Fox Glacier Helicopter Flights

For a helicopter flight from Fox Glacier township with a landing in the snow, book Glacier Helicopters’ Fox Glacier: Scenic Helicopter Flight with Snow Landing, from $225 per person and rated 4.7 from 129 GetYourGuide reviews. It takes 25 minutes in total, carries up to six passengers and sets down in the snow high in the mountains when the weather allows. For a longer route that also passes Aoraki/Mt Cook, The Helicopter Line’s 35-minute Fox Glacier and Mount Cook Helicopter Flight starts at $281. Both leave from Fox itself, so you do not need to drive anywhere first.

Fox Glacier (Te Moeka o Tuawe) is roughly 12 to 13 km long and is fed by four alpine glaciers. The valley road to the old glacier car park was damaged by floods and a landslide in early 2019 and has stayed closed since, and the walking viewpoints on the south side are hundreds of meters from the ice. A flight is the quickest way to see the upper glacier from close up.

Quick picks for Fox flights

• A first helicopter ride from Fox: the 25-minute snow landing flight, from $225, with about 8 minutes at the landing on its itinerary. Our breakdown of the snow landing flight has the full listing.
• Fox Glacier plus Aoraki/Mt Cook: the 35-minute Helicopter Line flight, from $281, rated 4.5 from 44 reviews, with a landing of about 10 minutes according to its listing.
• Real time on the ice: the Fox Glacier heli-hike, from $483, with up to 3 hours on the ice and about 4 hours in total.
• Both glaciers in one flight: the twin-glacier flights, which leave from Franz Josef, about 24 km north.

What the 25-minute flight covers

The listing splits the 25 minutes into three parts. You fly for about 10 minutes from the base in Fox Glacier township, over the town and up toward the icefalls and deep crevasses of Fox Glacier, while the pilot talks you through what you are seeing. The helicopter then lands in the snow for about 8 minutes of photos and looking around. The last 7 minutes or so bring you back down to the township.

That makes the 25 minutes the whole trip, landing included, so your time in the air is closer to 17 minutes. Groups are capped at six passengers. Children aged 4 to 14 who weigh more than 15 kg need their own seat, and infants under 4 and under 15 kg sit on an adult’s knee.

Glacier Helicopters needs at least three paying passengers before a flight goes. If a departure falls short, the listing offers you another departure or a full refund. Expect to give your weight when you book and to be weighed at check-in: Glacier Helicopters and The Helicopter Line may reschedule a passenger whose weight is 15 kg or more above the figure declared.

The snow landing

Nobody can promise the landing. Every Fox listing says flights, landings and routes can change with the weather and at the pilot’s discretion. The pilot picks a site that is safe on the day, and the Department of Conservation limits aircraft landings in Westland Tai Poutini National Park to 18 approved sites.

Time on the snow varies by operator. The 25-minute flight’s itinerary gives about 8 minutes, and Glacier Helicopters’ own FAQ says around 6 to 8. The Helicopter Line’s Fox and Mount Cook listing gives approximately 10 minutes. You spend those minutes taking photos near the helicopter, inside the area the pilot shows you. You are not hiking.

Two of the lower-rated reviews of the 25-minute flight describe the same disappointment: cloud or conditions ruled out the landing, and the trip became a flight over the glacier without stepping out. If the landing is the whole point for you, ask at check-in what happens if it cannot be made.

Dress for the snow. The listing asks for warm clothing, sturdy closed-toe shoes and sunglasses, which you will want for the glare off the snow. Fox Glacier Guiding puts the temperature on the ice at roughly 5 to 15°C in summer and -5 to 10°C in winter, so pack a warm layer even on a sunny day in town.

Fox Glacier and Aoraki/Mt Cook in 35 minutes

The Helicopter Line’s flight starts at its base on Main Road (State Highway 6) in Fox Glacier, according to the listing, and asks you to check in 30 minutes before departure. Check the address on your voucher. You fly up Fox Glacier to land on a snowfield at the top of the glacier for about 10 minutes, then the pilot takes you past Aoraki/Mt Cook, at 3,724 m New Zealand’s highest peak, before you return to Fox. Our breakdown of the Fox and Mount Cook flight covers the details.

The extra 10 minutes over the 25-minute flight give you the mountain views on the other side of the glacier. Which peaks you see depends on cloud and the route the pilot can fly, so treat Aoraki as likely in clear weather and not a certainty. The Helicopter Line also has minimum passenger numbers and combines smaller bookings with other passengers to reach them, with a full refund if it cannot.

Flight or heli-hike

The two trips give you different things for different amounts of time.

• A scenic flight takes 25 to 35 minutes, costs from $225 to $281 and gives you about 8 to 10 minutes on the snow. No fitness is needed, children can fly under the seating rules above, and you can fit it around a day of driving.
• The heli-hike takes about 4 hours, costs from $483 and gives you up to 3 hours on the ice in crampons with a guide, following steps cut into the glacier. It has limits: not suitable for children under 9 or for people over about 115 kg, a reasonable level of fitness is needed, and jeans are not allowed.

Pick the flight if you are short of time, traveling with children under 9, outside the heli-hike’s weight limit, or mainly want the view of the upper glacier and the high snowfields. Pick the heli-hike if you want to walk among the ice formations and can give it half a day. Our breakdown of the Fox heli-hike lists what it includes, and our heli-hike verdict guide weighs the two by traveler.

Booking around the weather

Westland Tai Poutini National Park lies in the path of westerly winds that can bring heavy rain at any time of year, and cloud, wind and rain can all ground the helicopters. If the weather cancels your flight, the listing gives you an alternative date or a full refund, and any GetYourGuide booking here can be cancelled free up to 24 hours before.

Glacier Helicopters says November to March is its busiest period and suggests booking about a month ahead then, and about two weeks ahead at other times. Book your flight for your first full day in Fox and keep the next day free, so a cancelled morning still leaves you a second chance. If the helicopters stay grounded, the walks you can do without a helicopter still show you the glacier from a viewpoint, and our Fox Glacier weather guide covers the seasons.

Drones need a permit in the national park and are not allowed on these flights, so leave yours in the car.

When you have dates, check availability for the 25-minute flight, or compare all three options in the table above.