AusLeisure

NZSki who owns and operates three of New Zealand's largest commercial ski areas - Coronet Peak and The Remarkables in Queenstown and Mt Hutt in Canterbury - is thrilled to welcome Australians back to their mountains in New Zealand this winter.  

Pre-COVID, Australians made up around 40% of visitors to Queenstown mountains Coronet Peak and The Remarkables. The trans-Tasman bubble announcement will provide Australians with confidence to book their Queenstown ski holiday.

NZSki Chief Executive Paul Anderson said it was great to have some certainty ahead of the season and a trans-Tasman bubble in time for winter was a scenario the business had planned for.

“We’ve been ready for the border announcement and our focus is now ramping up our recruitment efforts and marketing activity to make sure we’re staffed appropriately and that we’re showing Aussies what we have on offer this side of the Tasman.

“We encourage all Aussies to come over and experience our awesome terrain, epic views and friendly hospitality.”

Australians also have the opportunity to ride two new lifts this winter. The Sugar Bowl Express at The Remarkables opened last year while the Nor’west Express, New Zealand’s first eight-seater at Mt Hutt, will start turning this season.

Anderson added “we’ve completed a couple of awesome projects in the past two years which we’re now excited to share with our friends across the ditch. The Sugar Bowl lift at The Remarkables opens a whole load of new terrain, trails and makes park laps much quicker.

“At Mt Hutt we’re stoked to be opening the Nor’west Express lift which is replacing an old Quad chair, allowing visitors easier access to beginner and intermediate runs, as well as our terrain park. It will also be more reliable on some of those windier days meaning we can keep a lift spinning for people out on the slopes enjoying New Zealand’s best ski area*.”

All three ski areas operated in a COVID environment last year so have robust operating protocols in place for each New Zealand Alert Level. Anderson said these practices will be shared prior to the season so that everyone knows what to expect before arriving on mountain.

“At Alert Level 1 we are able to operate relatively normally and don’t have limits on our capacity. There are practices in place like wearing masks on our public transport and scanning the QR codes with the COVID Tracer app. If we were to move to Alert Level 2 then there may be restrictions on numbers on busy days and there will be physical distancing in lift queues and food and beverage areas.”

A flexible refund policy is in place this year meaning if people can’t visit due to travel restrictions, they will have the opportunity to roll their pass over to next year or get a full refund.

To celebrate the opening of the border NZSki has launched a special 72-hour flash sale for Australians, selling Multi-day Passes with a free Night Ski. The sale can be accessed here and ends midnight Friday 9th April.  

*Mt Hutt has been voted New Zealand’s Best Ski Resort six years running at the World Ski Awards.

Images of Mt Hutt skiing and snowboarding courtesy of NZSki

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18th September 2020 - Mt Hutt installs New Zealand’s first eight-seater chairlift  

16th June 2020 - Mt Hutt becomes first ski resort in the Southern Hemisphere to open in 2020

25th November 2019 - Mt Hutt named New Zealand’s best ski resort for fifth year

13th June 2019 - Record conditions and multi-million-dollar upgrades marked at Mt Hutt’s 2019 snow season opening

5th November 2018 - Marking its best ever season, Mt Hutt announces 2019 developments

19th November 2017 - Canterbury’s Mt Hutt once again named New Zealand’s best ski resort

5th October 2017 - Mt Hutt opens New Zealand’s highest spa pool

19th September 2019 - NZSki celebrates the return of kea to The Remarkables

1st November 2018 - $35 million development plans announced for Coronet Peak and The Remarkables ahead of 2019 season

15th July 2018 - Burton Snowboards looks to celebrate 10 years of The Stash at The Remarkables

23rd March 2017 - The Remarkables skifield to install double lift enclosure

23rd June 2016 - Snow and fun mark season opening at The Remarkables ski area

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17th June 2019 - Queenstown’s Coronet Peak marks 2019 ski season opening with new chairlifts and improved snowmaking

27th September 2018 - Coronet Peak extends 2018 ski season

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