Welcome
Fantastic off-piste mountain
Broken River Ski Area, located in the Southern Alps of New Zealand, boasts some of New Zealand's best off piste skiing and snowboarding. We offer fantastic terrain for all levels of skiers and boarders, on-mountain accommodation, uncrowded powder basins and chutes, and - the best part - a friendly and inviting atmosphere. Be part of this unique experience. Come to "BR" and enjoy New Zealand club skiing at its best.
Unique Kiwi Ski Experience
Broken River is one of NZ's boutique "Club" fields, run and maintained by 400+ Broken River Ski Club members drawn from Canterbury, other parts of New Zealand and Australia. We are extremely proud of our Club, its heritage, and what our mountain offers. If you are after something special and a little different then you've come to the right place!
We warmly invite you to come and be part of our unique Kiwi ski-culture and enjoy the place we call “home”.
Strong Heritage
Broken River Ski Club was formed in 1952 by twelve enthusiastic, hard-working members who decided to create their own ski field. They established a tradition of hard-work, ingenuity, companionship and passion for Broken River. Since the beginning all the facilities and developments have been designed and built by Club members. Click here to find more about our Club's history.
Laid-back Friendly Atmosphere
We're a close-knit community – an extended “family” of all ages and backgrounds drawn together by a passion for fun in the snow, the mountain environment and and the thrill of a good powder run. It is of course more than just the skiing and the great terrain – it’s about the friendly atmosphere and sharing your fun with other keen people.
Families are the backbone of our Club. We are proud to have many 2nd and 3rd generation members taking an active role in the Club management and activities. It is also not uncommon to see three generations of one family skiing together.
Our native Kea, the world's only alpine parrot, are ever-present, adolescent members of our “family” keeping everyone on their toes with humorous, cheeky behaviour.
Social Times
Palmer Lodge is the social hub during the day. There is an opportunity to meet everyone – 60 to 150 depending on the day. The massive sundeck is very popular on sunny days. This is a great place to relax and relive the excitement of the day with everyone else - this is as integral as the fantastic skiing and boarding itself. The sumptuous smell of steak or wild venison wafting from the BBQ will add an additional dimension to your mountain experience.
Relaxing On-Mountain Accommodation
By night the accommodation lodges are buzzing with stories of the days snow adventures, as well as discussions on any topic you care to imagine, with a card game or two thrown in for good measure. It’s a great chance to catch up with fellow friends and make new ones.
Not-For-Profit Organisation
We are a non-profit organisation that exists to promote snow-based sports and our unique social community in a special setting rather than have commercial gain from the running of a ski area. We are extremely proud of our Ski Club and ski area and invite you to come and share our special piece of Kiwiana.
A glimpse of who we are
We invite you to browse our website to see what we are about. Make sure you watch our Broken River Welcome Video.
If you are interested in joining our Club click here for more details of Broken River Ski Club membership.
Fantastic off-piste in Allan's Basin. Photo Steve Eastwood.