Timid or brave, know your slopes

HEADING to New Zealand to ski? Keep in mind some snow fields cater to families while others are suited to the more adventurous.

IF you're heading for New Zealand for a skiing holiday this winter it's worth keeping in mind some snow areas specialise in welcoming families while others are better suited to the more adventurous skier.

But one thing's for sure, there are plenty of choices on offer.

The South Island

Queenstown is a tourist town situated next to a beautiful lake and at the foot of mountains. With restaurants and nightclubs, high fashion boutiques, souvenir shops and ski stores, Queenstown is also the capital of adventure tourism with bungy jumping and jet boating.

The Remarkables and Coronet Peak are the two closest ski fields.

Coronet Peak has a European feel and is will equipped for beginners. It is here you can try night skiing with huge lights on one of the main runs.

The Remarkables provides some of the best and most challenging skiing in New Zealand. This season is expected to see the opening of The Stash, a kilometre-long freestyle run which follows the lines of The Remarkables and features rock-wall rides, log jibs, cliff drops and other natural obstacles.

Mount Hutt is further north and the nearest snow field to the city of Christchurch. It has the longest snow season and is the first to open every winter. This is not as activity-filled as Queenstown and is favoured by the locals. Snow conditions and terrain vary greatly and there are great secret spots to be explored.

The nearby Club Fields are so-called as they are private patches of mountain managed by private ski clubs, but anyone is welcome. It is worth researching these beforehand if you like to get off the beaten track.

Also in the Southern Alps, you can try going 'back country'. Here you can hike and snowshoe your way into the wilderness, or arrive by helicopter if that's your style.

Snow-cat skiing is offered at Mount Potts in Canterbury, one of New Zealand's highest ski fields. Snow-cat, short for snow-caterpillar, works like a glorified chairlift, taking skiers to the top of a slope and picking them up at the bottom.


The North Island

Mt Ruapehu, in the middle of the North Island, is a live volcano with skifields on either side - Turoa and Whakapapa. Both are similar in terrain and facilities. There's a good mix for all abilities from the almost-flat Happy Valley for beginners to the trickier gullies accessed by the highest T-bars. Intrepid skiers ski from the active crater lake on top of the mountain.