Visiting Whakapapa
Helpful resort information to assist planning your trip to Whakapapa.
- Season opens2 Jun 2023
- Season closes22 Oct 2023
- Accommodation—
- Restaurants | Bars4 | —
- Nearest Airport Taupo
- Nearest Train Station National Park Village
- Tourist Office Website
- Tourist Office Phone+6478924000
Whakapapa Features
The terrain at Whakapapa includes::
- Halfpipes1
- Terrain Parks2
- X-Country—
- Ski Hire—
What's it like at Whakapapa resort?
Whakapapa (New Zealand's largest ski area since joining with Turoa Ski Resort) is part of Tongariro National Park, New Zealand's oldest National Park and a World Heritage area. Whakapapa is operated under a license issued by the Department of Conservation and is owned and run by Ruapehu Alpine Lifts Ltd. There are 43 trails at Whakapapa with terrain for all ability levels, including off-piste expert terrain. The ski area can be broken into three: Happy Valley (a self contained beginners area), the east side (where the majority of lifts and services are located) and the west side (highlighted by the lift accessed back-country terrain). The nearest airport to Whakapapa is in Wellington.
Latest photos from Whakapapa. View all photos at the Whakapapa gallery page.
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Photo credit: Bruce McCallum
Explore Whakapapa Location Map
Interactive Whakapapa trail map and piste map. View the piste and trails as well as the surrounding terrain and mountain contours for backcountry action. Find and compare nearby resorts by clicking on the resort markers.

Whakapapa Live Weather
Resort | Snow Depth | Temp. (°C) | Wind (km/h) | Weather | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Top Lift: | 0.0 m | 0 | ||||
Middle Lift: | 2 | |||||
Bottom Lift: | 0.0 m | 3 | ||||
When's the snowiest month to visit Whakapapa?
Visitor Reviews of Whakapapa
Debbie from New Zealand writes:
A couple of corrections, Whakapapa ski area is located on the north western side of Mt Ruapehu, not the southern side. Turoa is located on the southern side. The image you're showing labelled Turoa is actually taken at Whakapapa.
(note from the editor: Debbie, could you write to me at help@snow-forecast.com to tell me here there are errors in the text/images related to Whakapapa and Turoa ski areas. Cheers, Michelle)
Resorts close to Whakapapa
Discover ski resorts near Whakapapa. Click below to view there ski resort guides.
Latest Webcam
Tukino
Last snow: 1.0 cm Wed 29 MarLifts: 2
Trails: —
8 km awayTuroa
Last snow: 1.7 cm Wed 29 MarLifts: 9
Trails: 43
9 km awayManganui
Last snow: 2.0 cm Wed 29 MarLifts: 4
Trails: 10
126 km awayRainbow
Last snow: 3.0 cm Wed 29 MarLifts: 5
Trails: 9
372 km awayMount Lyford
Last snow: 9.3 cm Wed 29 MarLifts: 6
Trails: —
410 km away