Autumn view of Arrowtown from the Crown Terrace. Each autumn Arrowtown's trees put on a show of spectacular colour.br/br/Arrowtown is an historic gold mining town in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. Arrowtown is located on the banks of the Arrow River, a 15 minute drive from Queenstown. During the high point of the gold rush in the 1860s, the population of Arrowtown rose to over 7,000. The preservation of its past is evident with miners' cottages, historic wooden buildings, and 19th century-style shops, still standing as they did during the gold rush.