New Zealand

New Zealand is a fantastic place, with diverse landscapes and cultures. Mountains and Lakes. Palm trees and Penguins. New Zealand has a very active and outdoor culture, so sports and recreation are very much the norm. Whether you are playing rugby, sailing or in NZ to ski and snowboard you will love your time here.

General Info about Skiing and Snowboarding in New Zealand

NZ is an awesome place to spend a winter/summer, the people are friendly the place is beautiful; just ask anyone who has been there. On the whole New Zealand is a very safe place, and with English being the main language there are no language problems.

The winter season starts in June and runs through until October.

Where is the skiing/riding in NZ?

SITCo’s program is based out of Queenstown, South Island, and we will do most of our skiing at Coronet Peak and The Remarkables. Nevertheless it is good to know that there is a lot of other skiing in NZ.

North Island - Whakapapa (pronounced - Phakapapa) and Turoa are the biggest ski areas and are on a great big volcano called Mt Ruapheu. It last erupted in 1997! Quite spectacular.

South Island there are lots of "ski fields" - so lets start with the big ones - Coronet Peak and The Remarkables (based out of Queenstown), Cardrona and Treble Cone (based out of Wanaka), Mt Hutt (Methven), then there are lots of others - Craigieburn, Temple Basin, Mt Cheeseman, Mt Dobson, Mt Olympus, Broken River, Round Hill, Ohau, to name a few.

Can I work when I am there?

To take part in SITCo’s program you need a visitor’s visa. If you wish to work out side of our program then you must apply for a work visa, this process is completely independent of SITCo.

There are lots of possibilities for work in Queenstown you just have to watch out for whether you have a work visa or not.

If you are unsure about what you need contact your local NZ Embassy.

A Working Holiday Scheme Visa can be arranged for those under 30's from the UK, NZ High Commission, Haymarket, London.

If you don't have a work visa UK passport holders, and most other passports are allowed to enter NZ on a Visitors Visa for a max of 6 months.

One option to think about would be to come to Queenstown and travel when you are doing our program, and then look into getting a work visa for the next year because by then you can think about working as an instructor!!

Nightlife in Queenstown?

Queenstown is a great party town and there are bars restaurants and clubs to suit all tastes and budgets. A lot of fun can be had!

Getting to Queenstown, New Zealand?

Flying is the best option, to get to NZ.

Queenstown does have its own airport so when looking into flights you can fly into Queenstown.

Other options would be to get a flight to Christchurch (South Island) and then travel down from there. Christchurch to Queenstown is about 45mins flying, or 5-6 hrs driving, or 7-8 hrs in a bus. If you take the longer options there are lots of great detours that you can take that will take you through amazing countryside and be an adventure in its self.

Other wise you can fly into Auckland (North Island) and then organise a connecting flight to Queenstown. Unless you have a good bit of time it is recommended to fly from the north island to the south island. Auckland to Queenstown is a 2 – 3 day drive.

If you book your flights from overseas all the way to Queenstown, then you will receive your international baggage allowance all the way to Queenstown. If you stop your international flight, say in Auckland, then buy a domestic flight to Queenstown; be careful that you don’t get made to pay for extra baggage.