Alpine Guides comes full circle

Celebrating a working relationship that is more than a century old, Alpine Guides has returned home to The Hermitage at Aoraki Mount Cook.

Alpine Guides, New Zealand's longest established mountain and ski guiding company, opened its new offices on Monday 17 December in the new Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre - just 20 metres from its original 1880s location.

The company's local roots span from the early guiding era of the 1880s to the present day.

Managing Director and IFMGA* Guide Bryan Carter is excited to be part of the new Sir Edmund Hillary Centre and says their history has always been intertwined with The Hermitage.

“From the 1880s the Hermitage guides established a tradition of professional service, technical skill and judgement. They really built a national guiding ethos which remains today. Those guides eventually formalised their business with the creation of Alpine Instruction Ltd in the 1950s which morphed into Alpine Guides Limited in 1967.

“Even though we’ve only covered a short distance to relocate the business from Mount Cook Village, it feels like coming home. I’m now 20 metres away from where I started my life as a guide in 1973!

“In 123 years of operation we spent just 28 of them away from The Hermitage and that was because we ran out of room so moved to bigger premises in the Village.

“It feels good to be part of the new Centre and what it’s offering in terms of the 3D movie, planetarium and museum gives a greater connection with the mountain environment. As guides, we have always provided the real experience for those keen to climb, but I think it’s great that armchair adventurers can now get a taste of what it’s like up there.”

Alpine Guides has been the mentor for most of New Zealand’s leading mountain guides and continues to be at the forefront of guides' development and training.

* International Federation of Mountain Guides Associations

About The Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre
Opening from late December, the $7.5 million Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre brings together a state-of-the-art 3D theatre, New Zealand’s first full dome digital definiti® planetarium and a comprehensive museum that weaves the story of Kiwi endeavour and achievement in the Aoraki Mt Cook region.

The Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre is designed to be the place to go and feel at one with New Zealand’s most famous New Zealander. It also encompasses and records the stories of early pioneers reaching the area, summiting one of the world’s most difficult peaks and establishing what is today a flourishing climbing and tourism culture.

At the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre, New Zealanders will feel a sense of cultural belonging and international people will experience the culture and man that Sir Edmund represents.

The Hermitage at Aoraki Mount Cook is an integral part of New Zealand’s tourism history. It lies within a World Heritage Wilderness Area and looks out to the majestic Aoraki Mount Cook surrounded by the silent splendour of the Southern Alps.

Aoraki Mount Cook is an iconic, must visit destination for New Zealanders and international visitors. In 2006 it was voted number 6 on the 101 Must-Do’s for Kiwis in the nationwide AA Travel domestic travel survey.

Make the journey and be amazed!

ENDS

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