Mt Ruapehu skifields hold on to sliver of hope ahead of school holidays

By RNZ

Snow is falling and the school holidays are about to kick-start Mt Ruapehu’s ski season.

In a tale of two towns, the best of times are ahead for Ohakune, where the granting of a 10-year licence to operate the nearby Tūroa skifield has lent a sense of optimism after the worst of times in recent years.

On the other side of the mountain, with the Whakapapa skifield propped up by the Government for this year only, there is uncertainty.

However, business owners near Whakapapa in National Park, such as Andrea Messenger at Plateau Lodge, say they are optimistic, helped by this week’s storm.

“It’s been fantastic because that does bring the snow for both sides - for Ohakune and for National Park village.

“It’s what we need. We need storms with a good bit of sunshine afterwards.”

She said the village was not as reliant on winter as it once was, as summer attractions such as the Tongariro Crossing proved a drawcard.

Andrea Messenger, at Plateau Lodge, says summers are now busy times in the area. Photo / Jimmy Ellingham, RNZ

“Bookings for summer are huge. We’re going to have a really big summer.

“We had a massive summer last year, for 2023-24, and what we’re finding is the internationals are starting to book not just for 2024-25 but for 2026-27.”

Next door at the Adventure Lodge and Motel, owners John and Gillian Visser said winter used to provide the vast bulk of earnings for the year, but that had flipped.

John said business confidence was good after a tough period in the district, when tourists could not visit.

“Everything’s on the up since we finished Covid,” he said.

“It was a terrible time for everybody and we’ve seen friends shut down and basically walk away here.

“We were lucky in some of the decisions that we made, and we’re still here and looking forward to riding the wave as it starts to surge.”

Whether Whakapapa will surge after this year is not certain, but there is optimism, as Amy Jade’s Coffee Cart owner Amy Price explains.

“I think we’re all a bit hopeful that something is going to take it over. It would be nice.”

Amy Jade's Coffee Cart owner Amy Price says people in National Park are hopeful Whakapapa will have a new operator from next year. Photo / Jimmy Ellingham, RNZ

Price was looking forward to working seven days a week over the school holidays, which start on Monday.

The previous operator of both these Mt Ruapehu skifields, Ruapehu Alpine Lifts, went into administration two years ago, and while a preferred bidder was found to run Whakapapa, that fell through.

The Government has said it would not provide more money to keep the field running after this year.

Tongariro Crossing Lodge owner Louis van Wyk said the strong and long summer seasons would help local businesses if no new operator was found.

“We want to keep both seasons because that makes it a much more sustainable lifestyle and business, but if the skifield at Whakapapa doesn’t survive after this year, we’ll have to reassess what we do.

“It could be having long holidays in winter or some other things.”

For now, van Wyk is looking forward to a busy midwinter, as is Mountain Heights Lodge owner Maria Splitt, who has also noticed the increase in tourists outside the ski season.

“We’re getting a lot of forward bookings for summer. Summer looks like it’s going to be absolutely amazing.

“Normally we have a lull in October, but last year we didn’t. It went straight from the ski season.”

Tongariro Crossing Lodge owner Louis van Wyk says it's important winters and summers both remain vibrant. Photo / Jimmy Ellingham, RNZ

The district has bounced back before. Volcanic eruptions disrupted skiing in the mid-1990s and Robbie Forbes, owner of Ski Biz at The Alpine Centre, recalls the disastrous 1998 when wet and warm weather meant a season of only 21 days.

He said this year had started slowly, but as the snow fell people were returning.

Schnapps bar duty manager Eilish Pepper said the first few days of skiing this year brought plenty of patrons.

“Last weekend, we were feeding 300-400 people a day, so once that snow fully settles in it’s just going to be packed.”

Extra staff would be called in to meet demand, but for workers who depended on skiing over winter, next year was already playing on their minds, she said.

“The mountain does support a lot of locals. It supports this town. We do need it open.

“Whakapapa village is dead now the Chateau [Tongariro] is closed. It’s bare bones. I don’t want to end up like Whakapapa village.”

In Ohakune, the mood is confident as Pure Tūroa’s 10-year lease to run skiing operations on that side of the mountain begins.

There is optimism in Ohakune thanks to the 10-year licence granted to Pure Tūroa to operate the skifield. Photo / Jimmy Ellingham, RNZ

Last year, as at Whakapapa, the ski season was only confirmed at the 11th hour thanks to government money.

Utopia Cafe owner Helen Xing said the buzz was noticeable.

“We are very positive because we’ve had more premises open in town - new places, new food trucks coming to town.

“That’s why everybody is thinking positively, otherwise they wouldn’t come to open their shops.”

She has decided to increase her cafe’s hours and offer takeaway evening meals.

Bayleys real estate residential and lifestyle agent Antony Greenfield said interest in property had perked up - the median price in the town was about $400,000.

“We’re actually seeing people look for holiday homes now. They’re out starting to look,” he said.

“Last year, it was very much out of the question for most people unless they already had a tie to the area.”

Vertigo Climbing owner Jeremy Hamer said feelings of optimism this year were a huge contrast to the dark times of last year.

His indoor climbing business was back operating seven days a week, and he had recruited full-time staff members.

“It’s a huge amount better,” he said of business confidence.

“I’m feeling much happier staying here and not feeling like I’m going to have to pick up shop and move south, which was something that a lot of businesses here were thinking.

“It’s such a good feeling thinking we will be able to operate the next couple of years.”