Your Insider's Guide to Skiing to Wanaka

Wanaka is a mecca for elite skiers and snowboarders from all over the world, who come for the unique combination of easily accessible freeride terrain at Treble Cone and the world-class freestyle skiing and snowbaording park at Cardrona.

Of course it’s not all about the pros, each mountain has plenty of options for beginners and intermediate level skiers and riders. In particular, the wide-open slopes of Cardrona make it the perfect place for family groups of mixed abilities who want to enjoy fun times on the snow together. 

People also love coming to ski and snowboard at Wanaka for the relaxed and friendly vibe of Wanaka town and its lakeside bars and restaurants, and the plentiful activity options non-skiers and rest days. 

The whole reason Outside Sports opened in Wanaka over 30 years ago was so the owners could ski Treble Cone! Today it’s still the same! All our ski staff are skilled international skiers who know what works and what gear will make every moment you spend on our amazing local mountains the best it can be. 

Most visitors drive themselves to Wanaka having flown in and rented a car at Christchurch or Queenstown.  

From Christchurch International Airport you can look forward to a drive of about six hours at an easy pace with short rest stops. You can also expect to be totally blown away by the scenery along the way, especially if you take the inland scenic route through Methven and avoid the boring coastal route between Christchurch and Geraldine. 

From Queenstown Airport you need to factor in a drive to Wanaka of around an hour over the Crown Range (if it’s not closed due to snow) and about 90 minutes if you go via Cromwell. Beware - the Crown Range end of the road can be treacherously icy throughout the day, so if you’re not very experienced in driving in extreme cold conditions, we strongly recommend taking the Cromwell route – which has the benefit of the drive through the epic Kawerau Gorge (why not stop off for a bungy jump on the way!) 

The closest ski resort to Wanaka is Treble Cone which you can expect to get to in about 40 minutes – unless you need to stop at the bottom to put on tyre chains. Note - you must carry chains in your vehicle at all times if you plan to drive up the mountain. And you should practice putting them on and taking them off as few times in the carpark at your accommodation BEFORE you head to the ski field. Just sayin!

Cardrona is just bit under an hour from your door in Wanaka to arrival at thecarpark – but watch out for ice on the Cardrona Valley road, and chains might also be required on the access road.  

Treble Cone and Cardrona both have well maintained gravel roads that are suitable for normal cars. However both can be steep in parts, and there are sharp corners to navigate, and long drop offs next to the road – with no safety barriers. This type of driving freaks some people out, especially if it's slippery. If you’re not highly confident driving this type of road we suggest taking a shuttlebus. You can jump on a free bus at the bottom of the access roads, but you might have to queue up for a seat, or you can book and pay for one all the way from Wanaka. 

There are two chairlifts and a beginner's platter near the base building. The Home Basin Express takes you straight up the middle of the main ski field, and a long traverse to skiers right takes you over to the Saddle Basin. Queues at the Home Basin chair can be long on a good day, especially during school holidays. The Saddle Basin tends to have shorter lines. Here's the TC trail map.

Cardrona boasts New Zealand’s newest chairlift in the Soho Basin zone that was opened for the first time in 2025. With the exception of a T-Bar in park all the lifts are chairs. The base area is served by McDougall’s Chondola and the main area of the ski field extends out to your right towards the Captain’s Express. If you already have your life tickets theres a great locals hack. Park in the Valley View carpark and get the Valley View Chair to access the main field. On the backside of the mountain you’ll find the Willows Basin and Soho chairs. 

Carparking

The carparks at both mountains can full-up quickly during holidays and weekends. So if you want to get in the top parks near the base buildings and avoid a long trudge up the hill you’ll need to be there very early – like 7am early! If you have young kids taking a shuttle might be the best option, because you get dropped off right outside the doors of the base buildings.

Both mountains have large base cafes with amazing coffee and a big food selection – but TC wins with its panoramic views over Lake Wanaka.  

You can rent gear on both mountains, but we highly recommend hiring in Wanaka before you head up the mountain. It’s less stressful and the quality of rental ski and boarding gear we have at Outside Sports is far superior. We tune and wax our gear after every rental. 

You can expect to fall in love with Treble Cone. It’s endlessly captivating and rewarding. The variety of terrain means there’s something for everyone – but really TC is better suited to intermediate levels and above. We breed world champion freeride skiers in Wanaka and TC is a big reason why. 

On its day the powder skiing at Treble Cone is as good as it gets, but big deep dumps are infrequent – maybe two or three times a season. Mostly the skiing off trail at Treble Cone is on packed powder, and on trail you’ll be on perfectly groomed snow. Sometimes the mornings can be icy, but because TC is north facing, the sun warms the slopes during the day and the snow usually softens up nicely by lunchtme. 

The terrain ranges from steep craggy chutes accessible off the Saddle Basin Quad chairlift to winding groomed trails off the Home Basin Express chair. 

Exciting side-country freeride skiing and riding is easy to reach from the Saddle Basin, but it’s serious avalanche terrain out there, so if you’d like to check it out, make sure you hire a qualified alpine guide to take you. 

Cardrona’s high elevation and widespread snow making infrastructure means it has a long season from late June to late October.  

Cardrona is much more about on-piste skiing than Treble Cone. In general you can expect to find a blend of beginner to intermediate trails, with smaller areas of expert off-piste terrain. Apart from the odd pitch here and there, most trails aren’t steep and a low intermediate level skier or boarder will be able to get down OK. The great thing about Cardrona is that if you’re skiing with your family, you can all ride the same chairlift, and each find a way down that satisfies your level of ability.   

The snow quality is generally pretty good, but like everywhere in New Zealand it has its icy moments. Deep powder days are fairly infrequent, but several times a season when they do arrive the snow is usually light and dry.  

The jewel in the crown at Cardona is the massive terrain park where the world’s best freeski and snowboard athletes come to train in the Northern hemisphere off season. The lift lines are a who’s who of Olympic and X-Games medalists and a ride up the Whitestar Express chair gives you a grandstand seat to some incredible jumps and spins. Cardrona is the reason why New Zealand snow sports athletes are among the very best. 

Say you come to Wanaka and plan to ski Treble Cone and can only have one ski. Something around 80 to 90mm underfoot with decent rocker will give you the versatility you need to cover most conditions from hardpacked groomed trails to medium falls of powder. 

But ideally you’d back that up with a wider ski from 100 to 110cm underfoot for powder days, spring snow, and the days after snowfalls when off-piste runs can still be lots of fun. Many locals daily drive skis in this width range, because if it’s only hardpack on offer they just deal with it on their wide skis, or find something else to do that day.  

If you can only bring one pair and want to rip up the pow when it comes you can always rent pow skis from us at Outside Sports – they're called the heli skis in our online rental booking system. Check out our ski rentals here. 

Cardrona skiing is more on-trail focused than TC, so it’s wise to stick to a ski that’s going to be fun on the groomers, where edge hold and precision will make skiing more fun – and also help keep you the right way up if it’s icy . We recommend skis from around 75mm to 85mm underfoot as good options for Cardrona if you have only one pair of skis. Narrow skis are also a lot easier on your legs on groomed trails than wide skis. 

Recently ski manufacturers have been adding narrower skis in their ranges that are more like freeride skis in terms of their rocker and flex pattern. If you have a more relaxed approach to your skiing and you want something forgiving of less than perfect technique, then they’re a great option over a more classic on-trail ski which have minimal tip and tail rocker and stiffer overall flex.

We love talking about our local mountains and the gear you need to make the most out of your time on the slopes. Our Wanaka store is centrally located on Dunmore Street, opposite the supermarket, and you can reach us through the walkway opposite the southern end of the lake front carpark. Contact us here.