maker in those moments on bended knee.
But despite local Ed Bezett pronouncing The Lookout a "must" for visitors to The Remarkables, the spot itself is not hugely well-known.
I have skied at the field several times during the last 15 years, but had never heard of it until Bezett took me there.
It's often shown, however, in advertising for the mountain.
Management now promotes the location, says Bezett, and offers guided tours for visitors who don't ski or snowboard.
Getting there from the skifield base building involves a ride on the Shadow Basin chairlift, then a 10-minute walk to the stunning site.
Those who take the trouble get the reward of a sweeping vista that takes in Lake Wakatipu and its "hidden island" (a small chunk of land not visible from Queenstown), the craggy landscape made famous in blockbuster movies (such as Vertical Limit and Lord of the Rings) and, on fine days, the jagged outline of Aoraki Mt Cook in the distance.
It's simply remarkable.
