Tongariro National Park

Best time to visit Tongariro National Park

The walking season runs from November to April. In those months the Crossing is doable without crampons and without alpine experience, and the shuttles run daily. Between May and October there is snow above 1,400 metres, the route counts as an alpine climb, and doing it without ice axe, crampons and a guide is not defensible. Several deaths in recent years came from winter attempts without equipment. Within the season, February is the most reliable month, warm and comparatively settled. January is the busiest, with over 3,000 people on the track on peak days. March and April are quieter and clear, but already sharp in the morning. What matters is not the month anyway but the individual day: the track crosses an open saddle at 1,886 metres, and in storm or fog that turns serious quickly. Build two or three spare days into the region rather than committing to a date.

Planning the Alpine Crossing

The track starts at the Mangatepopo car park at 1,120 metres and ends at Ketetahi at 760 metres. In between sit around 765 metres of climbing, the notorious Devil's Staircase, the Red Crater as the high point at 1,886 metres, and a long descent that is hard on the knees. Net, there is more downhill than uphill, which catches a lot of people out.

From October to April a parking restriction applies: four hours maximum at the Mangatepopo car park. That rules out using your own vehicle, because nobody finishes in four hours. This is exactly why the shuttle is not a convenience but the only workable option. Book it one or two days ahead, earlier in peak season.

Allow 8 to 9 hours from leaving the campervan to getting back to it, including breaks and waiting for the return shuttle. Start at 7am and you are back around 3 to 4pm. That is a long day, and it feels like one. You will not want to drive far the evening before or after, so two nights on the same site is worth it.

• At least two litres of water each, there is nowhere on the track to refill
• Rain jacket and a warm layer even at 25 degrees in the valley, the saddle is almost always windy
• Proper shoes with grip, the scree descent is miserable in trainers
• Sun protection, the saddle is open with no shade at all
• Toilets exist at three points on the track and nowhere in between

Shuttles, parking and your campervan

The most common approach: leave the campervan at the Ketetahi car park, which is the finish, and get a shuttle to the start in the morning. You come off the track straight to your own vehicle, change, boil water, and wait for nothing. That is the real advantage over everyone staying in a hostel.

The second option is a return shuttle from National Park Village or Tūrangi. The campervan stays on the campsite and you pay roughly 45 to 60 NZD per person. It is more relaxed but ties you to the return departure, usually between 3 and 5pm.

Overnight parking is not allowed at the Ketetahi car park and it is checked. The car park is free to use during the day but it is not a place to sleep, self-contained certificate or not.

Where to park up

Mangahuia DOC Campsite sits on SH47 between National Park Village and Whakapapa, costs 15 NZD per person, and is the most practical base for the Crossing: basic toilets, stream water, big level bays. Most shuttle operators will collect you from here if you say so when booking.

Whakapapa Holiday Park is inside the national park at 1,100 metres and is the choice if you want a hot shower and power. Around 25 to 30 NZD per person, noticeably colder than the valley, and a summer night can still drop to 5 degrees.

Freedom camping is banned throughout the national park, and the rule is taken seriously. The nearest legal self-contained spots are at Lake Rotoaira and along Lake Taupō near Tūrangi. Anyone who thinks a lay-by inside the park goes unnoticed generally pays 200 NZD.

When the Crossing is cancelled

On roughly one day in four or five during the season, the shuttle operators cancel for wind, visibility or thunderstorms. That is not caution for its own sake: there is no shelter on the saddle and no short way off it. When it is called off, it is called off, even if the valley is in sunshine.

Keep a plan B ready. The Taranaki Falls Loop from Whakapapa Village is 6 kilometres and 2 hours in more sheltered terrain. The Tama Lakes Track takes 5 to 6 hours out to two crater lakes and still gives you the volcano panorama in moderate weather. Both start in the village and need no shuttle.

Our own advice after many summers here: never put the Crossing on your last day in the region. People with two chances usually go. People with one often drive away without it.

Winter in the park

From June to October Whakapapa is New Zealand's largest ski field, with Tūroa on the other side of the mountain. Both are reachable by campervan, but the access road to the ski field requires snow chains when there is snow, and chains are not part of the kit.

Winter still has something for travellers with no interest in skiing: the region is empty, campsites cost less, and snow-covered cones against a blue sky are the picture most people have in their heads. Just without the Crossing.