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The Mackenzie Country which runs from Fairlie in the north to Twizel in the south has three of New Zealand’s favourite small commercial ski fields - each one with a very distinct charm and character of its own. The ski fields in the Mackenzie are:
Mount Dobson
Roundhill (aka Tekapo)
Ohau
You could also include Fox Peak as it's close-ish to Fairlie - but it’s a club field that’s only open on weekends, so we’ll leave that for another time.
We stock a huge range of ski apparel, gloves, and cosy cool weather footwear and headwear at our store just along from the Dark Sky Project in Matuariki Lane. All your favourite snow apparel brands are there including Arc’teryx, The North Face, Patagonia, Icebreaker, Mons Royale, Picture, and Le Bent.
Unlike Outside Sports branches in Wanaka and Queenstown we don’t carry any ski hardwear - boots and skis or snowboards, or any snow rentals at Tekapo. But you can shop online and pick it up from the Tekapo store if you’re not venturing further south.
From Christchurch International Airport, Mount Dobson (Dobo to its legions of friends) is a shade over 2.5 hours at a cruise, plus another 30 minutes or so from the bottom of the access road up to the ski field. You drive through Fairlie and that’s Mount Dobson looming up in front of you. Tyre chains are commonly needed on the access road - especially for two wheel drive vehicles, and you will not be able to get past the road crew without them.
To get to Roundhill you go past Mount Dobson over Burkes Pass and turn right at the bottom of the hill just as you reach Lake Tekapo village. The drive from Christchurch is a bit over 3.5 hours to the ski field carpark - so not much more in total than a trip up to Dobo. To get to the skifield you drive along the eastern edge of Lake Tekapo on a gravel road for under 20 minutes to reach the access road itself which only takes 15 minutes.
Oahu is a shade over 4 hours from Christchurch to the Lake Ohau village. Head around the lake front until you get to Lake Ohau Lodge, go through the gate and then take the gravel road the heads up to the left. The road to the skifield is about 30 minutes from there.
Coming from the other direction you’ll reach Lake Ohau about 3 hours after leaving Queenstown, Tekapo Village is about 4 hours and the Dobo access road is a bit under 4.5 hours. Then add around 30 minutes to get up the access roads.
The skifield roads can be grouped thus: A little bit gnarly - Dobo. Quite gnarly - Oahu. Pretty tame - Roundhill.
As we said before you are likely to need chains to get up at Mount Dobson, especially in mid-winter. And if you don’t have them you will be prevented by the road crew from proceeding. So you must carry chains and know how to put them on your car. Practice a few times and the carpark and fitting chains will quickly cease to be something to get freaked out about. The road is very scenic and winds through two working high country sheep stations. The gnarliness comes close to the top with a couple of steep sections - but take it slowly and you’ll be fine. The road surface is well taken care of, and is fine for normal cars.
Lake Ohau has some very steep sections with large unprotected drops. There are places where the road seems to vanish in front of your eyes. However the road itself is well graded and is suitable for normal cars - but again you must carry chains. It’s not optional. If you’re hiring a car the rental company will be able to supply them with your vehicle.
Roundhill by comparison is a doddle. The access road is only about 8km long and gentle. It’s nice and wide too, so even inexperienced mountain drivers should find it not too daunting. But it can get icy and slippery in snow, so again you must carry chains and know how it fit them.
Dobo has a T-Bar at the base area, a quad chair that starts below the base area and is reached via a short cat track or from the T-Bar’s slopes. A beginner rope tow and an advanced learner platter on a large wide open slope a short walk above the base buildings. All three of the Mackenzie fields have excellent learner facilities!!
Round has two T-Bars, a learners platter, and the mother of all rope tows - the Heritage Rope Tow which is the longest rope tow in the Southern Hemisphere, if not the whole world. The Heritage only operates intermittently when there’s been a decent dump of powder. If you happen to be in luck and the Heritage is spinning you’re in for one of the best experiences in NZ skiing - like day heliskiing at under a 10th of the price!
Ohau has a triple chair that goes up the centre of the basin and gives access to the whole skifield, a short beginner rope tow, and a learner’s platter. The chair and platter are down a short cat track from the base building, and the rope tow is next to the base area.
Parking at all three skifields is sufficient - but Dobo can fill up early on peak days.
All the Mackenzie skifields have cafes. The one at Dobo is in a portacom and is rather snug. Oahu has a small cafe, but it seems to cope with the smaller numbers of visitors, Roundhill’s is the largest, with plenty of room to hunker down if you need a break.
All have really good coffee, good food, and lovely vibes from the friendly staff.
You can rent gear on all three mountains. If you’re arriving via Fairlie you can also rent from the Ski Shack on the left just as you get into town.
Mount Dobson has the highest carpark in New Zealand and the high elevation of the skifield means it gets a lot of snow accumulation throughout the season. It’s also very exposed to the wind, which can cause the field to close. Make sure to check the skifield forecast before you go. If Dobo is closed, Roundhill or Ohau might still open. The terrain at Dobo runs right the way from exceptionally good learner terrain to steep exposed chutes that people hike up to access. There’s definitely something for everyone, which is why Dobo is so popular among local families. The snow quality is variable. It can be unmercifully icy off the groomed trails, but after a good dump of powder the whole mountain can be your oyster.
Roundhill is mainly about the groomed run, unless there has been a big fall of powder and then if they run the Heritage rope tow, it’s an off piste paradise. The groomed runs are wide and rolling making them perfect for progressing your skills. Like anywhere in the South Island it can be firm and even icy all day. You’ll see international ski teams there over the winter on the race course that’s set up in the middle of the field. Teams who train at Roundhill include the US Ski Team, Korea, Italy, Slovakia, and others. The legendary Lindsay Vonn trained there in 2025.
Ohau is a fairly small field in a hanging valley that overlooks Lake Ohau. On a sunny day the view is mesmerising. People love Ohau and it draws people from far and wide after a storm for its light dry snow, which some people claim is the best of any ski field in New Zealand. But - yes it can be icy and skiing can be limited to the groomed runs. One of the best thighs about Ohau is the variety of runs for such a small field, and a short hike above the chairlift gives you access to a large unpatrolled backcountry area. Ohau also hosts international ski teams - Michaela Shiffren trained there in her younger days.
A versatile all mountain ski will see you right for most days at Dobo. Something around 80 to 90mm underfoot with decent rocker will give you the versatility you need to cover most conditions from hardpacked groomed trails to medium falls of powder.
As always a wider ski from 100 to 110cm underfoot is a useful addition to your ski quiver. It’ll also be more fun on powder days, in soft spring snow, and the days after snowfalls when off-piste runs can still be lots of fun.
Because Roundhill is mainly about on the exceptional groomed runs an on-piste orientated ski of 70 to 80mm underfoot with a long camber and not too much rocker tend will give you the most value. But on the powder days that sometimes come to Roundhill and the rope tow is running then a powder ski of 100mm to 120mm will help make it a day to remember for the rest of your life. A wider pow ski with lots of area and a ton of rocker and splay will mean you can float and slash - literally surfing the pow, rather than ploughing through it, like you would on a narrow ski. Of course you can still use a narrow ski in pow - but why not make it as easy and fun as you can with the right tool for the job?
Ohau and Dobo are fairly similar in terms of overall snow quality - so our recommendations for Dobo above apply here too. Except that Ohau does definitely get the better powder days, so if you’re heading there maybe consider taking a wider ski as well. You might score, and if you do you definitely want to be on the right gear!
Our Tekapo store has a huge selection of premium brand snow apparel and accessories. If you’re in the area call in and see us or buy anything including skis and boots online here.
If you need to don’t hesitant to reach out with any questions or for advice. We love helping people have the very best day on the snow. Contact us here.
