Aoraki
Tasman Glacier helicopter flight: New Zealand’s longest ice
The Tasman is about twenty-three kilometres long, up to six hundred metres thick, and it ends in a lake that did not exist in the 1970s. One flight on this page is built entirely around it, and two more pass over it on the way somewhere else.
Quick answer
The dedicated Tasman Glacier flight costs $357 and it is the longest look at the ice you can buy at Aoraki. The cheaper Aoraki flights at $207 include an alpine landing and see the glacier from above; the ski-plane combo at $300 lands on the névé at the top of it. Which you want depends on whether the ice is the point or the scenery.
The Tasman, at a glance
- Dedicated flight
- $357built around the glacier
- Alpine-landing flight
- $207sees it from above, lands on snow
- Ski-plane combo
- $300lands on the névé near the top
- Length
- About 23 kmthe longest glacier in New Zealand
- Thickness
- Up to about 600 mmeasured near the middle
- The terminal lake
- Formed since the 1970sit did not exist before then
- Icebergs
- Common on the lakecalved from the glacier face
- Where it starts
- Below Aorakithe highest mountain in the country, 3,724 m
- Surface near the bottom
- Grey with rockthe clean white ice is higher up
- Free cancellation
- All three flightsup to 24 hours before
What you actually see
Grey at the bottom, white at the top
A grey rubble-covered tongue, a crevassed middle, and a clean white snowfield on top.
The terminal face and the lake. The bottom few kilometres of the Tasman are covered in rock debris and read grey rather than white — this surprises people who expected a postcard. It ends in a lake with icebergs floating in it, and the lake is young: it has formed within living memory as the glacier retreated.
The middle. Kilometres of crevassed ice between rock walls, with side glaciers joining it. This is where the six-hundred-metre depth is, and from the air the scale only reads properly when there is a helicopter-sized shadow moving across it.
The névé. The snowfield at the top, above the crevasse line, clean white and comparatively flat. This is where aircraft land — the ski plane in the combo flight puts down here.
And Aoraki above it. The country’s highest mountain at 3,724 metres sits at the head of the valley.
Which of the three to book
The ice, the landing, or both
Dedicated flight for the ice, alpine flight for the landing, ski-plane combo for both.
If the glacier is the point, take the dedicated flight at $357. It is built around the Tasman and gives you the most time over it.
If you want to stand on snow, take the alpine flight at $207. It is the cheapest way into Aoraki’s air, it lands, and it still crosses the glacier country on the way. For most first-time visitors this is the right flight.
If you want to land on the Tasman itself, take the ski-plane combo at $300. A helicopter one way and a ski plane the other, with a landing on the névé high on the glacier. It is the most expensive of the three and the only one that puts you on this particular ice.
Common questions
The Tasman, answered
How much is a Tasman Glacier helicopter flight?
$357 for the dedicated flight. Flights that cross the glacier and land on alpine snow start at $207.
How long is the Tasman Glacier?
About twenty-three kilometres, which makes it the longest glacier in New Zealand.
Can you land on the Tasman Glacier?
The ski-plane combo at $300 lands on the névé — the snowfield high on the glacier. Helicopter-only flights land on alpine snow nearby.
Why does the glacier look grey?
The lower few kilometres are covered in rock debris carried down by the ice. The clean white surface is higher up, above the debris line.
Is there really a lake at the bottom?
Yes, and it is young — it has formed since the 1970s as the glacier retreated, and it usually has icebergs on it.
How high is Aoraki?
3,724 metres, the highest mountain in New Zealand, at the head of the same valley.
Go deeper
More on flying over New Zealand
What it costs
From $167 to $687, and what a minute in the air is worth.
The verdictWhich flight is best
One recommendation for each town, and why.
The glaciersThe glacier flights
Rainforest to blue ice in ninety seconds, from $196.
AorakiFlights at Aoraki
Under the highest mountain in New Zealand, from $207.
QueenstownFlights from Queenstown
Four flights, from the cheapest here to Milford Sound.
FiordlandMilford Sound by air
Ninety minutes that replaces a ten-hour drive.
