snowingplaces

Country

New Zealand

Southern-hemisphere skiing on the South Island, around Queenstown, Wānaka and Canterbury.

New Zealand snow forecast

Snow is expected at 2 of 5 places in New Zealand in the next 7 days.

Most snow in New Zealand in the next 7 days
RankPlaceSnow in the next 7 daysConfidence
1Mt HuttSki resort, New Zealand2–15 cm0–5 inLikely
2Coronet PeakSki resort, New Zealand0–3 cmunder 1 inPossible

Snow in New Zealand

New Zealand’s commercial ski areas are on the South Island, in and around the Southern Alps. Coronet Peak and The Remarkables sit above Queenstown, Cardrona and Treble Cone above Wānaka, and Mt Hutt is an hour and a half from Christchurch. Most are “ski fields” rather than resorts: there is no accommodation on the mountain, and you drive up an unsealed access road each morning from the town below.

In our record Mt Hutt, Cardrona and Coronet Peak average about 7 snowy days at mid-mountain in July and 5 to 7 in June, August and September. The Southern Alps are close to the sea, so storms can bring rain low down and heavy snow up high in the same day, and Coronet Peak, the lowest, leans on snowmaking.

When it snows

Seasons run from mid-June to late September or early October, with July and August the core. Mt Hutt usually opens first.

Getting there

Queenstown airport is under an hour from Coronet Peak, The Remarkables and Cardrona. Christchurch serves Mt Hutt and the club fields of Canterbury.

Regions

Mountains