Heli hike vs scenic flight: Which is best in New Zealand?

The excitement of taking off in a helicopter, marvelling at the beauty of ancient glacial ice as you sore above, and the fun of a snow landing…

There aren’t many bucket list activities in Aotearoa New Zealand bigger or more memorable than a scenic helicopter flight!

Many people visiting Aotearoa NZ plan to head up in a helicopter at some point, but given the cost, will likely only book one flight.

Many though, are surprised to learn that there are two main scenic helicopter flight options in New Zealand… heli hiking and a scenic helicopter flight.

Though there are clear similarities, there are also significant differences between the two.

Both are available in Aoraki Mount Cook and on the West Coast (in Fox, Franz Josef and Hokitika).

Which though, is best for you?

Summarising the differences between Scenic helicopter flights and heli hiking

A detailed comparison: Which wins?

To help you decide which heli flight is best for you, we’re going to break down some of the key differences.

But remember, you can always test both out to see which you prefer!

Time in the air

The time spent it the air is relatively comparable, however you’ll often get a little more air-time on a scenic heli flight.

The helicopter ride on a heli hike is mostly focused on getting you to and from the glacier. Sure, they’ll show it off at the same time, but they won’t typically go out of their way on the flight.

By comparison, we’ve been on scenic flights that have taken a totally different route in order to make the most of the views.

🏆 Winner: A scenic heli flight.

Time on the ice/snow/mountain peak

There’s no comparison when it comes to this – heli hiking is the clear winner!

A scenic flight with snow landing will see you spend about 10 minutes on the snow, where as heli hiking normally includes 2 hours on the glacial ice.

🏆 Winner: Heli hiking.

Most affordable

Scenic heli flights (with snow landings) start at about NZD300 per adult, with prices rising for longer flights.

By comparison, a heli hike costs approximately NZD800 per adult.

🏆 Winner: A scenic heli flight.

Most cost effective

Though a heli hike costs more than twice as much as an entry level scenic flight, when you break the cost down vs. the length of the experience, it actually comes out on top.

If a heli hike costs $800, but lasts for 2.5 hours (150 minutes), you’ll pay $5.33 a minute.

If a 20 minute scenic flight costs $300, that’s $15 a minute.

With that said, I wouldn’t worry too much about this one – it’s more important you pick the experience that ticks the boxes for you.

🏆 Winner: Heli hiking.

Least weather dependent

Though both are weather dependent, you’ll need a longer window of good weather for a heli-hike to go ahead.

You’ll need safe flying conditions to get you up and back to the glacier, and good weather for the duration of the time on the ice.

At some points in the year, having 2.5 hours+ of good weather is easy. At other times (and in some locations), it’s quite a challenge.

By comparison, scenic flights provide pilots much more flexibility.

If the weather isn’t good over Franz, they’ll check out Fox first.

If they don’t have a clear window of weather for your planned 35-minute flight, they might be able to offer you a 15-minute fly-over (which is definitely preferable to missing out altogether).

What’s more, if you choose a ‘pilots choice’ flight (like the one offered by Glacier Country Heli in Franz Josef [discounted]), they’ll mix and match a flight route to make the most of the scenery with current weather conditions.

🏆 Winner: A scenic heli flight.

The most opportunities to fly in NZ

Though we’re focusing on the glacier/snow flights in this article, it’s worth pointing out that you’ll have far more opportunities to board a scenic heli flight in New Zealand than you will to heli hike.

Heli hiking is only available in three places – Fox and Franz Josef (which are only a 30-minute drive from each other) and Aoraki Mt Cook (on the Tasman Glacier).

Scenic flights, on the other hand, are on offer right across the country. From Paihia in Northland to Milford Sound in Fiordland, you’ll have more choice if you decide to hop on a scenic heli flight.

🏆 Winner: A scenic heli flight.

Most memorable

Though this comes down to personal opinion, I think a heli hike is the most memorable, bucket-list worthy experience.

That’s not to say that a scenic flight is anything less than amazing though – we love them both!!

🏆 Winner: Heli hiking.

Save money on scenic flights and heli hikes

Whatever you decide is best for you, be sure to check our discounts page to see if we can save you money!

We have discounts on heli hikes and on scenic flights.