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The Remarkables Ski Area

The Remarkables Ski Area

The Remarkables Ski Area
4.5
About
Find your freedom at The Remarkables! Whether you’re young or young at heart, enjoy sun-soaked wide-open runs, world-renowned chutes, and jaw-dropping views. From epic beginner areas where grandparents can cheer you on from the café to easily accessible green runs, intermediate trails, adventurous black diamond chutes, and backcountry terrain, there’s something for every adventurer. The Remarkables is Queenstown’s big mountain. Pick up your gear on the mountain or from Queenstown’s Snow Centre. Test your skills in one of our freestyle parks with over 40 rad features or start your snow journey in our learners' area. With fast and modern lifts, great food from our cafés, restaurant, and iconic Ice Bar and a season stacked with fun events, you haven’t skied Queenstown until you’ve skied Remarks! Epic mountain, epic people, epic days. What more could you ask for?
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  • Wendy F
    Western Australia, Australia1,180 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A Must when In QUEENSTOWN
    We drove up to the Remarkable from our accommodation in Queenstown, the fee to get throught the gates of the national park Was $15NZ. The drive was steep, narrow and windy but 95% was sealed and safe. At the top you will fing the snow field chairlift and ski centre. It snow when we were there so a little addrd bonus. Rug up it was really old and windy at the to. Plenty of spots to stop on the way for photos etc.
    Visited March 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 1 April 2024
  • Sam Taylor
    3 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great experience
    Our experience as first time Skiers was fantastic. From the fitting process to the hiring of the gear it was all good. Only thing I would say is if you don’t have kids don’t go during the school holidays as you’ll be queuing a lot. Our instructors were all awesome but in particular Brigid was fantastic. Her knowledge, teaching methods and experience was second to none and we learnt so much from her. Highly recommend to anyone.
    Visited July 2024
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 17 July 2024
  • Emma B
    Whanganui, New Zealand5 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Fun at the Remarks
    The Remarkables is so much fun on a clear sunny day! Had a great experience from start to finish with the car parking shuttles they run to the customer services team! Even know it was busy everything ran very smoothly!! We will be back!
    Visited August 2024
    Travelled with family
    Written 15 August 2024
  • nzpbkk
    48 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A great time at the Remarkables!
    The views were stunning I loved how the magic carpets were covered over and the chair lifts were awesome. All the staff were friendly loved the ski lessons. Great facilities. The toilets were well cleaned and prices were great. And great Cafe!
    Visited August 2024
    Travelled with family
    Written 31 August 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles1,258 reviews
Excellent
655
Very good
421
Average
113
Poor
32
Terrible
37

Richard M
Sydney, Australia27 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2021 • Family
After skiing all week we went up for a lesson and afternoon ski. We arrived at midday and got our tickets and were ready for fittings of performance rentals at 12.20pm. The next hour was a nightmare with the staff at the counter going on breaks to leave one person to deal with logging people in and fitting us for ski, boots etc. we were the only ones needing to be served. That took 40 mins then we got on the mountain to find the bindings weren’t correct went back down to again take another 30 mins which started to eat into a lesson we’d booked. After spending $641 for two people with only 2 hours left you’d think they could provide a better service. This place is expensive for what it is. A sandwich for $10 was inedible and the cafe is ridiculously expensive for very average food. The staff are all nice but it’s not run well with little things like no refill for tomato sauce after paying $7 for a meat pie and tables not cleaned regularly. They really need to get it together because it just feels like a money grab.
Written 8 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Kia Ora Richard, Your review is important to us and I have taken this directly to the Rental crew to review and look for ways to improve the performance of that team. Service is critical to our success and this experience has certainly let us down. I apologize on behalf of the team and know we can and will do much better going forward. We have since been in email contact and hope to see you back here sometime in the future as only then ca we qualify improvements in our operation and delivery of service.
Written 15 July 2021
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

GenSprings
Cedar Rapids, IA24 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2020 • Family
Hired a car and hired some chains. Thought I would do my bit for the struggling tourism sector to "support local". I had visited Coronet Peak a few years ago and a lovely British expat worker had graciously helped us fit the chains to our 2WD in the chain bay. As for Sunday 4th July 2020 at The Remarkables? A big fat NO. We were so excited to support the local economy and the guys being employed here post-COVID. Also excited to come skiing on opening weekend. But the rude and arrogant chain attendant (white, male, kiwi accent) kept shouting at us that we were doing it wrong and then kept returning to the road to direct other traffic. Refused to assist. So my questions to The Remarkables management are: 1. Why hire someone so rude to vulnerable tourists when there are thousands of better applicants waiting, jobless, to do a better job? 2. Why roster only a single person to be in the chain bay when there should be at least four people rostered on, for opening weekend? 3. Why put up an abrasive notice on your website "we do not have a chain fitting service this year" when it is opening weekend after months of lockdown and the industry needs desperately to impress tourists? 4. Why charge so much for lift passes if you can't even hire or roster enough staff for basic health and safety? 5. Why risk losing your Tourism NZ license for rude and arrogant behaviour towards tourists who are trying desperately to support your enterprise? I cannot believe that the local Chamber of Commerce, local Mayors and members of parliament can continue to support The Renarkabkes Ski Fields unless radical changes are made and apologies given to tourists. Remember, tourists are gold. Treat us with a bit more respect!
Written 5 July 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hi there, thanks for taking the time to write a review. We appreciate your honest and real feedback regarding your recent visit to The Remarkables. We were overwhelmed with visitors on our opening day which did find us short staffed in some areas of our operation and we have since addressed that where practical to do so. Our intention is to remain a sustainable business going forward which has forced a re-think on certain aspects of our business and unfortunately removal of the chain fitting service is one result. As for the arrogance of the staff member you encountered, we have reinforced with all staff your experience and how our engagement (or lack there of in this case) does impact on the guest experience. I sincerely hope this was an isolated case because it does not reflect our desire to provide the utmost in positive interactions at every point of contact we have with all guests at all times.
Written 23 July 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

McF352
Sydney, Australia51 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Family
Remarkables has some nice ski runs for all levels, not a huge selection but ok. The main problem is access. You can drive or go by bus. Either way, Queenstown has a major infrastructure problem with only one road in and out and it comes to a complete standstill morning and evening. If you drive you have to walk uphill from the car parks or wait a long time for a shuttle and you will probably have to fit chains. If you take the bus it is even worse- you need to book a ticket at least a week out as they sell out. If you manage to get a bus ticket there are incredible queues. We waited 1.5 hours and 2 hours respectively to get on a bus back to Queenstown. Not worth it. All up you spend more time waiting and travelling than skiing. There is also only one restaurant which has decent food selection but is packed and feels like a train station. Not a great experience overall.
Written 1 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

S M
Sydney, Australia61 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2023 • Family
If you are getting the Remarkables Bus - board it at the Queenstown Snow Centre, NOT the stops along the way.

We spent 5 days at the Remarkables ski resort from 26 June 2023. We booked the bus transfer each day to collect us from the Upper Stanley St / Blue Peaks stop (first stop after the Queenstown Snow Centre). This was a disaster - our first two days, the 8.30am bus we booked picked us up at 9.15am (only after all people at the Snow Centre had filled multiple buses did a bus with spare seats stop at Upper Stanley St). On the third day, the bus didn't even stop at Upper Stanley. We had booked an 8.30am bus and got picked up at 10am (by a 9.30am bus).

The last two days we walked down to the Snow Centre and then had no problems. Although we felt sorry for people waiting at Upper Stanley. The bus we were on from the Snow Centre had 16 spare seats yet still did not stop at Upper Stanley. I asked the bus driver when we arrived at the Remarkables why he didn't stop, and he said he just forgot.

The lesson here is just get on the bus at the Snow Centre. If you are staying near the Upper Stanley St stop / have booked bus to pick you up from there, just walk down the hill to the Snow Centre and save yourself the stress of not being picked up.
Written 3 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Shamus
5 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2020
The road up is long and slow with parking a bus trip away with a long line for the bus. Not too keen on the ski area as it was quite narrow with way to many people on it. . I found the other ski fields to be better.
Written 4 August 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

justwaytoohard
87 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Couples
I get it: this ski area is having a rotten season. All the hype,marketing, spin and noise won't hide that. The reality is that snow cover is poor. So what do they do? Jam as many skiers and tourists as possible into the mountain. Sell lift passes when there is no transport to get people up to the ski area. So, here's some tips: whatever the ski depth advertised: take 20cm off that. Whatever percentage of runs are open, deduct 30%. Assume runs will be seriously crowded as a result. Assume 20 minute wait times for some lifts and at least 10 minutes everywhere. Assume only one central area, where you'll wait 20 minutes for a coffee and pay over NZD10 for a litre of water. Assume a 15 minute wait for the loo if you are identifying as female. Assume that you'll pay up to $85 for a bus ride up the mountain, because the advertised $45 fares are long gone due to a driver shortage (apparently). Add that to the expensive (for what you get) lift ticket price, every day. Assume 45 minutes ride to get onto the slopes, or up to 2 hours if you take a car and they want chains fitted. Finally, assume a poky little unconnected ski area. Then...hope it snows. A lot. The only "remarkable" thing is the gap between the marketing and the reality.
Written 20 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kris
New Zealand2 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Couples
Sad to write a negative review here but our experience was very poor, even as english-speaking tourists.

Staff overall were not helpful nor knowledgable, gave very little instructions and actually told us the wrong area for bus pickup.
The bus itself was 45 minutes late despite us booking the first service of the day. Seats are not allocated and many buses were for staff-only or were already full up, and we were spoken down to for not realising the bus was staff only (no signs).

Staff in the ski area were rude, uninterested and again the signs were not very easy to follow. We eventually found our ski lesson area after asking around, and our instructor, despite us advising we had no snow experience and being part of the “intro to snow” lesson, did not give us any confidence with their limited instructions. We fumbled and figured out ourselves how to put the boots on, how to put them in the board, and how to even begin sliding. All we were taught was how to move around with one foot on the board. We had 2-3 attempts of sliding a few metres down a slope and then immediately were taken a further 50m up with this limited knowledge. It did not feel like a healthy environment for learning (and failing), and the learner zone is right at the bottom of a main slope next to the kids with people everywhere around you. We cancelled our remaining 2 day of lessons as we had zero confidence in the teaching of the staff.
Written 28 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Georgia N
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2024 • Couples
My partner and I are from Australia and have had the most amazing holiday in New Zealand so were really disappointed with our experience at the Remarkables.

I did as much research as possible before going over and we had our bus passes, lessons etc all booked well ahead of time. Despite this, the whole process from catching the ski bus to hiring gear to the lessons was not a positive or pleasant one.

We were advised to catch the first ski bus of the day to make our lesson on time, however, the bus was 45 mins late. Once we finally arrived staff were not helpful and told us conflicting information.

We had booked the 3 Day Intro to Snow package for snowboarding and told our instructor we had zero experience snowboarding hence booking Intro to Snow. However, the lesson was pretty abysmal to say the least. The instructor didn’t teach us the basics - from how to stop properly or get back up once falling, let alone how to strap yourself into the snowboard properly. Perhaps the group size was too big as once we were shown a certain manoeuvre, only some of the group got to practice it before moving on. Overall I would not class this as beginner friendly and found the instructor lacked interest in the class.

Once again, I’m disappointed to leave a negative review as every other activity we have done in NZ has been incredible, however, our experience at the Remarkables was not. I think it’s important to let beginners know that this is not beginner friendly whatsoever and you won’t find guidance or assistance from the staff there.
Written 28 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Amber W
1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2024 • Family
Kia Ora,
There was a group of 10 of us who all spent a lot of money, travelled from another city and never experienced snow boarding before but unfortunately had a terrible time. First of all the admin to get our gears etc was all mis informed and misled. We were told by the website and two people within the business totally different things in terms of getting snowboard passes, Hireage of gear + bus tickets etc. Had we not gone to the physical building of The Remarkbles in the city we wouldn't have had known to get our 'my pass' ticket. During this experience at 'The Remarkables' we were told various different things by two internal staff members who didn't check with us about anything we needed to be able to have a day of snow boarding.
Secondly our instructor on the day of our snowboarding lesson was rude, blunt and expected us to be Olympic athletes throughout the duration of this lesson to which we felt expectations should not be passed onto customers paying for a service. To say we are disappointed is the very least.
We will not be returning to this specific mountain.
Written 5 July 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

sassylassy2015
Darwin, Australia23 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2022
Awful. 1.5 hour wait in line BOTH WAYS for bus. Over 1 hour wait to hire gear then 1 hour to return it. And had to pay to store it overnight when 'free' storage reached capacity.- do not follow advice at snow centre in town to hire gear up the mountain cause its easier! Mainly young staff working 'the season' were run off their feet and so many were new and still learning basics (like where the toilets were). Very unfair and dangerous when you consider they are equipping people for a risky sport. And I don't buy the 'we're short staffed cause of covid' line. if we had been forewarned of the wait times we could have at least made an informed choice to go there or not. Worst experience skiiing ever. i would never advise anyone to ski here.
Written 4 July 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
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THE REMARKABLES SKI AREA (2024) All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

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