Words can not explain how great my time was spent at New Zealand's Mount Hutt. I arrived two weeks in to the season, and ended up spending 4 days on the slopes during the week. Although affected by weather conditons, the snow was exceptional with a base of around 80cm. Highway 72 was perhaps the most enjoyable run as it gave opportunity to beginners such as myself to get a feel for the sport. The Summit Six chairlift is an exceptional means of transport providing access to the summit in just five minutes. The ride itself up to the summit is great as there are great views of the Canterbury plains behind you. Methven is a very friendly town and we were met with a very warm welcome. I highly recommend other skiers and snowboarders alike to visit Mount Hutt as it exceeds expectations.

Mt Hutt is a family friendy resort an hour from Christchurch International Airport and in the great Southern Alps of New Zealand. When it's on this mountain rocks.

Over 360 hectares of skiable terrain with a further 150 hectares in the chutes on the back side of the resort. This is the only commercial resort in NZ with a classified double black diamond rating on the South Face run.

The access road takes twenty minutes to half an hour drive from the ski town of Methven and like most access roads can be a bit hairey. There's no on mountain accommodation, like much of New Zealand but Methven is a cute town with quirky locals and two pubs named "The Blue Pub" and "The Brown Pub." No prizes for guessing their decor.

This is where the Austrian ski team train during their off season and if you're lucky you'll catch Herman Maier on the chairlift first thing.

Grooming is first class (even if some runs are short) and as the resort is above the tree line runs are open and wide with easy transition between green, blue and black. The terrain park has views of the patchwork Canterbury Plains, great for amateur photographers capturing the riders mid flight.

Weather can be a bit dicey with wind but when I skiied there it was four picture perfect bluebird days in a row on a two metre plus base with fresh powder and few lift queues.

User Photos (click to enlarge)