Has anyone skied in New Zealand?

[Taos Blonde]

As this year's northern hemisphere ski season comes to a close, I'm wondering if anyone can give me some suggestions about where to ski in New Zealand--and if it's worth the trip.

Thanks, Divas!

 

[RockSki]

I'm wondering if anyone can give me some suggestions about where to ski in New Zealand--and if it's worth the trip.

I've been eyeing Craigieburn, after taking a lesson from someone who works there in the off-season (for North Americans and Europeans)...

 

[Acrophobia]

I skied New Zealand last year. We were based in Wanaka, and skied Treble Cone and Cardrona. You can also stay in Queenstown, which is closer to The Remarkables and Coronet Peak. My understanding is that Treble Cone has more advanced terrain and better snow. Note that all of NZ ski areas are above treeline, so flat light can be a problem.

We also went heliskiing, which was a spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The trip to NZ is absolutely worth it. It's a beautiful country full of warm, friendly people. And sheep.

 

[RuthB]

Yes lots - I live here. What sort of skiing do you like to do?

 

[RuthB]

I skied New Zealand last year. We were based in Wanaka, and skied Treble Cone and Cardrona. You can also stay in Queenstown, which is closer to The Remarkables and Coronet Peak. My understanding is that Treble Cone has more advanced terrain and better snow. Note that all of NZ ski areas are above treeline, so flat light can be a problem.

We also went heliskiing, which was a spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The trip to NZ is absolutely worth it. It's a beautiful country full of warm, friendly people. And sheep.

And many of those sheep grow the wool for icebreaker - which is almost as common as the sheep :D

 

[Taos Blonde]

Ruth B--Thanks for responding. I'm an intermediate skier. Enjoy powder. My husband is very expert and likes to ski the whole mountain, including off-piste.

It looks like there are a couple of places near Auckland, but I'm worried that they might be crowded. The Queenstown area is one of the most spectacular places on the planet (the Remarkables are, well, remarkable!). That might provide more skiable options, and perhaps better skiing.

We visited New Zealand 22 years ago and I'm dying to go back. It's such a beautiful place.

I'd love your thoughts and observations on the areas--and which ones to avoid (if there is such a thing).

Thanks so, so much.

 

[Taos Blonde]

Thanks Acrophobia (I love your screen name!).This is really helpful.

 

[Taos Blonde]

I've been eyeing Craigieburn, after taking a lesson from someone who works there in the off-season (for North Americans and Europeans)...

Thanks! I love their motto--steep, deep and cheap!!

 

[RuthB]

Hi TB

haven't forgotten you, just a bit frantic here - will try and post tomorrow

 

[RuthB]

Hi Taos Blonde

You are right, the fields near Auckland (bear in mind that close is a relative term and it is about a 3 to 4 hour drive from Auckland to the central North Island fields).

I think that you are on the right track with the Queenstown Lakes District - things have changed and Wanaka is now similar in size to what Queenstown was 22 years ago and Queenstown has grown considerably.

Personally I now prefer Wanaka and I think that the skiing is better from Wanaka - Treble Cone especially is much easier from Wanaka. If TC has good snow then it has the best terrain. The Remarkables has some good terrain too, if it has good snow. Either way if you are comfortable driving I would get a car, public transport and shuttles are ok but not that frequent. Can highly recommend some fabulous accommodation in Wanaka too.

The best month for skiing is August - most reliable snow and avoids school holidays (late July) and the Rugby World Cup )(starts 9th September).

The club fields in Canterbury are fantastic (Cragieburn is one of these fields) for terrain (that's my home turf), but there are a few catches (they don't put me off, but it is better to know what you are getting in to). Typically they do not groom slopes, they have rope tows and their access roads can be interesting). But the people are really friendly and they are not crowded. Mt Hutt and Porter Heights are also both good in good snow years.

If you are adventurous (and don't mind some areas which do not have resort infrastructure); would be Wanaka (including heliskiing in the Harris mountains), Mt Potts heliski https://www.mtpotts.co.nz/ (this is where I learnt to ski when it was a small commercial field); and a black diamond safari https://www.blackdiamondsafaris.co.nz/ to get some club terrain in.

A useful resource is https://snow.co.nz/ - it does have lots of advertising etc, but it does have info on all NZ ski fields and links to most.

Feel free to ask more questions, or PM me.

cheers

Ruth

 

[m185]

we just arrived in NZ now

don't ski Coronet - won't be enough of a challenge for your dh and its a small mountain.

Remarks would be good as would Mt Hutt and staying around Wanaka would probably be the best bet.

There are quite a few places to access from there!

HTH

 

[Taos Blonde]

Thank you!! I'm not going to make it there this year, but hope to next.

 

[Nadine_A]

I've stayed in both Queenstown and Wanaka. There are limited to nil on mountain accomodation, so you have to stay in a town and drive or take a shuttle to the mountain everyday. I definitely prefered Wanaka. It's not as touristy as Queenstown and closest to my favourite resorts, Cadrona and Treble Cone.

If you do stay in Queenstown you can get shuttle access to all mountains. Remarks are beautiful, if you can stomach the drive (read: no trees, guardrails and narrow unsealed road). I had my earphones plugged in, my beanie pulled over my eyes and didn't surface until the driver told us that we'd arrived.

 

[Taos Blonde]

Thanks! I traveled on one of those roads about 22 years ago during Thanksgiving and I was petrified. Gravel, no guard rail, and narrow.

But I'm really looking forward to skiing there! I'm sure I'll be hiding under the seat during a winter drive!

 

[Jilly]

Since is so hot here, 29 Celsius, I decided I needed to look at the website that RuthB suggested. Just a quick observation - wouldn't it be nice to ski in -6 C weather?? It's usually -20 C at Tremblant!! Same in alot of the NE states! I think that was the lowest temp for the day anywhere in NZ.

I do know that its on my bucket list/lottery win list. I've a friend in Auckland that keeps inviting me down too!

 

[RuthB]

We just got back from holiday in the south Island and managed five days skiing in Wanaka and at tekapo - trip report to come over the weekend - pretty good early season conditions - and Jilly it was blue sky, sunshine, no wind and about -2 in Wanaka and probably hovering about 0 in Tekapo (on the fields, there was low fog a couple of days down in town and we were above it all) - we needed to put sunscreen on!

The season here started with a late early season dump, and then nothing much since, but there looks to be snow on the way - maybe we will get a couple more days in - who knows

 

[emmy]

NZ Resorts

Hi,
So lots of us have been to NZ, I went just last winter... for my honeymoon!
We did 1 month of the south island, but only 3 ski resorts in this time. My husband has been there before and has skiied at a couple of others too.
We really loved Mt Dobson, a very small private resort. The views were amazing, you can't see any hint of manmade buildings down the mountaint, and it is very high up! I was actually quite scared on the (yes THE only) chairlift as it runs along a crevace in the mountain. It is a long & scary drive up, and really feels like you are on top of the mountain in the wilderness. There aren't many frills with this resort, but thats why we liked it - plus it's a bargain! It has just one shack of a cafe where everyone is trying to squeeze in, it's very quaint. This was the first place we stopped and it was a very easy run (where I was the only one) getting my confidence, and then we headed down the other runs. I really liked the feeling of Mt Dobson, despite running out of petrol on the was up, and being frightened of dying on the way down in our flower-power van.
We also went to Cardrona and Concrete -I mean- Coronet Peak. Despite the joke, I actually loved Coronet, the amazingly wide blue run down the middle was so much fun. But also maybe it was the fact we had a bit of a storm, everyone went home but we waited for that last hour of fresh powder (still falling - low visability) in the now desserted resort! Sitting in the glass walls of the huge cafe with a great view up the mountain is lovely! The ski lesson was great there that I did, however I discovered everyone in the group but me had overestimated their ability lol!
My husband and his family have never had ski lessons, but now we're big belivers in them, although I was the example pupil.
My husband actually was skiing with a new-found buddy in the storm, on the swinging chairs, and as everyone had come inside I was getting worried! He thoroughly enjoyed it, soping wet, lol.

At Cardrona there were actually some good runs, I just wasn't into the "feel" of it as much. We kept doing a long trail round the bottom of the resort, and it wasn't too interesting - and the downhill on the right side I chose was good, I had alot of fun going quite fast. This resort seemed to have many children & families.

 

[Magnatude]

Don't be fooled by our higher-sounding temperatures! They don't factor in wind-chill and our mountains can get plenty of wind, being on two long, thin exposed islands. We had a -7C day a couple of years ago at our local mountain in Canterbury, and loads of young kids waiting for their lesson to start were crying because it was so cold. The instructors got them them to do star-jumps for 15 minutes just to warm up their hands and feet. Conversely, we were in Sunshine Village, Alberta, last January on a -21C day, and while it was certainly cold (we did buy face masks for the chairlifts), it wasn't nearly as unpleasant, because it wasn't windy.

 

[Magnatude]

The Southern Lakes area (Queenstown/Wanaka) is a good bet for overseas visitors, with a good choice of ski areas, accommodation, and apres ski. Wanaka is definitely more laid-back, whereas Queenstown is more commercial. Depends what you're after really. Further north, there is also Mt Hutt, not far from Christchurch (biggest city in South Island).

But for a uniquely NZ experience, I'd say have a go at club skiing. There are 5 or 6 club fields within an easy drive of Christchurch, including Craigieburn, mentioned above. With only a couple of exceptions, these club-owned/operated fields are ungroomed, and their only lifts are 1940s-style rope tows, which drag you up the mountain via a towbelt/"nutcracker" attachment that you wear for the day. The tows are fast, and there are hardly ever crowds at these fields, so you get a lot of skiing done in a day. Staying at the (basic but cosy and cheap) on-mountain accommodation at the clubs is also a great way to meet like-minded locals, who will show you the best runs. Most of the club fields have at least one instructor, and they are patrolled and avalanche controlled. At least one field has night skiing (Broken River), which seems to operate on demand (eg if it's been snowing all day, then it's a powder night!), while Mt Olympus has a hot tub. Some of their access roads are "interesting" as previously mentioned, but not all -- Broken River's road winds through a very pretty beech forest and is relatively non-threatening. And it all adds to the wilderness experience anyway.