Hiking Ben Lomond in Winter.

Distance: 7.15Kms one way, 14.3 kms round trip
Walking time: 8 to 9 hours depending on your fitness.
Elevation gain: 1400 meters gain to a peak altitude of 1748 meters.

By the time we did Ben Lomond we had done most of the most popular hikes in New Zealand including Roys Peak, Tongariro Crossing, the Routeburn track amongst several other and the Ben Lomond trail still stands out as one of the most incredible!

The Ben Lomond trail is probably the most spectacular hike around Queenstown in Winter. And I would say it is for sure the best Queenstown winter day hike. It offers spectacular views over Lake Wakatipu, the Remarkables and incredible panoramas of the Alps.

You’re obviously looking for hikes so check out this list of some of the best hikes in New Zealand.

At no extra cost to you, some of the links in this article are affiliate links and by using them Sara and I receive a small commission. This goes towards helping us continue to explore and write articles like this. 😁

Sara taking in the view close to the top.

In summer the trail is normally a fairly straight forward 4-6 hour up and down with out in complications however, in Winter it is a different story. After the first couple of hours normally around the saddle you will generally hit the snow line and from then on it becomes a lot steeper and a little more complicated. Now if you are experienced and you have no problem with scrambling on ice and snow you will be fine however if you are not as comfortable or familiar with these conditions you are going to want and need crampons and ice axe. This is a safety issue especially coming down as it becomes very easy to slip on the ice and there are steep drops and nothing to hold onto. So as a rule safety first especially in winter conditions!

If you want to know the Ben Lomond track conditions your best option is to visit the DOC website or call a day or two before your hike. They also have a building in Queenstown you can go into and they will be able to tell you anything you want to know about the weather and trail conditions. Maps.me also have a pretty good offline map for the trail you will need to take, although it is pretty easy to follow.

Hiking Ben Lomond taking the gondola.

So there are actually two ways to arrive at the top of Ben Lomond and if you are lacking time and your fitness is not quite what you want it to be your best option might be to take the gondola. We did not do this but I think prices for the gondola start at around $40 NZD. One advantage of taking the Queenstown gondola is the fact that it knocks off about 450 vertical meters but I would suggest starting at the bottom of the track.

This is the start of the hike just after the saddle. Its nearly impossible to see but there is a man near the bottom of the shot on the ridge line. Gives a little idea of the scale of it.

Hiking Ben Lomond Trail from Queenstown.

So one of the huge benefits of this hike is the fact that it starts in Queenstown and there is no real transport needed depending on where you’re staying, but at worst it may be a short bus or taxi ride to the gondola car park. There are several ways to enter the track but this one is a fairly common one and probably the easiest to find.

A view of the track somewhere between the saddle and the peak.

The trail begins in the gondola car park and ascends quickly through a forest of Douglas Fir trees which you will hike through for about an hour and a half over a few downhill mountain bike trails before the trail turns into tussock and scrub and incredible views of the summit Ben Lomond begin to show themselves.

After here it is a pretty gentle climb to the saddle at 1300 meters where there is a single bench seat and an option to rest, eat and drink and take in the incredible views. However if you are doing this in winter there is a high probability of wind and very cold weather. We had perfect sun but even still after about 5 minutes sitting in the wind we started to cool off pretty quickly so you will want to get moving again before you get too cold.

The trail after the saddle is where it really becomes steep, icy and far more challenging so if you don’t think you are up to it there is no shame in turning around here. The views here are already incredible and it is already a pretty good effort but if you do think you’re up for it the views from the summit are spectacular.

Rounding one of the last corners before the summit of Ben Lomond.

As you make your way up the last steep section the snow will gradually get deeper and deeper and depending on the recent snowfall can be well past your knees as it was for us making the last few hundred meters a little more tricky than they might otherwise have been.

I few final thoughts. We are fairly experienced hikers and have a lot of experience in cold weather hiking so we decided to start the hike a little later than we normally would have due to the fact we wanted some good lighting for the summit. Normally we would hike up for sunrise but we just didn’t feel up to it this day so we headed up a little later and decided to stay for a time very close to sunset. We were completely prepared for this though. We had head torches, batteries and extra warm clothes in our bags just incase something happened. I do have to say this was a magical experience, the views over Queenstown as the sun went down were mind blowing! Check the weather though if you decide to do this!

There are actually wild views in every direction you look. If you look closely there are a couple of houses down in these valleys.

Packing list for hiking Ben Lomond in Winter.

So hiking Ben Lomond in winter requires a little bit of gear to remain safe and warm, here is my packing suggestions for the hike. Also what to wear!

You are going to want thermals top and bottom and warm socks! This seems like common sense but I am from Byron Bay, Australia and when I first started getting into colder climates none of this was common sense to me haha. I had no idea what thermals were.
Hiking boots or good hiking shoes slipping along with cold feet and toes are the banes of enjoyment when it comes to winter hiking good boots will help reduce this.
A good jacket, personally I wore two. I had a small down jacket on like the one in the link with a Goretex shell over the top because the wind can get brutal!
Water and snacks are an obvious must. I would say 1 to 2 litres of water in winter will be enough. I took 1 litre and was perfectly happy with that. Summer may be a very different issue though and I would plan for 2 litres.
Hiking poles are good to have if you have any issues with slipping or if you just want to save your knees a little bit of stress on the way down. I did not use these but saw people that were.
Gloves and a beanie are also very necessary items!!!
Ice axe and crampons are something I would 100% have with me. There are links here if you want your own, which are very beneficial if you’re doing multiple winter hikes in NZ. But you should also be able to rent them from your hostel or any ski or snowboard shop in Queenstown.

Where to Stay in Queenstown.

So Queenstown is probably the most popular tourist destination in all of New Zealand and as a result there is a huge range of places to stay at however here are a few recommendations anyway.

Sir Cedrics Tahuna Pod Hostel was a pretty amazing hostel. One thing for me is the fact that Sara and I travel as a couple and often we are on a budget so most of the time the only option for sleeping in the same bed is if we get a private room however Tahuna Pod Hostel offers dorms with double beds and still a maximum amount of privacy because everyone sleeps in their own pod. Dorms start at $28 USD

Adventure Queenstown Hostel is located in the centre of Queenstown and is by far the highest rated hostel in the area. Dorms and private rooms are pretty standard but the common areas and vibe of the whole place is incredible so if you’re looking for a super fun time off the mountain also this might be for you. Dorms start at $23 USD

Ben Lomond throwing some shade on Queenstown.

Queenstown is an amazing area also so if you’re looking for a list of things to do in Queenstown then check this out.

Tips on how to hike sustainably.

So this is something I think about every time I go anywhere and it ranges from things as simple as buying a banana and making a sandwich instead of buying plastic wrapped products to buying clothing from companies that support sustainable business practices.

Here are a few little tips to help you hike more sustainably.

If you travel and hike often one of the things I would suggest investing in is a Water bladder. Osprey makes a nice series of them that range from 1.5 litres to 3 litres. I use one of these every hike unless it is below negative 5 then the water tends to freeze. The benefit for me is that as you drink the packaging gets smaller and you end up with more room in your pack for a jacket or something else you might take off later and you never actually have to take your bag off to get a drink, just hang the straw over your shoulder and drink as you see fit.

A reusable water bottle is also something that will cut a crazy amount of plastic waste out of your life. Hydro Flask is one super popular company and they make a massive range of sizes and shapes.

Food, food is almost always wrapped in plastic when you buy it but this has been a surprisingly easy one to get around. It may be a little harder if you are backpacking but we’re travelling in our van so we have a small kitchen. We have started to make everything and package it in reusable containers that we just take on the next hike. Sara has been perfecting making these protein balls that are a mix of oats, peanut butter, cranberries, almonds and whatever else we have lying around. Also fruit! But if you buy fruit do not throw the peel along the track. These things can take forever to break down especially if they are not regional fruits and no one really wants to see someone’s old orange or banana peel lying around on the track.

Clothing is something that is often overlooked as a sustainable product as you just kind of wear things till they are old and then throw them away but there is a range of companies out there these days that are making amazing products built to last. Patagonia is one company I can not push enough. They support so many environmental campaigns, they have a lifetime warranty on everything they sell and they give one percent of all sales back to small grassroots charities. They will also repair any clothes you take into them with minor issues.