Stay in Aoraki/Mount Cook Village if you want to start the Hooker Valley Track early or arrive by bus. Pick Glentanner, about 15 minutes south on Lake Pukaki, for a holiday park with powered sites. Choose Twizel, 45 to 50 minutes away, for a supermarket, staffed fuel and more rooms.
Mount Cook accommodation sits in three places, and the right one depends on how early you want to be on the trail. Stay in Aoraki/Mount Cook Village if the trip is about the Hooker Valley Track, Mueller Hut or an early start, or if you are coming by bus. Pick Glentanner, about 15 minutes south at the head of Lake Pukaki, for a holiday park with powered sites and a cheaper bed. Choose Twizel, 45 to 50 minutes away, if you want a supermarket, staffed fuel and a wider choice of hotels.
The village is small: a handful of hotels, lodges and a hostel, a DOC visitor centre, a card-only fuel pump and no supermarket.
| Area | To White Horse Hill (Hooker Valley trailhead) | Shops and fuel | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aoraki/Mount Cook Village | 2.5 km, about 5 minutes by car | No supermarket; self-service card-only pump | Hikers, early starts, travellers without a car |
| White Horse Hill Campground | At the trailhead | None; bring everything | Tent campers and campervans that don’t need power |
| Glentanner, Lake Pukaki | About 15 minutes to the village, then 5 more | Holiday park facilities only | Campervans, families, budget |
| Twizel | 45 to 50 minutes to the village | Four Square supermarket, Mobil station | Self-caterers, families, longer stays |
| Lake Tekapo | 1 h 10 to 1 h 15 min to the village | Shops, fuel, restaurants | Stargazers, people splitting the drive from Christchurch |
The Twizel time is 45 minutes on the Mackenzie tourism board’s website and 50 minutes in its brochure. Lake Tekapo has its own page: see where to stay in Lake Tekapo.
Everything here is within walking distance of everything else, and the trailheads for the Hooker Valley Track, Kea Point and Mueller Hut start at or near White Horse Hill, 2.5 km up the road. The InterCity bus from Tekapo ends at the Aoraki lobby of the Hermitage, so you can stay here without a car.
Two things catch people out. The village has no supermarket: the Hermitage puts the nearest shop in Twizel, 66 km away, and DOC says about 70 km, an hour’s drive. Bring groceries if you plan to cook. And the only fuel is a self-service pump that takes cards, so fill up in Twizel or Tekapo. The village’s two EV charge points are in the DOC visitor centre car park.
The Hermitage is the big hotel in the village, and it has the longest history. The first Hermitage, a cob building near White Horse Hill, opened in 1884. Floods wrecked it in 1913, a kitchen fire destroyed its replacement in September 1957, and the hotel that stands today opened in May 1958. The trailhead is about 5 minutes away by car.
Parking is free for guests, subject to availability. The hotel listed its Superior rooms as under renovation from May to October 2026, so check which room types are open for your dates. It doesn’t publish prices on its own site. It suits a splurge, guests who want the mountain from the window, and travellers without a car, since the InterCity bus stops at its lobby. The Hermitage Hotel on Booking.com
Listed on the Hermitage’s own website, this is the self-catering option in the village: lodge rooms plus self-contained motel units. The motels are about 800 m from the Hermitage, and a walking track links the lodge to the hotel, about 1 km. Parking is free for guests, subject to availability. Families and groups who want a kitchen should look here first, but remember the groceries. Mt Cook Lodge & Motels
Aoraki Court is the first place you pass on the way in, at 26 Bowen Drive where State Highway 80 meets Bowen Drive. It has studios and two-bedroom units. Booking sites list free on-site parking, but the motel’s own site doesn’t say, so ask. Couples and small families are the natural fit. Aoraki Court Motel
A family-owned lodge at 101 Bowen Drive, open since 2005, with superior doubles, deluxe studios and family rooms, all listed with mountain views. It is a mid-range choice between the Hermitage and the hostel, and suits couples and families who want a quieter, smaller place. Parking and prices are not on its website. Aoraki Alpine Lodge
The budget bed in the village, at 4 Kitchener Drive. Shared rooms come with privacy curtains, lockable storage, individual lights and bed linen; private rooms have their own bathroom, a fridge and a kettle. It suits solo hikers, backpackers and anyone arriving by bus on a budget. Haka House Aoraki Mt Cook
The DOC campground at the end of Hooker Valley Road is the closest you can sleep to the Hooker Valley Track. It has 72 non-powered and tent sites, treated drinking water, a cooking shelter and basic toilets, but no power and no showers. Fees are $20 a night for adults, $10 for children aged 5 to 17, and free for infants (checked November 2026).
You must book online, and DOC says it is often full all year, with the busiest stretch from Christmas to mid-February. Booked campers park in the campsite area, which keeps them out of the White Horse Hill car park charges. In winter (June to August) the flush toilets switch to pit toilets and there is no running water. Our White Horse Hill Campground guide covers booking, parking fees and the rules.
Glentanner is about a 15-minute drive south of the village on State Highway 80, at the head of Lake Pukaki. It is a holiday park with 60 powered sites, tent sites, five motel units, nine basic units and a 10-bed dorm, so it covers almost every budget. Glentanner is also one of the charter airfields used for scenic flights.
Pick Glentanner if you have a campervan that needs power, if the DOC campground is full, or if the village’s rooms are booked out. You still reach the trailhead in about 20 minutes. Glentanner Park Centre on Booking.com
Twizel is the service town for the national park: a Four Square supermarket, a Mobil station, and fast EV chargers. It is 45 to 50 minutes from the village, which makes a dawn start on the Hooker Valley Track an early alarm. In return you get shops, restaurants and more rooms at busy times.
The biggest hotel in Twizel has 108 rooms, each with a private balcony or patio, a short walk from the town centre. There is a restaurant with an open fire, and parking is free. It suits families, groups and anyone using Twizel as a base for two or three nights in the area. Distinction Mackenzie Country Hotel
Book the DOC campground and village rooms as soon as your dates are fixed, especially from Christmas to mid-February. If you plan to stay at Mueller Hut, it needs its own booking from 2 November 2026 to 2 May 2027.
Driving to the trailhead from Glentanner or Twizel means paying for the White Horse Hill car park: $2.50 a half hour, up to $25 a day, card only. State Highway 80 can close in snow, so in winter check the NZTA Journeys map before you set off. For the drive itself, see Christchurch to Mount Cook and Queenstown to Mount Cook.
25 minutes
The cheapest helicopter time at Mount Cook: a short flight up the Tasman Valley and over a glacier lake to an alpine landing facing Aoraki, with commentary from the pilot.
from$196
Check availability3 hours
Fly from Mount Cook onto a remote part of the Tasman Glacier, New Zealand's longest, and spend up to two hours on the ice with a guide before the helicopter brings you back.
from$558
Check availability45 minutes
One 45-minute trip that uses both a ski plane and a helicopter, with a landing on the Tasman Glacier; the operator points to this one if you want a snow landing guaranteed year-round.
from$278
Check availabilityPrices and ratings were taken from GetYourGuide and can change. Booking through these links supports this site at no extra cost to you.
For walking, stay in Aoraki/Mount Cook Village. The Hooker Valley Track starts at White Horse Hill, 2.5 km up the road and about 5 minutes by car, so you can be on the track before the day visitors arrive. If the village is full or out of budget, Glentanner is about 15 minutes south and Twizel is 45 to 50 minutes away.
Stay in the village if the trip is about hiking or you have no car, because the bus stops at the Hermitage and the trailheads are minutes away. Stay in Twizel if you want a supermarket, staffed fuel and more choice of rooms, and you don't mind 45 to 50 minutes of driving each way to the national park.
No supermarket. The Hermitage says its own shop sells only snacks and drinks, and DOC lists a petrol station and a few cafe, restaurant and bar options in the village. The nearest supermarket is in Twizel, 66 to 70 km away depending on the source. The fuel pump is self-service and takes cards only, so fill up before you arrive.
No. DOC does not allow overnight camping in the White Horse Hill car park, even if you pay the parking charge or hold a permit. Book a site at the White Horse Hill Campground next door instead. Booked campers park in the campsite area and avoid the car park charge. If the campground is full, Glentanner has powered and tent sites about 15 minutes south.
Glentanner Park Centre is about a 15-minute drive south of Aoraki/Mount Cook Village on State Highway 80, at the head of Lake Pukaki. From the village it is another 2.5 km to the Hooker Valley trailhead. That makes Glentanner close enough for an early start, and it has powered sites, which the DOC campground does not.
White Horse Hill Campground is the DOC campsite at the start of the Hooker Valley Track: 72 tent and campervan sites, $20 a night for adults, booked online only and often full.
The Hooker Valley Track is a 10 km return walk, about 3 hours, from White Horse Hill car park near Aoraki/Mount Cook Village to Hooker Lake at the foot of Aoraki.
Stay in Lake Tekapo village if you want to walk to the lake, the Church of the Good Shepherd and the restaurants.
The best things to do in Mount Cook are the Hooker Valley Track to Hooker Lake, the short climb to the Tasman Glacier view and the Blue Lakes, Kea Point, and a scenic flight with a glacier landing.