08/08/2023
Your latest update from Travis
Kia ora,
It looks like our recent trend of weekday snowfall is going to line up for us again with more snow forecasted for tomorrow night. In time for what is currently looking like a lovely Friday and Saturday.
We’ve had some questions come in about the differences in the snow depth readings between Tūroa and Whakapapa, so I thought I’d share some insights. The two-ski area’s have different aspects, and face into the direction of weather differently. In a real sense, Tūroa probably has done a little better out of some of our early storms, but maybe not as much as the difference in snow stake measurements suggest. We’ve got some really cool data at our fingertips in ski area operations, our Head of Grooming Shane Buckingham has given me the below snapshot for Whakapapa which shows a tonne of detail about where exactly the snow is sitting.
This shows just how good things are looking for us here in early August. We’ve had a few big Saturday’s so far, but overall, we still have plenty of capacity across the week. If I think about one of the reasons for this, it would be the low availability and opportunity we’ve had in Ski and Ride schools for the last few years. Which means that we’ve catered to fewer beginners since 2020. We are looking to rebuild from here, so I wanted to turn the rest of this update over to that team, who are excited to update you on upcoming lessons and programmes for you and your minis.
Nga mihi,
Travis Donoghue
Chief Operating Officer
Ski & Ride School Update for 2023
Ski & Ride at Ruapehu is up and running and we have been welcoming everyone from first timers to experienced riders. We would love to help everyone enjoy our maunga and wanted to give you a quick run through of some upcoming programme’s and some new (and old) products going on sale!
Level 4 Group Lessons (Whakapapa Only) – Coming this week!
We have listened to your feedback, and after a couple of tough years without advanced lessons we will be bringing back our Level 4 group lessons, aimed at riders wanting to improve and build confidence on the upper mountain blue runs.
There will be limited availability, both online and at Guest Services. These lessons will meet at the top of the Sky Waka by the ski racks outside Knoll Ridge Chalet.
If you have any questions on what your ability level is, please check out our FAQ’s here; https://help.mtruapehu.com/hc/en-us
Snowboard Mini’s
We have recently made available our Snowboard Mini lessons. These go alongside the popular Ski Mini’s we introduced last year. Any mini (from the age of 3 up to 7 years old) wanting to learn to Snowboard with a qualified instructor can book in for a discounted 1-hour private lesson.
These lessons are aimed as an introduction session for our riders with less stamina. 2-hour privates are still available to book from 4 years old.
Women’s Week – Whakapapa only.
Monday 21st to Friday 25th of August.
We are looking forward to the start of our Women’s Week for 2023 - starting in just under two weeks!
This week-long programme is designed for your personal development alongside some fun, social, activities. This programme is the perfect way to break bad habits and increase your confidence on the snow. Open to women aged 16 and over for all ability levels 1-6. 20 hours of on snow coaching over the course of 5 days.
If these dates don’t work for you, and you have a group of Women (or Men) that are keen to do a week of skiing with one of our instructors, let us know and we may be able to open another week, subject to minimum numbers.
Holiday Crew – New Zealand School Holidays
Week 1 - Monday 25th to Friday 29th of September.
Week 2 - Monday 2nd to Friday 6th of October.
Holiday Crew- Spring 2023 is sure to be an epic couple of weeks! With the school holidays falling one week earlier and the great snow we have already seen, conditions are sure to be epic and we would love to see you on our programme. We will be running groups for every rider, Ski & Snowboard from Level 1 – 6*.
This programme’s sees anyone from 6 – 16 years old riding with one of our experienced instructors, from 9am to 3pm, including a supervised lunch (food not provided).
Whakapapa’s dates are confirmed, Tūroa’s are TBC.
*Subject to booking numbers
