Some would say Heli-Skiing is more for men... Would you agree? Of course not! Although, the majority of our guests tend to be male so we‘re intending to ditch the myth and shout about the epic women that come out and Heli-Ski.

Why do people presume Heli-Skiing is just for men? That's a rhetorical question because we know the answer, it's just not true. Two of our most experienced senior guides, Anna and Laetitia are definitely giving the boys a run for their money. Besides that though, all of our female guests show us that the pleasure in this extraordinary skiing experience is certainly for both genders.

We struggled to understand why this was happening, so at the beginning of the season we made it our mission to change that. We created a package just for women, which included a 4 run day, one night in a hotel in Wanaka, a massage, and cocktails – pretty sweet don’t you think?

We had a great response and found this provided a great excuse to book a girls weekend away. In fact, just last week we had Nikki and her three friends Louisa, Anna and Emily from around the South Island who had decided to take advantage of this deal and what a pleasure it was to have them here. We also managed to ask them a couple of questions to get their feedback on the trip;

Left to right: Emily, Nikki, Anna and Louisa cutting fresh tracks!

1) Have any of you been heli-skiing before?
"Emily has heli-skied a few times but for the rest of us, it was our first experience. It’s been on our wish-list and when Anna saw the package on Facebook we thought it was such a good deal we had to make it happen. Now we are converted and want to plan a yearly heli-ski girls break away! "

2) How did you find out about the Womens-Getaway experience?
"The package was promoted as 'The Ultimate Snow Experience' and that pretty much sums it up! The skiing was so good that after a delicious lunch, we didn’t want to stop at the standard four runs so we all agreed and upgraded to seven. The post-ski massage at Sanctuary Spa was a relaxing way to wind down and soothe the tired muscles after the adrenaline-packed day and the night at Oakridge with a hot tub was incredible. The dinner out in Wanaka was the final icing on the cake. "

“It was a beautiful blue bird day, amazing powder conditions and our fantastic guide Rich took us to some incredible untouched terrain.” 

3) What do you think could be a possible reason that women are usually less interested than men?
"I think there are a few reasons. Perceived value – the cost makes it a luxury experience for most people and if you haven’t ever heli-skied you don’t know what an amazing experience it is, and therefore can’t equate cost with value. Also, a lot of women assume they are not good enough skiers to do it. This is why the women’s package is such a good idea – some women would be more comfortable doing it as a group with women they know and are at the same level."

4) What would convince more women to go and try out heli-skiing? 
"More marketing and promotion of women heli-skiing. In general, you don’t see a lot of women skiing across TV, editorial, online, social media etc, it's still very male-dominated. If women perceive an experience as great value, I think they will be happy to invest in it. The Harris Mountains Heli-Ski package on Facebook was definitely a selling point for us. Women love to get away for a few days with the girls so having the overnight at Oakridge and making it a complete getaway experience was a huge bonus. Who doesn’t like a bit of spa pampering and a night away from their normal routine?! "

So there you have it, we just need to be shouting more about the awesome female heli-skiiers to help inspire other like minded ladies that love the slopes! Help us ditch the myth and book now!

Girl Powder! The ladies enjoying the incredible snow conditions.