Mount Cook Scenic Flights

The Mount Cook scenic flight most people should book is the ski plane and helicopter glacier combo from Mount Cook Ski Planes & Helicopters, from $314 per person. You fly one leg in each aircraft, land on the upper snowfields of the Tasman Glacier for 10 to 15 minutes, and pay less than the same 45-minute glacier flight in a single aircraft. It is rated 4.7 from 361 reviews. Choose a fixed-wing flight only if you are starting from Lake Tekapo or Queenstown, or if landing on the snow is not the point.

Mount Cook scenic flights by aircraft

Prices are USD per person as of September 2026.

For a flight by helicopter alone, from 25 to 55 minutes, our Mount Cook helicopter tours guide sets out every option and where each one leaves from.

Ski plane vs helicopter

Mount Cook Ski Planes & Helicopters is the only commercial ski-plane business in the Southern Hemisphere, and it has flown at Mount Cook since 1955, when Harry Wigley made the first flight in a ski plane with a retractable ski. It is also the one place in the Southern Hemisphere where you can choose a ski plane or a helicopter for a glacier landing.

The landing is the same either way. On the 45-minute Glacier Highlights, both aircraft set down on the Tasman Glacier for 10 to 15 minutes, and the operator charges the same rate for each. Viator sells both versions at $380. What changes is the aircraft around you. The operator’s Pilatus Porter ski planes seat nine passengers and land on skis on the glacier snowfield. A standard helicopter seats five to seven, depending on weight.

The bigger difference is on the shorter flights. A ski plane needs a snowfield to land, so every ski-plane landing here is on the glacier. A helicopter can also put down on a mountainside, and that is the alpine landing the 25-minute helicopter flights make; those spots may have no snow in the warmer months. If you want snow underfoot, pick a ski plane or a helicopter flight that names a glacier landing.

The combo: is it worth it?

The combo flies the same 45-minute route to the upper Tasman Glacier as Glacier Highlights, with the same 10 to 15 minutes on the snow, and you get both aircraft. On GetYourGuide it costs $314, less than Glacier Highlights by either aircraft on Viator, and the operator’s own rates follow the same pattern (NZ$599 for the combo against NZ$699 for Glacier Highlights, on its 2026–27 price list). A Viator listing of the combo exists at $321 with 123 reviews; the GetYourGuide one is cheaper and more reviewed. Our breakdown of the combo flight covers the route in detail.

The ski plane on its own

Book Glacier Highlights by ski plane if you want the classic Mount Cook ski-plane flight with no helicopter leg. It flies the Tasman Valley and lands at the top of the Tasman Glacier, and a minimum of four passengers is needed for it to run. It is booked on Viator:

45-Minute Glacier Highlights Ski Plane Tour from Mount Cook

• ★ 4.9/5 (19 reviews)
• 45 minutes
• Free cancellation
• Operated by Mount Cook Ski Planes and Helicopters

Includes 45-minute scenic ski plane flight · Landing at the top of the Tasman Glacier · Live commentary on board in English

From $380 per person Check Availability

You'll choose your date and complete the booking on Viator.

For a longer ski-plane flight, the 55-minute Grand Circle crosses the Main Divide to view the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers, returns past the Grand Plateau and the Hochstetter Icefall, and lands on the Tasman Glacier. The operator also sells a 25-minute ski-plane flight, Tasman Discovery, with a snow landing on the glacier, direct only, at its own introductory rate of NZ$429 at the time of writing.

Fixed-wing from Lake Tekapo

Air Safaris’ Mount Cook and Beyond flight leaves from Lake Tekapo, so you can see Aoraki/Mount Cook from the air without driving to the park. It flies about 50 minutes and 200 km over Aoraki/Mount Cook, the Tasman Glacier and across to the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers, covering two World Heritage national parks. The aircraft are high-wing and every passenger gets a window seat. It is an overflight, with no landing, so book it for the views, not the snow. It is rated 5.0 from 132 reviews, from $300 per person, with a 130 kg weight limit and check-in 15 minutes before departure.

Flying from Queenstown

Queenstown is about 3.5 to 4 hours from Mount Cook each way by road, and about an hour each way by plane. Glenorchy Air’s Fly Explore Fly makes that trade: it flies up past Lakes Wānaka and Hāwea with views of Aoraki/Mount Cook and the West Coast glaciers, lands at Mount Cook Airport, gives you about five hours on the ground for lunch at the Hermitage or the Hooker Valley Track, then flies home over the Lindis Pass. It lands on the airstrip, not on a glacier, and lunch is not included. The Viator listing has more reviews than the GetYourGuide one ($462, 4.9 from 33 reviews), and it is booked on Viator:

Mt. Cook Fly Explore Fly ex Queenstown by Glenorchy Air

• ★ 4.9/5 (58 reviews)
• 8 hours
• Free cancellation
• Operated by Glenorchy Air Services and Tourist Co. Ltd

Includes Scenic flight from Queenstown Airport to Aoraki/Mount Cook Airport · Return scenic flight to Queenstown by a different …

From $561 per person Check Availability

You'll choose your date and complete the booking on Viator.

True South Flights also flies from Queenstown. Its scenic flight circles Aoraki/Mount Cook with no landing, and its heli hike pairs return flights from Queenstown with up to two hours on the Tasman Glacier; our heli hike guide compares it. If you would rather go by road and fly locally, Cheeky Kiwi Travel sells a Queenstown day tour with the combo flight built in ($482 on Viator, 4.6 from 60 reviews), and our Queenstown guide compares the road tours.

Before you fly

Mount Cook Airport is on State Highway 80, about 6 km before the village, with free transfers from any village accommodation and free parking. Wear warm layers, long trousers, sturdy closed-toe shoes and sunglasses, because snow glare is strong. Children of all ages can fly with Mount Cook Ski Planes & Helicopters, with ear protection and child lap belts provided, though an infant on a lap still needs a charged seat. The weight limit is generally 116 kg per person.

Every flight here depends on the weather. Operators refund or reschedule when they cancel, and several advise booking for your first day in the area to leave room to move. For what each flight costs next to the day tours and heli hikes, see our Mount Cook tour prices, or check availability for the combo flight.