11 of the Best Hikes in New Zealand in Winter
So you’re after New Zealand’s most amazing hikes well then. Hiking in New Zealand in the winter was mindblowing, it was beauty, it was solitude, it was snow and wind and cold pushing into every part of our bodies, it was incredible landscapes that seemed like they would continue forever until they abruptly fall into the ocean making you feel smaller than you already felt.
When it comes to hiking New Zealand offers something for everyone. The landscape is so diverse and unique that you can go from rolling green hills to glacial traverses in a matter of hours. Hikes range in time from hours to days to months so you can literally take your pick on how long you want to be out for. We are going to cover mostly day hikes in New Zealand on both North and South Islands.
This is kind of a list of best hikes in New Zealand in Winter, as we did all of these in the Winter months. Everything does, however, apply for the warmer months also though.
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. 😁
Saftey when hiking in New Zealand
Safety is something that should always be taken seriously while hiking. But especially so in a country like New Zealand. Due to the fact that all of the mountains in New Zealand are so close to the ocean, it makes the weather far more erratic than other mountains you may have been on in the past. So you are going to want to either contact the DOC or visit their website here to get updated information on any hike you might be thinking about doing while you’re there.
These are just quick summaries because I felt there was too much information for one page. You can click on any of the blue text to be taken through to the full post for a complete rundown and more in-depth information on anything you think you might enjoy.
New Zealand’s Most Amazing Hikes in the North Island
Hiking Mt Taranaki
We will start with the most gnarly here to get it out of the way. Hiking Mt Taranaki was the most intense hikes we did in New Zealand and it should not be taken lightly. It was however also one of the most incredible. It does not offer the same panoramic views that some of the other hikes offer. It is literally just a giant volcano sticking out of the almost flat ground surrounded by the ocean and one other giant volcano off in the distance. In summer it is a far easier hike but in the winter months it was extremely icy and ice axe and crampons were 100% needed as well as some previous hiking experience.
Click the link if you’re interested in Hiking Mt Taranaki
Hiking Cooks Cove
Cooks Cove was the first hike we did in New Zealand. It was an amazing warm-up for other hikes as it was not too long or too steep and allowed us to stretch our calves a little. This is a perfect hike for the whole family or anyone at any level of fitness.
The hike is located right on the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island about 50kms north of Gisborne in some local farmland.
When you first lay eyes on Cooks Cove it is like stepping into some pirate movie and the scene seems almost unreal.
Tongariro Alpine Crossing.
This is one of the most popular hikes in New Zealand and I would say that is 100% the most popular hike on the North Island. It has close proximity to Lake Taupo which makes it both popular and a perfect day hike if you’re looking to get out of town for the day. Stretching your legs may be a bit of an understatement though as the hike is a solid 19.4kms straight over a massive mountain. If you’re feeling for and you have a middle earth itch that needs to be scratched this is the place to do it.
Hiking the Tongariro alpine crossing
Hikes on the South Island
Lindis Pass Lookout Summit
The hike to the Lindis Pass lookout and eventually the Double Peak summit was one of the shortest hikes we did. But for such a small amount if effort we were rewarded with some of the most incredible views of the trip. For no reason other than the views this was possibly, for me New Zealand’s most amazing hike
Lindis Pass is one of those places you will probably end up at simply because it lies directly between Queenstown and Mt Cook. The famed pull over spot is beautiful but if you’re willing to put in just a little more effort I can guarantee you will not be disappointed.
Click here for all the info about hiking the Lindis Pass Summit Lookout
Roy’s Peak
We did the Roys Peak hike for sunrise which meant we got up super early and it was extremely cold. There were a few advantages to this though. One was as we arrived on the summit there was no one else there and as the sun began to rise we shared the peak with 4 other enthusiastic hikers. The other advantage was that the ground was frozen. This sounds strange I know but on our way back down with the sun out and blasting the trail it became incredibly muddy and we saw people without the proper footwear struggling with it.
The hike to Roy’s Peak was beautiful and I’m sure you’ve seen hundreds of photos of people standing on the lookout with Lake Wanaka and its surrounding mountains stretch out to the horizon.
This was the only hike we did though where we saw a lot of people. The Tongariro crossing had a few people but even that was pretty mild compared to the crowds here. Not that that is really an issue but we were happy we got the chance to enjoy the views on top with just a handful of others early in the morning.
Everything you need to know about hiking Roy’s Peak is here.
Hiking the Routeburn Track
We did the Routeburn track in the middle of winter also and as a result, the DOC told us it was not considered safe to do the whole hike during this time due to avalanches. So we made the call to only do a day hike in. We regret this and we cover why in the full article.
Even though we did the hike in one day it was still breathtaking and the change in landscapes from the start of the track to the top of Conical Hill was almost otherworldly. The Routeburn track is one hike that I would strongly recommend especially in winter due to the fact that 1, it is a lot cheaper and 2, there is almost no one else around which is amazing for a hike that can often book out in the summer months.
Read the full post about hiking the Routeburn Track here.
The Hooker Valley Track
The Hooker Valley track was like some magical winter wonderland. Like Santas workshop kind of dreamy. We had been locked out of there for a few days due to a massive snowstorm that dumped an unusually large amount of snow on the area. So much so that when we did arrive all of New Zealand’s most famous landscape photographers had made the trip there to photograph it. So I suppose we got pretty lucky.
This made the hike a little more difficult than normal, although still not all that difficult and if suspension bridges, glaciers, and giant snow-capped mountains are your thing then this hike is a must see.
Check out Hiking the Hooker Valley Trail in winter.
The Muller Hut hike.
So this was actually the hike I was most excited for. Like out of everything we had researched in New Zealand this was my personal number one pick of things I wanted to do.
Well due to that snowstorm I just mentioned it was not to be. The snow was fairly deep on the trails that were well-trodden. That’s not to say it can’t be done in winter because I know it can, we just happened to arrive in the middle of Bodhi’s 50-year storm. At the time we were not all that confident with the environment. If it was now we would have just gone but we have had a lot more experience in cold weather alpine environments.
So if you’re comfortable with these conditions then it’s not going to be a problem, if not maybe wait till it’s a little warmer. However for the most up to date information contact the DOC office and they will be able to tell you everything.
If you want to hear about Hiking Muller Hut from someone that actually did it follow the link.
Hiking Lake Marian in Winter.
The Marian Lake hike is a beautiful little hike located not far off the main road to Milford Sound. This makes it a perfect hike to do either on the way to or from Milford Sound.
The hike itself actually gets a little difficult which was unexpected. But not so much so that it’s not achievable for most people.
The only real concern is staying on the trail which can be a little difficult to find sometimes in the winter months due to lack of people and amount of snow but I cover this in more detail in the full post so skip over to the Hiking Lake Marian in Winter to read all about it.
Hiking Key Summit
The Key Summit hike is another one of those hikes where you are highly rewarded for a relatively small amount of effort. The car park is directly off of the Milford Sound road making it another perfect hike to fit in between visiting Milford Sound.
The hike also takes you along part of the Routeburn Trail. So if this is something you started on the other side you can have a chance to explore a little more of it from this side.
There are two incredibly beautiful viewpoints only a few hundred meters apart here and the Lake Marian viewpoint gives spectacular views over Lake Marian.
If you’re trying to decide between Key Summit and Lake Marian jump over to the full post about Hiking Key Summit here.
Hiking Ben Lomond
The Ben Lomond hike is probably the most spectacular hike around the Queenstown area and by far one of the most accessible hikes in all of New Zealand as you can literally start the hike from the front of your hostel or hotel.
The summit offers incredible 360-degree orgy of views over the Remarkables Mountain Range, Moke Lake, Lake Wakatipu, and countless other mountains and valleys in basically every direction.
Check the full post about Hiking Ben Lomond here.
