A Queenstown couple have asked for a second chance for their pet schnauzer dogs after they were found responsible for killing three lambs on a neighbouring farm.

Police said they had launched a search for Queenstown man Jack Nicholson, 23, who was last seen around 1.30am yesterday, and later reported as missing to police.

A tourist who slapped his teenage son around the face has been given a suspended sentence by a judge who accepted "cultural differences" were a factor.

Police are today investigating the knifepoint robbery of a Queenstown bottle shop and they've thanked the public for their help in catching the suspect.

Police said the man entered Henry's Liquor Store in Shotover St and demanded money. He took a quantity of cash and ran from the store.

Today a close friend paid tribute to Roger Greville, who died after being pulled from snow near Queenstown: "He will be well missed".

The heli-ski operator that flew in skier Roger Greville who was yesterday hit by an avalanche and later died has suspended its operations.

A skier has died after being buried in an avalanche south of Queenstown today.

James Russell is amazed during a trip to Queenstown to discover that since he last grasped poles, Kiwi skifields have lifted their game higher than the Matterhorn.

A second body has been found in a field of avalanche debris in the hunt for missing Canadian students.

Searchers looking for two young Canadians missing in the South Island spotted a body in a field of avalanche debris late today.

Police are hunting for two missing Canadian tourists who have gone missing in the South Island.

Police said the 47-year-old was removed from the flight shortly before take-off at Queenstown International Airport.

Queenstown Airport has been forced to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on patching its runway after damage by heavy aircraft.

He spent a night with Kim from Seattle and loved footy and foreign girls. He recorded all his Kiwi adventures in diary but he didn't leave his name.

A housekeeper has been sentenced to community work after she assaulted her partner and her brother in a series of violent outbursts.

Flights in and out of Queenstown Airport were on hold this morning due to ice on the runway, in a "never seen before" snap freeze.

Police say they are frustrated at the behaviour of Queenstown's winter revellers after almost 30 incidents - most involving alcohol - at the weekend.

Queenstown Lakes District Council boss Adam Feeley has "total integrity", Minister of Building and Housing Nick Smith says.

Elisabeth Easther scopes out the many attractions of the tiny community nestled at the end of Lake Wakatipu.

Two people escaped a fierce fire which gutted two Queenstown houses yesterday.

Former SFO boss Adam Feeley is facing an Auditor-General probe into how his family's land has been managed.

Four new snow groomers worth $2 million are busy at Cardrona Alpine Resort preparing the field for an earlier than usual June 13 opening.

Fergus Blakiston finds time between lattes for snowboarding on a trip to Queenstown.

Ski fields around the country are experiencing their first rounds of snowfall for the year and some could be in for a snowier season than last year.

Queenstown Airport has topped a list of the world's most stunning airport approaches.

A Central Otago boutique hotel with a conscience mixes pleasure with wellbeing, discovers Jesse Mulligan.

Millbrook Resort plans to spend $50 million on a new golf and residential development.