Lifts & Terrain
Coronet Peak Ski and Snowboard TerrainCoronet Peak ski resort is very well suited to beginners and intermediates, but there is also a spread of terrain for advanced skiers and boarders. Like many other NZ resorts, The Peak is not particularly large. There are 280 hectares of skiable terrain, but it is all above the tree line so it offers plenty of space. Like most other
New Zealand ski resorts, one of the main setbacks of the tree-less terrain is the lack of protection against the cold and wind, and the associated problems with visibility on poor weather days.
The vertical drop is only 462 metres, but there are express lifts from bottom to top, so you can still cover plenty of kilometres in one day.
Coronet Peak Lifts The lift system is efficient and well planned, and does a good job of separating the beginner and advanced areas. A slow double, two surface conveyor lifts and a ropetow with handles service the beginners areas. The fast 4 and 6 person chair lifts and the t-bar service the blue and black runs. The capacity of the hill is impressive, with minimal lift queues even when there are lots of visitors.
Coronet Peak is unique in that it offers night skiing, which occurs on Friday and Saturday nights 4-9pm. M1, Shirtfront and Big Easy runs are flood-lit so there are trails for beginners and intermediates. If you want even more hours on the slopes to get the fresh ‘roys, then first tracks is available from 8-9am.
Lift tickets Multi-day lift tickets are also valid at
The Remarkables as this ski resort is also owned by NZSki Ltd. The lift tickets are quite expensive, but the money is well spent just to drive on a safe road to get there. And when you compare skiing at Coronet Peak to other adventure activities in Queenstown, skiing seems pretty cheap.
First tracks lift tickets cost $35 for the one hour, so you’d want to be really keen to get the fresh corduroy. Night skiing lift passes cost $48 for an adult, $31 for a youth and children aged 6 and under ski free.
Snow conditions The snowfall is not substantial at Coronet Peak, and unfortunately due to its low elevation it doesn’t retain the snow particularly well. It suffers from melt-freeze cycles, and there are plenty of icy bumps in areas where it hasn’t been groomed. The lower parts of the mountain can get pretty slushy, particularly in areas of high traffic.
However, the automated snowmaking capacity is absolutely enormous, so snow cover is generally not a problem. The resort is also extensively groomed which eliminates issues of melt-freeze on many of the trails. Another plus is that the resort can operate well on a very thin cover of snow. The resort is either naturally lucky or they do great summer grooming, such that there are no rocks and only grassy tussocks under the snow.
Needless to say, Coronet Peak is not much of a powderhound resort, but this is not to say that they don’t occasionally have powder days.
For the Beginner The beginner area is nicely separated from the blue and black zones, keeping away all those speedy hoons that intimidate those on L plates. There is a short rope-tow for first-timers, with the next progression to the magic carpets, and then onto the double chair to tackle the Big Easy.
Intermediate Ski Terrain There are lots of groomed runs off the 6-pack, 4 person chairlift and the t-bar. If the temperature has dropped overnight they are super fast in the morning, and then often slop up a little bit towards the end of the day. The M1 is probably the easiest of the blue trails, and whilst it’s tempting to hoon down this run, there are various slow zones to impede you somewhat.
The fall-line is fantastic and considering the high-quality grooming, the Powderhounds have awarded Coronet Peak with the “
best cruisers” in New Zealand.
For the Family/Kids The beginner area is the perfect environment in which children can learn.
For the Shredder The half-pipe and Dirty Dog terrain park are located adjacent to each other. The park has a few rails and jumps, but most keen park riders will go to
The Remarkables.
Advanced and Expert Skiing With 35% of the trails rated as black, Coronet Peak is not just a mountain for beginners and intermediates. In addition to some of the obvious runs, there are lots of off-piste trails around the fringes of the resorts, and considering there are no trees, you can drop off the side of any trail into chutes or bowls. If you love bumps, then there are generally lots of mogul runs at Coronet Peak.
The back bowls are the equivalent of double black runs, and there are some major drop-offs, so best not to venture here on white-out days. It’s south-facing so it can hold the snow fairly well. Runs out to the left of the t-bar also hold the snow, and this area is less trafficked, so you might even find some fresh tracks on a powder day.