Oz/NZ 2025

[Sbooker]

the $%!# I would take from my dropped-out-of-skiing ex-wife

So your ex was a skier and then stopped skiing? Peculiar. I can see how that might have caused difficulties.

 

[Sbooker]

You need to go the other direction (north) from Brisbane: Noosa, Rainbow Beach, Fraser Island, quiet and beautiful.

I’ll heartily second this but I will note the southern end of the Goldie (down Coolangatta way) is by far more beautiful than the skyscraper scene of Surfers Paradise/Broadbeach.

 

[jamesdeluxe]

I still don't understand why you refuse to fly or ski to Tahoe, BC, etc., yet do redeyes to Europe?

Because James is similarly constrained to the one-week-at-a-time model by family obligations. So he sticks to top priority (the Alps)

From the emojis, I'm reasonably sure that ChrisC was joking because we've covered why I prioritize the Alps over many ski destinations out west so many times.

 

[Sbooker]

Mount Maroon today.

^^ Wildflowers despite mid winter.

^^ Lots of scrambling.

^^
360 degree views from the top. Nice despite the haze. The mountain to the right background in the above pic is Mt Barney which we’ll do in a few weeks. 1200 metres of elevation. A big day hike.

 

[Patrick]

How do most people get to the Australian ski areas? Where do you fly into?

• Canberra: Peisher, Thredbo, and Charlotte Pass?
• Melbourne: Hotham, Buller?

I typed all the resorts into AI Bots, and it seemed like a lot of driving and wasted time; Sydney is almost a non-starter.

Given that my Epic Pass does not include Australia for 2025, I have no desire to pay Australian lift ticket prices, parking fees, other fees, and remote lodging costs for the beauty of skiing next to the cool trees.

Aren’t Hotham (favorite OZ area), Falls Creek and Perisher on Epic or is it just limited to a few Epic passes?

Melbourne and Canberra are definitely shorter drives as all of Oz (with the exception of Tasmania) all within both cities.
I know I’m nuts, arrived Sep 19 after getting off and barely sleeping on my YOW-YVC-SYD 24hr trip, dealing with Qantas for a destroyed ski bag, I rented a car and drove 700km towards Hotham
Sep 20 : Hotham
Sep 21-22 : Buller (ikon)
Sep 23: drive to Jindabyne
Sep 24-26 : Thredbo (Ikon)
Sep 27 : 480km to Sydney
Sep 28 : Midnight Oil show
Sep 29 : drive back to Jindabyne
Sep 30-Oct 1 : Perisher-Thredbo
Oct 2 : drive back to Sydney
Oct 3 : last Oil show.
Oct 4-7 : Sydney, beaches, Blue Mountains
Oct 8 : flight back to Canada

No argument there. I've been 6x.

I’ve had 2 great trips to Australia (2018, 2022) versus once in NZ (2016), of course it wasn’t uniquely skiing. I was hoping to return to NZ in 2023, but skiing injury in late May at Mammoth totally messed up those plans. Maybe this summer?
As I said before, when the skiing is prime in Australia, the difference in skiing experience are minimal.

 

[Tony Crocker]

As noted before, Patrick hit good seasons in Oz and an exceptionally bad one in NZ. Australia ~ SoCal in terms of vertical, terrain quality and probably snow surfaces. NZ ~ southern Vermont for vertical and snow reliability though topography is completely different (NZ better by my preferences). Then there is the issue that Oz skiing is more expensive and more crowded than South Island NZ.

 

[Patrick]

Then there is the issue that Oz skiing is more expensive and more crowded than South Island NZ.

Yes, but I got 6 days with the Ikon in Australia (maximum would be 10 vs 5 in NZ).
I scored two 50% discount Epic tickets for Hotham and Perisher. If I return to NZ, probably be uniquely on the South Island. I want to return to Cardrona (expanded since last trip + didn't see anything skiing in a Whiteout), Treble Cone (best area I've skied in NZ) and try to get to the clubfields.
On each of the 3 trips, I skied 7-8 days.