Ski in the Summer? Go to New Zealand! Cardona, Coronet Peak, Remarkables, Treble Cone

We left the hot North American summer in August 2018 for Queenstown New Zealand, where we skied and snowboarded at Cardrona, Coronet Peak, Treble Cone and the Remarkables. New Zealand is as beautiful as everyone describes and the people were even better. So nice and helpful.
If you stay in Queenstown, you can drive or take a bus to four different resorts. Combined, these resorts have as much terrain as a large resort in the United States or Canada.
Cardrona: An hour away from Queenstown, this was our favorite. It has multiple terrain parks for snowboarders, great facilities at the base, and a wide variety of terrain. They also have plans to develop additional terrain and become the largest resort on the southern island of New Zealand. The only problem was that the lift lines can get very long.
Coronet Peak: Only 20 minutes away, Coronet Peak is not only visible from the Queenstown airport, it also has night skiing. The facilities at the base are modern and the mountain was surprisingly large. We loved it here.
Treble Cone: An hour and a half away, this resort is the farthest from Queenstown. But the view of Lake Wanaka makes the trip worth while. So does the hors piste skiing and snowboarding. The mountains of Treble Cone have some very unique topography that we really enjoyed. The facilities are the least modern of the four Queenstown resorts, but the mountain currently has the most skiable terrain. Cardona will be larger when they finish their planned development.
The Remarkables: 30 minutes from Queenstown, the Remarkables is very convenient. Unfortunately, we did not get to spend much time here due to a snowboarding injury, but we can say that the staff was incredibly helpful and the facilities were very nice. We hope to spend more time at the Remarkables next time!

[@bradwelch7425]

Great Skiing in NZ, can't wait until the border opens up to NZ, miss the skiing big time. North is also great for Skiing but the south Island, Cardrona and Remarkables is my favourite. I did a video of the remarkables, did 3 days there. Cheers Brad

[@SkiBoyNY.]

Would love to try the north island for sure! Only spent a day at the Remarkables -- and only 3 runs at that -- because a snowboarding injury ended the day early. Definitely have to go back! May have to wait another year for the border to open and head there from NYC...

[@Albertouy]

@@SkiBoyNY. the North Island weather is a lot more unpredictable than the south island so it is likely you could come for a week and not be able to ski for the whole time

[@SkiBoyNY.]

@@Albertouy Thanks for the tip! Would love to try Mt. Hutt, but it sounds like it should be more of an impromptu trip from the south island if the weather up there happens to be good.

[@BareKiwi]

You’ve got me fizzing for winter here

[@ESLinsider]

Pretty cool. Ever hear of Americans working there at any of these ski resorts? Was told it might be easier to find a job under the table at one of the club fields so maybe fat chance I find a job at one of these big ones.

[@SkiBoyNY.]

I remember hearing a couple of ski/boarding instructors who had American/Canadian accents, but other than that, I didn't notice any Americans working in Queenstown or at any of the resorts. I had heard so many great things about New Zealand that I thought that it would be over-hyped, but it absolutely wasn't. The people were incredibly genuine and welcoming. The landscape was beautiful. The only country I've visited that had signs at Customs reminding you that you are not allowed to stay there. All of that is to say that my guess is that it may be a challenge to find a non-instructor job there, and even that may be be pretty competitive. If you find one, I might be next in line!

[@hamishhenderson9130]

u gotta hit the club fields thats where its at

[@SkiBoyNY.]

Next time! This was my first time in NZ, so all I knew were the big name resorts.

[@yoker84]

Awesome video! How much $ approx. do I need to budget for one day skiing Coronet Peak, to cover parking, full day lifts plus gear rental (ski, helmet etc)? Thank you

[@SkiBoyNY.]

Thanks! Parking was actually free when we were there, so no worry about cost on that front. $250 should cover you for 1 day lift ticket, rentals and lunch. Should be fun!

[@yoker84]

@@SkiBoyNY. thank you!

[@mattdempsey1935]

Lift and rental $159 NZD. shop.coronetpeak.co.nz/lift-pass-rental you may also want to consider night ski on Wednesday and Friday nights

[@australianpatriot]

short flight from Sydney :D

[@SkiBoyNY.]

So lucky! I would be there all the time if I were that close!

[@australianpatriot]

@@SkiBoyNY. The potential earthquake is scary af tho

[@Citrus-Flower]

Summer destination and retreat. Require purchase of large cabin in the mountains (Ski resort)

[@SkiBoyNY.]

Definitely a great idea. Hadn't really thought of that when we went, but would definitely look into that now.

[@spby2422]

how Do you think the mtns and experience in NZ, compare do your experience in Argentina ??? Which one would u consider going for a winter season?

[@SkiBoyNY.]

Great question! The experiences were so different, and I'm planning on posting a video comparing them at some point. But I'd say Cerro Catedral in Argentina and Treble Cone in NZ were probably the two most beautiful resorts I've visited. Cerro Catedral is larger than any of the Queenstown resorts individually, and has a more developed base than any of them, so if you want access to a lot of terrain on a given day with many accommodation and food options immediately at the base, Cerro Catedral and Argentina win. Cerro Chapelco is more similar to the NZ resorts in that it's smaller with little options at the base compared to Europe or North America, but it does have a decent town (San Martin de los Andes) a short drive away. If you're looking for a sense of variety, I think Queenstown in NZ wins because you have four different mountains to choose from, even though Treble Cone and Cardrona are a bit of a drive. Further, if you want a town that seems more international and has many non-ski activity options (bungee, speed boating, cycling, etc.), NZ wins again. The restaurant scene in Queenstown is more diverse and it's the adventure capitol of the world for a reason. So either way, you should have a memorable experience at either!

[@SpikeYates-eq6ru]

what is your favourite one im going to treble cone and is there good park/ jumps there?

[@SkiBoyNY.]

I prefer Cardrona and Treble Cone to Coronet Peak and the Remarkables, but they're much further from Queenstown. Tough to choose between them since they both have different strengths. Treble Cone didn't have anywhere close to the amount of terrain parks that Cardona had when I went, but Cardona has since bought Treble Cone, so maybe they've added good park elements. But Treble Cone has such better views and so much great terrain to explore.

[@BrianMcSkiBum]

Great video! Did you notice any Americans working at any of the resorts. I'm a ski coach/instructor hoping to spend a summer abroad skiing in the next couple of years.

[@SkiBoyNY.]

Thanks! We didn't notice any Americans working in the restaurants, stores or rental spots, but I do recall at least one ski instructor on a lift who had an American/Canadian accent, so maybe you will be able to find something. NZ would be an awesome spot to spend the summer skiing for a few years. The Aussie tourists and Kiwis were super friendly and the country is so beautiful!

[@helenxing1425]

I live in nz

[@SkiBoyNY.]

I'm jealous! NZ is incredible. It lived up to all the hype I had heard about it, which is hard to do.

[@MultiFkUtube]

what is the snow like in NZ? looks a bit icy and thin

[@SkiBoyNY.]

It unfortunately depends on whether you're there at the right time. You can get great snow after a storm, like our last day at Treble Cone (not in the video). Prior to that day, however, there hadn't been a lot of snow, so it was fairly icy in spots like you observed. It seems like the past few years, the Queenstown resorts haven't gotten much snow, particularly Treble Cone and Coronet Peak, so hopefully that will change this year.

[@jzt7887]

what the temperatures were like?

[@SkiBoyNY.]

There were a few mornings that were extremely cold, but other than that, the temperatures were fine. Cold but not too cold.

[@Albertouy]

Depends on the month but it is not cold for northern hemisphere standards very commonly around -1 to -5. The best is October where it gets relatively worm as NZ sun is stronger than the NH due to Ozone