2025 Opening Dates for Ski Resorts in New Zealand New Zealand’s ski season typically begins in mid-June and extends into early October, though specific opening dates vary significantly by resort. Currently, Mt. Hutt is aiming to be the first resort in New Zealand to open for skiing and snowboarding, after receiving a nice 1.2-meter early May snowfall. Here are the opening dates for New Zealand’s ski resorts in chronological […] Industry News Julia Schneemann | May 13, 2025 0 Comments
Whakapapa Ski Field on Mt. Ruapehu, New Zealand, to Reopen Under New Operator After Years of Uncertainty After years of uncertainty and financial instability, the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DoC) has granted a 10-year concession to Whakapapa Holdings Limited (WHL) to operate the Whakapapa ski field on Mt. Ruapehu. The decision marks a pivotal moment for New Zealand’s most prominent North Island ski destination, which has faced serious questions about its long-term viability following the collapse […] Industry News Kiwi Brains | April 30, 2025 0 Comments
Woman Dies After Serious Climbing Accident at Mount Ruapehu, New Zealand One person has died while climbing New Zealand’s Mount Ruapehu on June 29. At around 11 a.m., a group of people were climbing on the eastern side of Mount Ruapehu, near Whangaehu Hut. During the climb, a woman in the group slipped and fell a significant distance, suffering serious injuries, police have said tonight. Emergency services, the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter, […] Climbing Nathaniel Lewis | July 1, 2024 0 Comments
Slow Start For Ski Resorts in New Zealand Over the last seven days, various ski fields have opened around New Zealand. As it is early season, limited terrain is open with currently still minimal snow coverage. There was a large gap in cold weather systems bringing snow to New Zealand’s resorts between May and June which has caused a slower start. As the season moves forward from here, […] Industry News Nathaniel Lewis | June 21, 2024 1 Comment
Kids’ Season Passes Fuel Growth for Whakapapa, New Zealand Whakapapa at Mount Ruapehu in New Zealand is gearing up to welcome an influx of young snow-seekers and first-time skiers to its slopes, following the success of its season pass campaign aimed at children under 10. With thousands of free season passes issued to kids, and approximately 70% of these as new memberships, Whakapapa is signaling a return to growth. Whakapapa Chief Executive Travis Donoghue expressed his enthusiasm saying: “Our free season […] Industry News Kiwi Brains | June 11, 2024 0 Comments
Whakapapa Ski Area at Mount Ruapehu, New Zealand, Announces Season Pass Launch, Free Kids’ Passes, And Partnerships with Powder Alliance & SnowPlanet Last week we reported on the launch of season pass sales on the Tūroa side of Mount Ruapehu on New Zealand’s north island. The twin ski areas Whakapapa and Tūroa were split into two entities after the long-standing operator of both ski areas was forced into voluntary adminstration. This week, Whakapapa is excited to share its plans for the 2024 […] Industry News Kiwi Brains | April 15, 2024 0 Comments
Mt Ruapehu, New Zealand, Gearing Up for a Bumper Spring Season The Mt Ruapehu ski fields in New Zealand are gearing up for a busy spring season with the school holidays and several drawcard events taking place over September and October. Mt Ruapehu has released its September school holiday development programs for kids aged 6-16 years which are expected to sell out. The five-day ‘Holiday Crew’ group programs run 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. […] Industry News Kiwi Brains | September 13, 2023 0 Comments
Mt Ruapehu, New Zealand, Launches Special Long Weekend Passes With no long weekend until the end of October, Mt Ruapehu, New Zealand, is inviting skiers and snowboarders to create their own long weekend and grab up to 40% off a limited release of three- and four-day lift passes. On sale now until Sunday 27 August, a four-day Adult Long Weekend Pass is NZD 349 (USD 208), or a […] Industry News Kiwi Brains | August 15, 2023 0 Comments
Twin Ski Areas at Mt Ruapehu, New Zealand, Saved But Could Be Split Into 2 Separate Ski Resorts After the worst ski season in decades last year at Mt. Ruapehu, New Zealand, the operator of the twin-resorts Tūroa and Whakapapa on the North Island was forced to file for voluntary bankruptcy in late 2022. The New Zealand Government declined to provide another lifeline to the operator, which could have kept the largest ski area in New Zealand going until […] Industry News Julia Schneemann | May 14, 2023 0 Comments
Is This The End For The Mt. Ruapehu Ski Resorts In New Zealand? Ruapehu Alpine Lifts, or RAL, the operator of Mt. Ruapehu’s twinned resorts Tūroa and Whakapapa on New Zealand’s North Island, is facing liquidation after the Government reportedly declined to provide a lifeline to keep it going until the 2023 ski season. The 2023 ski season in New Zealand goes from about June to October, so it is about six months […] Industry News Julia Schneemann | December 6, 2022 0 Comments
2 of New Zealand’s Largest Resorts on Brink of Bankruptcy After 3 Difficult Years Caused by Covid-19 and Low Snow Ruapehu Alpine Lifts Limited (RAL), the company that operates the Whakapapa and Tūroa skifields in the central North Island, New Zealand, has gone into voluntary administration. The company had no choice after a bailout request from the government was rejected. In a press release this morning, John Fisk and Richard Nacey of PwC, the appointed voluntary administrators, blamed a problematic […] Industry News Kiwi Brains | October 11, 2022 0 Comments
Spring Skiing is ON at the ONLY Ski Resort Still Open in the Southern Hemisphere | Mt Ruapehu, NZ Spring skiing is ON at Mt Ruapehu right now. Resort skiing and touring around the area are fantastic at the moment and conditions should be good for several more weeks. This is the only ski resort open in the southern hemisphere right now. Mt Ruapehu is actually New Zealand’s largest ski resort with more than 1000 hectares of in-bounds terrain […] Conditions Report Marian Krogh | October 20, 2016 0 Comments
New Zealand’s Largest Ski Resort – Mt. Ruapehu – To OPEN This Weekend After 12″ of New Snow: [iframe id=”https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fmtruapehu%2Fvideos%2F10157020305660417%2F&show_text=0&width=560″] “Winter has finally arrived! Whakapapa and Turoa ski areas look set to open for skiing and boarding on the upper slopes this weekend, following a 30cm snowfall over the past 48 hours, with more forecast. Machines are working around the clock to set up T-bars and groom trails on the upper mountain. Keep an eye on our snow […] Conditions Report Kiwi Brains | July 15, 2016 0 Comments
Mt. Ruapehu – Whakapapa, NZ Conditions Report: The weather forecast was promising a great day so I decided to check out Whakapapa and it was more than great. Due to snow being blown by the wind there were still some unridden off-piste runs by the side of West Ridge Chair and Far West T-Bar. Besides good powder you had to watch out for some ice patches with frozen chicken heads […] Conditions Report OJ | August 17, 2015 0 Comments
Mt. Ruapehu, New Zealand Weekend Conditions: Bluebird Sandwich with a Cloudy Filling Ruapehu Alpine Lifts (RAL) operates two ski areas on Mt. Ruapehu: Turoa and Whakapapa. Here are some key differences between the two: Whakapapa is on the north-western slopes of Mt. Ruapehu and gets more sun exposure than Turoa. They are the largest ski area in New Zealand. Turoa is on the south-western slopes of Mt. Ruapehu and gets more snow than Whakapapa. They have […] Conditions Report Guy LaDouche | July 27, 2014 0 Comments
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