Likely to sell out399 reviews
4 h2.5 Hour Glacier Hike with Helicopter Transfer
★ 4.8 · 399 reviews
- Four hours, Helicopter transfer onto the glacier
- 2.5 hours hiking with guides
- Most booked
- Free cancellation
$514$128.50 / hour
Check availability→ Two different days
Glacier walk vs heli hike at Franz Josef: the honest comparison
A guided valley walk is $63 and three hours on the ground. A Franz Josef heli hike is $514 and puts you on the ice itself with crampons and a guide. They are not competing versions of the same morning — they are two different days, and this page compares them on price, time, weather and what you actually stand on, using the numbers from the twelve live listings.
Quick answer
The short answer. If you want the rainforest, the valley and a view of the glacier, walk: $63 at Franz Josef, $63 at Fox. If you want to stand on the glacier among crevasses and blue ice caves, that is a heli hike — $455 at Fox, $514 at Franz Josef, and $886 for the long version with up to five and a half hours on the ice.
Walk and heli hike, side by side
- Valley walk, Franz Josef
- $633 hours, rated 4.8
- Valley walk, Fox
- $633h 30m, rated 4.7
- Heli hike, Fox
- $455up to 3 hours on the ice, 363 reviews
- Heli hike, Franz Josef
- $5142.5 hours on the ice, 399 reviews
- Extended heli hike
- $886up to 5.5 hours on the ice, with lunch
- Where the walk goes
- Rainforest and valley floorending at the lookout
- Where the flight goes
- Onto the glaciercrevasses, arches, blue ice caves
- Kit for the walk
- Your own shoes and jacketnothing technical needed
- Kit for the ice
- Issued by the operatorboots, crampons, jacket
- Weather
- Walks run in the rainflights need a clear window
- Cancellation
- Free to 24 hourson both, through the listings here
- Most reviewed trip here
- The Franz Josef heli hike399 reviews at 4.8
Every trip, current fare
Every trip at Franz Josef and Fox, priced
All twelve sorted the way the site shows them, with cost per hour of the whole trip — the only fair way to line up a forty-five minute visit against an eight-hour day on the ice.
| Tour | Length | Price | What is included | Cost per hour | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Half-Day Walking & Nature Tour with Local GuideThe Fox Glacier valley on foot, with a local guide | 3.5 h | $63 | Guided valley walk | $18.00 | 4.7 · 188 |
| Franz Josef Glacier Lookout Guided WalkThe Franz Josef Glacier valley and its rainforest | 3 h | $63 | Guided valley walk | $21.00 | 4.8 · 169 |
| 2-Hour Scenic Lake Mapourika CruiseLake Mapourika under the Southern Alps | 2 h | $71 | Lake cruise | $35.50 | 4.8 · 145 |
| 3-Hour Kayak Tour on Lake MapourikaPaddling into a rainforest creek on Lake Mapourika | 3 h | $85 | Kayak + guide | $28.33 | 4.9 · 137 |
| 2.5-Hour Lake Mapourika Cruise and WalkA lake crossing and a private rainforest trail | 2.5 h | $85 | Cruise + rainforest walk | $34.00 | 4.8 · 77 |
| Kayak & Walking Tour to Okarito Kiwi SanctuaryOkarito by kayak, then the sanctuary trail on foot | 4 h | $102 | Kayak + rainforest walk | $25.50 | 4.9 · 73 |
| Kiwi VIP Backstage Pass Tour -Booking EssentialThe kiwi hatchery, behind the scenes | 45 min | $57 | Guided visit | $76.00 | 4.4 · 47 |
| Half-Day Nature Tour to Lake MathesonLake Matheson and its reflections, guided | 4 h | $69 | Guided walk | $17.25 | 4.8 · 17 |
| Half-Day Guided Tour to OkaritoOkarito township, its history and its birds | 4 h | $63 | Guided walk | $15.75 | New |
| Up to 3 Hours Hike with Helicopter TransferFox Glacier: flown in, then three hours on the ice | 4 h | $455 | Helicopter + ice walk | $113.75 | 4.9 · 363 |
| 2.5 Hour Glacier Hike with Helicopter TransferFranz Josef: flown in, then 2.5 hours on the ice | 4 h | $514 | Helicopter + ice walk | $128.50 | 4.8 · 399 |
| Extended Heli‑Hike with Lunch (Small Group)The longest day on the ice, with lunch | 8 h | $886 | Helicopter + ice walk + lunch | $110.75 | 5 · 1 |
The comparison
What each one actually buys
One is the walk in; the other is the only way to stand on the ice.
The valley walk buys the approach. Rainforest that grows almost to the ice, a glacier-fed river, the walls of the valley narrowing, and a lookout at the end of it with the glacier up ahead. It is three hours at Franz Josef, three and a half at Fox, it needs nothing more than shoes and a rain jacket, and it runs in weather that grounds aircraft. At $63 and $63 these are the two cheapest walks on the site, and the Fox one is the most booked of them.
The heli hike buys the ice. The helicopter is a transfer, not the attraction: it lifts you from the township onto the glacier, and what follows is guided hiking among formations that only exist up there. The Fox trip is described as landing on the glacier for ice caves and arches, with up to three hours of hiking; the Franz Josef one is two and a half hours on the ice with blue ice caves and crevasses. The operator supplies boots, crampons and a jacket, and cuts the route that morning, because the ice moves.
The reviews tell you how people feel about each once they have done it. The Franz Josef heli hike carries 399 reviews at 4.8 and the Fox one 363 at 4.9 — the two most reviewed trips on this site by a wide margin, with the next listing on 188. That is the clearest answer available to whether a Franz Josef heli hike is worth it: more people book it than anything else here, and they rate it 4.8 and 4.9 afterwards.
There is also a long version. The extended heli hike at $886 runs eight hours with up to five and a half of them on the ice and a glacier picnic lunch, in a small group. It is the most expensive trip on this site and the only one that treats the glacier as a day rather than an outing.
Five differences
What actually decides it
Price is the obvious one. These four matter more once you are here.
- Weather, and what gets cancelled
Guided walks go ahead in rain — the Franz Josef operator calls the valley magical in misty rain, and means it. Helicopters need a window. If your stay is one night, the walk is the booking that survives the forecast; if it is two, hold the flight for the better morning and walk on the other day.
- What you stand on
The valley track gives you the glacier as a view up the valley. The heli hike gives you crevasses, arches and blue ice within arm’s reach, on ground that changes week to week. No amount of walking from the car park reaches that second thing: the ice is accessed by air.
- Time, honestly counted
A three-hour walk is three hours of walking. A four-hour heli hike listing is flights, briefing, gear fitting and two and a half to three hours on the ice. The extended trip is the exception: eight hours, up to five and a half of them on the glacier.
- Fitness and footwear
The walks are gentle by design and the Lake Matheson track has bridges rather than climbs. On the ice you are in issued boots and crampons on uneven ground, following steps cut by the guide. Both are guided at a pace that suits the group; only one of them is uneven underfoot for hours.
- What it costs per hour
The table above does this sum for every listing. The walks come out lowest and the heli hikes highest, which is what two helicopter transfers, issued boots and crampons, and a guide cutting a route that morning add up to. The extended day is the cheapest of the three per hour, because the flying is spread across eight hours instead of four.
Is the heli hike worth it
The case for booking the ice
People ask whether a Franz Josef heli hike is worth it more often than they ask anything else about this village, so here is the straight version.
It is the only way guided time on the glacier is sold. The valley tracks and the lookouts do what they do very well, and they face the ice rather than reach it. If standing on a glacier is the reason the West Coast is on your route at all, the flight is not an upgrade to the walk — it is the product, and the walk is a different, cheaper day.
The numbers back the people who book it. 399 reviews at 4.8 on the Franz Josef trip, 363 at 4.9 at Fox: these are the two most reviewed listings on this site, ahead of every walk and every lake trip here. Both include the transfers, the guide, and the boots and crampons, and both can be cancelled free up to twenty-four hours before, which is what makes booking ahead sensible on a coast with changeable weather.
If the budget stretches and the schedule allows a full day, the extended trip at $886 is the version regulars describe as the real thing: up to five and a half hours on the ice, a small group, and lunch on the glacier. It is rated 5.0, on a single review so far, and it is the longest ice time sold here by a wide margin.
Want the ground-level version first, with everything it covers?
Hiking without a helicopter→Book direct
The decision, in four listings
Three ways onto the ice and the walk they are compared with.
On the ice363 reviews
4 hUp to 3 Hours Hike with Helicopter Transfer
★ 4.9 · 363 reviews
- Four hours, Land on the ice by helicopter
- Ice caves and arches on foot
- Guided tour
- Free cancellation
$455$113.75 / hour
Check availability→ 
Longest on the iceLunch included
8 hExtended Heli‑Hike with Lunch (Small Group)
★ 5 · 1 review
- Eight hours, Up to 5.5 hours on the ice
- Glacier picnic lunch included
- Longest walk here
- Free cancellation
$886$110.75 / hour
Check availability→ 
Our top pick188 reviews
3.5 hHalf-Day Walking & Nature Tour with Local Guide
★ 4.7 · 188 reviews
- Three and a half hours, Gentle valley hike through rainforest
- Views of Fox Glacier and Mount Tasman
- Day trip
- Free cancellation
$63$18.00 / hour
Check availability→ Common questions
Walk or heli hike, answered
Is a Franz Josef heli hike worth it?
It is the only guided access to the ice, and the people who book it rate it above everything else here: 399 reviews at 4.8 at Franz Josef and 363 at 4.9 at Fox. From $455, including the transfers, the guide, boots and crampons.
What is the difference between a glacier walk and a heli hike?
The walk is a guided three-hour route through rainforest and the glacier valley to a lookout, from $63. The heli hike flies you onto the glacier for two and a half to three hours of hiking among crevasses and ice caves, from $455.
Which heli hike is better, Franz Josef or Fox?
They are close. Franz Josef is $514 with 2.5 hours on the ice and 399 reviews at 4.8; Fox is $455 with up to 3 hours on the ice and 363 reviews at 4.9. Book whichever has a morning slot in your window — both fly from their own township.
How much time do you actually get on the ice?
Two and a half hours on the Franz Josef trip, up to three at Fox, and up to five and a half on the extended day at $886, which also includes a picnic lunch on the glacier.
What happens if the weather stops the flight?
The operator stands the trip down and refunds it, and through the listings here you can also cancel yourself free of charge up to twenty-four hours before. That is why people book a valley walk for the same stay: it runs in weather that grounds helicopters.
Do I need my own gear for the ice?
No. Boots, crampons and a jacket are issued by the operator, and the guide cuts the route on the day. Bring layers, and shoes for the walk if you have also booked one.
Can I do both in one trip?
Yes, and it is the combination that works best: the walk on the day you have, the flight on the morning the weather allows. Both carry free cancellation up to twenty-four hours before.
Go deeper
More on walking at Franz Josef
When to go
When to go
When to walk the Franz Josef and Fox Glacier valleys — seasons, rain, daylight and the hours that give the clearest view up the valley.
Can you walk to the glacier?Can you walk to the glacier?
You can walk the free valley track to the Franz Josef Glacier lookout in about 90 minutes return.
Fox Glacier walksFox Glacier walks
Walking at Fox Glacier — the valley track through rainforest, the viewpoints, Lake Matheson, and the guided half-day at $63 with transfers from Franz Josef.
Hiking without a helicopterWithout a helicopter
What you can hike at Franz Josef and Fox on the ground: guided valley walks from $63, what a guide adds, and where the walking ends and the ice begins.
Every walk at Franz JosefEvery walk at Franz Josef
Every Franz Josef Glacier walk compared — the free valley track to the lookout, guided walks from $63, and the heli hikes onto the ice from $455.
Free and self-guidedFree and self-guided
Franz Josef Glacier walk free: which valley tracks cost nothing, what the guided walks at $63 add on top, and when each one is the right call.
