Our guiding crew work hard to deliver a sensational day in the mountains. Snow stability, snow quality, weather and your ability will affect the day we can deliver - but safety is always our priority.

Regardless of experience all guests will receive a safety briefing from their guide - including how to use an avalanche transceiver - before boarding the first chopper ride.

• All guests and guides wear an avalanche transceiver

• Guides carry a radio and a rescue pack.

• Some experienced guests may be asked to carry additional gear to assist guides.

• Extra safety equipment (including a defibrillator) is carried in our helicopters in case of emergency.

Heliskiing is not without risks - and we ask you to sign a waiver before participating.

Our guides only provide interpretation and safety instructions in English. The inability to understand your guide’s instructions is a safety risk. We reserve the right to cancel a booking is guests cannot understand or follow safety instructions.

If you cannot understand basic English instructions, you must accompany a person who can translate for you. If you are hearing impaired, please inform our staff.tem description

Methven Heliski operates every fine day from 01 July to 30 September.

Conditions are colder with more powder days from July to mid-August. Expect spring conditions and corn snow after mid-August.

A minimum of 3 bookings on any given day are required to operate. We welcome single bookings. We will place you with a "compatible" group.

We can take group bookings, but cannot guarantee all group members will ski or ride the same terrain at the same time for safety reasons.

No. You don't need to be a pro. And you don't jump out of a helicopter!

Heliskiing is for strong-intermediate (and better) skiers and snowboarders who are keen on some adventure. You will be grouped according to your ability and your guide will select the terrain best suited to your group on the day.

We have terrain to suit all levels of heli-boarders and heli-skiers; from cruisy powder bowls and open faces to steep gnarly chutes. We also boast more advanced-level terrain and glaciated runs than the Queenstown or Wanaka region.

Take our Ability quiz to see where you fit within our 4 “Heli” levels.

Run length can vary with snow conditions. Our extensive terrain includes several runs over 1000 vertical metres. We guarantee that you’ll ski at least 3000 vertical metres vertical on the Perfect Day, 5-run package.

Timing for a standard day follows.

Times are approximate:

07:00 - 07:20 Final decision to operate made. We start contacting guests, advising on weather, snow conditions, and the day's schedule

07:45 Start collecting guests based in Methven, return to our office on Main Street for registration and payment

08:30 Depart for helipad - Glenfalloch Station

09:30 Safety briefing and avalanche transceivers issued

09:50 Helicopters depart

13:00 Lunch

15:00 First helicopter loads return to Glenfalloch

16:00 Return to Methven

17:00 Dropped off at your accommodation

Methven Heliskiing operates only in fine weather. We fly 4 or 5 days out of 7. New Zealand has a temperate maritime climate, with very changeable weather patterns.

We encourage you to have flexibility in your plans. We can 'carry over' bookings to the following day if required. Read more on the bookings page.

The Southern Alps has a maritime snowpack. Expect variation in snow conditions and cover throughout the season. Powder is more common earlier in the season, with spring snow from late August.

Methven Heliskiing takes place in an uncontrolled, serious high alpine environment. Skiing, snowboarding and flying in mountain areas carry a certain element of risk.

These risks include, but are not limited to:

• Avalanches

• Rock or icefall

• Falling

• Crevasse hazard

• Weather and other environmental hazards

• Human-related hazards caused by participants

• Aircraft failure

Alpine Guides has been operating heliskiing activities since 1976. In that time we have had around 55,000 skier days.

Since that time there have been accidents, including fatalities in our ski operations. By international heliski industry standards we have a very low accident rate.

Anyone participating with Methven Heliskiing must understand that despite the experience and qualifications of our guides, we cannot provide a 100% guarantee of safety in this environment.

Participants registering for our activities are required to follow their guide's instructions explicitly.