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The Inaugural Central Plateau Walking Festival

9 – 11 April 2010



It was on a school trip to Mt Ruapehu that a teenaged Sir Edmund Hillary first encountered the mountains. He was captivated by this experience, and a life-long passion for mountaineering and outdoor adventure began.

The Central Plateau Walking FestivalThe Central Plateau has long been regarded as offering a richness of walking and tramping opportunities for New Zealanders and people from around the globe. With the jewel of the Tongariro National Park, New Zealand’s oldest National Park and a dual World Heritage Area providing a captivating environment for walking – it seemed natural that a walking festival would evolve at some stage.

The event organisers also offer:
  • Online and onsite registration, activity desk and travel concierge (www.nzwalkingfestival.co.nz or phone 0508 CROSSING or 0508 27677464)
  • Weather briefing, safety and track briefing, walking gear hire, DOC and Tongariro Natural History Society educational sessions
  • First aid assistance and on-call medical assistance
  • Onsite massage
  • Guiding on selected walks
  • Transportation to and from walks
  • Self cater breakfast or café breakfasts, packed lunches, and café dinner; and
  • Regional airport transfers.
Event Head Quarters

The Park Travellers' Lodge Logo

The Park Travellers’ Lodge, located in National Park

National Park Village is located near the base of Mt Ruapehu, at the intersection of State Highway 4 & State Highway 47 on the volcanic plateau.

The inaugural Central Plateau Walking Festival will include:
Iconic ½ or Full Day

The Central Plateau Walking Festival

  • Tongariro Alpine Crossing (full day)
  • Lake Rotopounamu (2 hours) + Trout Centre and/or Tokaanu Hot Pools
  • Tupapakurua Falls (1/2 day) picnic lunch at water falls
  • Ruapehu Crater Lake (full day)
The Wild Side (a day over at the Turoa side of the Mountain)
  • Lake Rotokura (1 hour)
  • Waitonga Falls and Mangawhero Falls Walk and picnic Lunch (2 hours)
  • Old Coach Road (2-7 hours)
  • Hot pools at the Powderhorn
Whakapapa Visitor Centre Based Walks

The Central Plateau Walking Festival

  • Silica Rapids (2.5 hours)
  • Taranaki Falls (2 hours)
  • Whakapapanui Walk (2 hours)
  • Tama Lakes (5-6 hours)
  • Whakapapaiti (4-5 hours)
  • Time at the iconic DOC Whakapapa Information Centre
Bird and Bush (full day)
  • Ohinetonga Track in the morning followed by lunch at Duck Central (Whakahoro)
  • Whakahoro in the afternoon