Where to stay in Aoraki/Mount Cook: The best accommodation in and near the national park
Spending a night or two in Mount Cook Village is an incredible experience. Here are the best accommodation options for a comfortable stay (and options for when everything is fully booked)
Mount Cook Village — officially called simply Aoraki/Mount Cook — is a small cluster of hotels and houses in Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park.
From the village, you can easily access walking tracks, glacier boat rides, and helicopter tours. As Mt Cook Village is in the middle of the Aoraki/Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve, it’s also ideal for stargazing.
However, accommodation in Mount Cook can be very expensive and hard to find. It is a very small village.
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In a nutshell: The top 3 options
THE HERMITAGE HOTEL
The premier place to stay in Mt Cook.
HAKA HOUSE
The best budget accommodation in Mt Cook, which I highly recommend — I loved how warm and cosy this hostel is, and the kitchen is fantastic.
LAKESTONE LODGE
A stunning spot not too far from Aoraki/Mount Cook.
Should you stay overnight in Mount Cook?
It is well worth staying overnight in Mount Cook Village. Aoraki Mount Cook National Park is one of the top destinations in the South Island.
Staying overnight gives you more time to explore, and a chance to see the stars in the pristine night skies here.
Hotels in Mt Cook are on the pricier side.
One of the reasons accommodation is expensive in Mt Cook is because the hotels pay the Department of Conservation a concession fee.
So you’ll be paying a slight premium to stay in Aoraki Mount Cook National Park, but there are camping options at White Horse Hill and Glentanner if you’re on a budget.
I usually recommend spending at least one night in Mount Cook. That will give you enough time to walk the Hooker Valley Track, and visit the Tasman Glacier via the walking track or boat.
However, if you can’t find a place to stay in Mount Cook Village, you can also visit for the day and stay in Tekapo, Twizel, or near Lake Pukaki. I’ll go into further detail on those options below.
Mount Cook Village is 3 hours and 15 minutes to Queenstown, and nearly 4 hours to Christchurch, so it’s a good stopping point on a road trip from Christchurch to Queenstown.
Accommodation in Mount Cook Village
Many of the accommodation options in Mount Cook have similar names. They are all Alpine, Aoraki, or Mount Cook something or other, which can make choosing a place to stay confusing.
No need to worry though — all of the accommodation in Mount Cook Village is stunning. Most rooms will have a view, and they are all warm and clean, with neutral colour palettes that blend into the landscape.
So you can’t go wrong with Mount Cook accommodation. The key difference between all of them is price.
1) The Hermitage — a premium hotel experience
Price: Rooms start from $265
The Hermitage Hotel
The Hermitage is the most iconic place to stay in Mount Cook National Park. The hotel has been around in one form or another since the 1800s.
The Hermitage offers a rooms with views and a very scenic dining room. Their premium rooms offer spectacular views directly across to Aoraki Mt Cook.
Within the sprawling Hermitage complex is you’ll also find the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre and Big Sky Stargazing. The Hermitage runs the Glacial Explorers boat trip on Tasman lake, which is one of the best ways to see the Tasman Glacier, so it’s a bit of a one stop shop for accommodation, meals, and activities.
2) Aoraki Alpine Lodge — perfect if you want to cook your own meals
Price: Rooms start at $215
Photo credit Miles Holden
Aoraki Alpine Lodge offers a range of rooms, including motel units and chalets. The warm wooden accents give the lodge a cosy atmosphere.
They also have a comfortable guest lounge and a communal kitchen, which is perfect for preparing your own meals to save money.
3) Aoraki Court Motel
Price: Rooms start at $315
Aoraki Court is a nice straightforward motel with exceptional views.
This Mt Cook motel offers self-contained units with kitchenettes, which include a fridge, microwave and small stove top.
The motel is within walking distance to the village amenities. Even though it calls itself a motel, the rooms are hotel quality.
Some of the rooms have even have a spa bath.
5) For the budget traveller — Haka House Mount Cook
Price: Dorms start at $60
The best place for budget travellers to stay in Mount Cook is at the Haka House Hostel. I loved this place — it has warm wooden interiors, an amazing kitchen, and nice indoor and outdoor areas.
It’s also right in the centre of Mount Cook Village, so you’re close to all walks and activities.
It’s pretty expensive compared to typical New Zealand hostels, but it’s worth splurging for the location and the experience of staying overnight in the park.
4) White Horse Hill Campground — stay closer to nature
Price | $18 per night
White Horse Hill is a DOC campsite in Mount Cook. It’s the best option for outdoorsy travellers in campervans, or anyone on a tight budget.
It's set in a beautiful location and offers basic facilities for campers, including flushing toilets and cooking shelters.
When I last stayed, in March 2024, it was completely full, so you may want to book ahead. This also means it’s a pretty crowded campground, but the views of the glaciers from here are pretty spectacular (I could even hear them cracking throughout the night).
There are no showers at this campground, and no powered sites for campervans. If you do want a hot shower, you can find showers in Mount Cook Village, about 2.5 kilometres from the campsite. They cost $2 for 3 minutes.
You can’t beat the views though, so if you want to wake up in an amphitheatre of mountains, you might enjoy this spot.
5) Glentanner Park — a 20-minute drive from Aoraki Mount Cook Village
Price: Non-powered campsites from $25, dorm rooms from $45
Glentanner Park is located on the shore of Lake Pukaki, 20 minutes outside of Mount Cook Village. It’s a fully-equipped campground and campervan park, so it’s a great option for budget travellers.
As well as tent and van sites, there are self-contained motel units.
It’s not the most glamorous set up in the world, but it’s a great option if you want to be close to the park but can’t find any accommodation within the village itself.
6) Mueller Hut — for the adventurers
Price: $45 per night
Book: On the DOC website
This one is a little more unconventional, but it still counts as a place to stay in Mount Cook.
You’ll need to be organised and book well in advance, but if you snag a bunk in Mueller Hut, you’ll get to experience some of the best views in the whole of Aoraki Mount Cook National Park.
Alternative accommodation near Mount Cook (in Twizel, Tekapo, and Pukaki)
If there’s no availability in Mount Cook Village, you can also find some accommodation near Twizel, Tekapo, or Lake Pukaki.
From Mount Cook Village to Twizel is 45 minutes drive
Mount Cook to Tekapo is 1 hour 15 minutes
Either town makes a good base for day trips to Aoraki/Mount Cook.
Lake Pukaki isn’t a town as such, but there are some accommodation options around the lake. Twizel has more amenities, so it’s a good base, but it’s not as scenic.
Lakestone Lodge, on the edge of Lake Pukaki
Lakestone Lodge is the ultimate place to stay near Mount Cook Village, without being in the village itself. From here, you’ll have stunning views across Lake Pukaki to the peak of Aoraki.
High Country Cabin, a stunning rustic place to stay near Twizel
For somewhere truly magical to stay, you can’t really go past this High Country Cabin, located 15 minutes from Twizel and 40 minutes from Aoraki/Mount Cook.
The design is inspired by the back-country huts found in the Southern Alps of New Zealand, but with many more modern amenities, of course.
Tips for staying in Mount Cook Village
Although you can buy petrol in the village, it’s much cheaper to fill up your car in Twizel or Lake Tekapo.
There is no grocery store in the village, so if you plan on cooking your own meals, stop for supplies in Tekapo or Twizel.
There are limited options for food in the village (two cafes and one restaurant) so bring enough food for your time there or budget for eating out (dinner at the Hermitage is from $65 for an adult and from what I’ve heard, it’s not exceptional).
The Hermitage Hotel offers a breakfast buffet for $39 in their Alpine Restaurant from 7am-10am. You don’t need to book, and the views from the dining room are stunning so it’s worth checking out even if you’re not staying there.
If you choose to camp at Aoraki Mount Cook Village, keep your things inside, there are kea about.
If you’re on your way to Mount Cook Village and want to know what weather is awaiting you, you can take a peek at the weather web cams.
There is no ATM in the village. You probably won’t need cash, but it’s good to know just in case.
Itineraries for visiting Aoraki/Mount Cook
Thanks for reading this far! I hope you do decide to stay in Mount Cook — it’s such a beautiful place. Here are some more posts to help with your trip planning:
AUTHOR BIO
I’m a freelance travel writer from New Zealand with bylines in National Geographic Travel, Conde Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure and more.
I’ve travelled up and down beautiful Aotearoa and I love sharing my recommendations for the best places to visit in New Zealand.
