Aussies are back, and the July NZ school holidays are upon us! Here's all that's going on in the first week up at Cardrona and Treble Cone.

But first, stop the press...Willow's is back open! Opening for the first time yesterday, it's made a lot of people super stoked, and we're even more happy to see it opening this early. Please remember that Willow's is currently ungroomed, (think adventure-run) so it's suitable for advanced skiers and snowboarders only.

In other news, it's been great welcoming Aussies back to our snowy turf again, and under the best conditions too, with awesome skiing and snowboarding across the mountain.

Here's a recap of our tips for navigating the July school holidays, or you can read our latest blog on the matter here:

• Carpool! If everyone carpools then we have fewer cars in the carpark, which means everyone's more likely to get a spot! These holidays will be an awesome time to use the Snowriders App to either find a ride or offer one to others.
• Pick up your passes in advance - pop into our Queenstown or Wānaka offices, use the pick-up kiosks, and you'll be able to head straight to the slopes when you arrive.
• If you bought your lift passes online and you have a QR code in your booking confirmation, you can also pick up your passes at one of our on-mountain kiosks. They look like this:

• Ski early, late and over lunch - if you take breaks mid-morning and mid-afternoon you'll find our food and beverage outlets a little less busy!
• Bring your patience and kindness - while this time of year brings its challenges, we're all excited to be skiing, snowboarding and spending time in the mountains together.

We're so stoked to be welcoming back many families these July holidays. It's epic to see so many kids getting into skiing and snowboarding and we love that we're a part of that for ski families!

WEATHER FORECAST

While today's blizzard conditions meant both Cardrona and Treble Cone were closed, the snow that is falling is going to set us up for an amazing first week of the NZ holidays! The rest of the week looks like it'll be chillier temps, so remember to keep yourself wrapped up in a few warm layers.

Join our Facebook Snow Reports Group or load up the website Snow Report from 6.30am daily to see what conditions are doing each day.

TREBLE CONE

Snow is falling hard at Treble Cone today, which is going to mean even more powder days up there in the near future. There have been plenty of fresh lines in the last week, like on Wednesday when this photo was taken:

We're excited to head into the next week with some of this TC energy:

EVENTS

Our Ngā Wāhine Ō Te Maunga (“Women Of The Mountain”) event was so awesome. We LOVED seeing 81 wonderful wāhine absolutely slay it up here, and we're so excited to see them shred Cardrona again in the future.

Our upcoming event is the McPark Double Down, and it's on this Sunday! It's a rail jam at the bottom of McDougall's, with groms taking on some of NZ's best for all to see. It's going to be an absolute blast for spectators and competitors, so make sure you come up to check it out!

After that, on Saturday July 16th, we've got the Cardrona Kids Cup Slopestyle, aka, the playday of all playdays in Lil’ Bucks Park for under 12s. It's all about learning skills and competing for medals and spot prizes. We're already betting that any wee ones competing will be asleep by carpark 3 on their way down at the end of the day.

TERRAIN PARKS

Well haven't our Parks crew been busy. While we've been snoozin', they've been building, and boy have they been building. Wednesday night was a big one for ripping out McPark 4.0 and moving rails over to Stag Lane, which is now up and running. Further down the mountain we've got Antlers Alley medium jump line that's also up and running. PLUS Jump 0 of Big Bucks is open and being absolutely sent. So crack on, team. As you were.

FOOD & BEVERAGE

This is your weekly reminder that our food and beverage outlets could look quite different this year, but the food will still be delicious, we promise! From one day to the next there may be different offerings in each outlet (depending on staffing levels, isolation requirements etc), so your patience and understanding is really appreciated by us and our team.

The Mezz has had a soft opening with cooked breakfasts, so you may expect the smell of yummy eggs benny in the air. The legends at Roti Bros are still up the mountain - they sell curry-themed roti pie deliciousness. You'll find them downstairs from Snow Sports HQ on the patio outside Base Cafe. Want a space to eat your own lunch? Head to the Noodle Bar, which is open as a warm and dry space for you to do so. Please remember our landfill-free policy and think about the packaging your food comes in, and take any waste you have home with you.

ALL IN

Have you seen All In yet? It's our short documentary about women in Snow Sports - you can watch it here:

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