Fox Glacier runs off the Southern Alps as a long river of ice, stepping down through icefalls toward the valley floor. From the ground it is a distant white tongue at the head of a valley. From a helicopter you look straight down into its crevasses, then up to the wide snowfield that feeds it. It is one of the two big West Coast glaciers, and flights listed on both nearby glacier hubs can include it.
What you see from the air
Icefalls and crevasses
Where the glacier steepens, the ice cracks into crevasses and rounded mounds with blue shadow between them. From above you see the whole broken surface at once, the texture that photos from the valley flatten out.
The neve
Higher up, Fox Glacier spreads into its neve, a basin of snow below the peaks. On tickets that include a snow landing, this high snow is where the helicopter aims to set down, weather permitting.
The Southern Alps around it
Fox Glacier sits below the peaks of the Southern Alps, and the ice is framed by the range. On a clear day the view opens along the range, and on the longer tickets it reaches as far as Aoraki / Mount Cook.
Franz Josef and Tasman on longer flights
Some flights pair Fox with Franz Josef Glacier, the other big West Coast icefall. Others add Tasman Glacier, deeper in the Alps. Seeing both West Coast glaciers in one flight lets you compare how each one falls to the valley.
How to include it on a flight
Fox Glacier is on some flights as the main subject and on others as one stop among several:
- On the Fox Glacier page, every flight covers Fox ice and neve. The 25-minute ticket stays on Fox with a landing when conditions allow, the 35-minute twin-glacier ticket adds Franz Josef, the 35-minute Mount Cook flight adds a fly-by of Aoraki / Mount Cook, and the 40-minute Mount Cook Spectacular combines all three.
- On the Franz Josef Glacier page, Fox is included on the 45-minute Ultimate Discovery and the 60-minute Mount Cook Supreme. The 35-minute Pilot’s Choice includes Fox or Tasman as the day allows, so Fox is possible but not fixed on that ticket.
The 25-minute snow-landing ticket and the 50-minute Shackleton ticket on the Franz Josef Glacier page do not list Fox. If Fox is the reason you are flying, pick one of the tickets above.
Practical notes
Weather decides whether a flight or a landing goes ahead, and a landing is never guaranteed even when the flight goes. On tickets from the Fox Glacier page, the final call on a landing is usually made around check-in. On tickets that include a snow landing, expect about 6 to 8 minutes on the snow on tickets from the Fox Glacier page and 10 to 15 minutes on tickets from the Franz Josef Glacier page, when conditions allow. If the whole flight is cancelled for weather, you are offered another time or a full refund as shown when you book.
For photos, clear air counts for more than the time of day, so book early in your stay if you can and keep a spare day for weather. Warm layers, sturdy covered shoes, sunglasses and sunscreen help on the snow. Check in 30 minutes before your flight; you may be weighed at check-in. Selfie sticks and drones are not allowed on some flights, so check each listing before you pack.
See Fox Glacier from a helicopter in Fox Glacier. Book the Fox Glacier Snow Landing 25-Minute Helicopter Tour.