KEY POINTS:
It took three days to build, seats about 20 people for dinner and is to be extended to provide sleeping quarters - but visitors wanting to stay at Mt Ruapehu's new igloo had better be quick.
The igloo, completed on Thursday, is only expected to last until the
beginning of October before it melts.
The igloo has an entrance-way and two dining areas and measures about 11sq m.
Extensions are under way and by mid-week, it should have three new sleeping areas, which will be able to accommodate about nine people.
The idea to build the igloo, about an hour from the crater lake, came from Ruapehu back country ski guide Mike Adolph.
Mr Adolph and fellow guide Hans Hjelde joined forces to build the "igloo mega-plex".
Mr Adolph has already built about 40 igloos in his native Canada.
"I mentioned it to management [here] and they thought it was a good idea," the 31-year-old said.
"It's kind of neat, not something you see every day." Mr Hjelde, 35, said it was fairly difficult to build.
"Being Ruapehu, the snow isn't as soft as other places, but it's probably one of the most satisfying things I've done with my time when it comes to digging in the snow."
He expected a lot of interest from people wanting to stay. "We are going to have overnights.
"We're also going to have dinners and lunches and we will use it on our day trips as a stopping off point, a place of interest.
"And if you need to get out of the wind it's also an overnight shelter," he said.
Mr Hjelde, who divides his time between the United States and New Zealand, said the igloo was far superior to a snow-cave.
"It's amazing. During the day it gives off quite a bit of ambient light that comes through the blocks [of snow] that you can see.
"It stays rather warm because once you are inside it stays well above zero even if it's zero outside, because of the insulation."
Ruapehu Alpine Lifts' marketing manager Mike Smith said people should be able to stay at the igloo in a couple of weeks.
The igloo is one of many new attractions at Mt Ruapehu.
Also available are guided trips into the backcountry for people wanting to venture outside the Turoa and Whakapapa ski areas.
