Aoraki Mount Cook National Park

The Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park is alpine in the purest sense; it has the highest mountains with sky scrapping peaks, the longest glaciers and permanent snow fields. Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park is located in the central part of the South Island, deep in the heart of the Southern Alps. Aoraki/Mount Cook village, which is situated beside scenic Lake Pukaki, lays within the park with Twizel the nearest town outside the park. Mountaineers regard the area to be the best climbing region in Australasia, New Zealand's tallest mountain, Aoraki/Mount Cook, helped Sir Edmund Hillary to develop his climbing skills in preparation for the conquest of Everest. While less skilled adventurers find plenty of satisfaction with the mountain walks that lead to alpine tarns, herb fields, spectacular glacier views and encounters with cheeky kea (mountain parrots). Aoraki/Mount Cook covers 70,696 hectares; all visitors to the park are dwarfed by the immensity of the landscape that surrounds them. Although it encompasses 23 peaks over 3000 metres high, this park is very accessible from State Highway 80 and leads to Aoraki/Mount Cook Village which provides a comfortable base for alpine activities. Travel Guide New Zealand proudly presents this listing to you. Hopefully, when you visit Mackenzie Region and are looking for places to visit you will consider Aoraki Mount Cook National Park. And if you do decide to visit Aoraki Mount Cook National Park remember to come back to Travel Guide and share your experience.