Snow has blanketed Mount Ruapehu - now a hefty covering of school holiday fun-seekers is needed to help operators of the Whakapapa and Tūroa ski fields dig their way out of a $40 million debt avalanche.

Ruapehu Alpine Lifts chief executive officer Jono Dean says the season opening day on Saturday had been 'pretty good”.

'We are pleased with how many people made their way to the mountain. I can't give you an exact figure, but the number would be well into the 1000s.”

Visitors to Happy Valley, at the foot of the Whakapapa skifield, found a good covering of snow on their arrival on Saturday, while the white blanket also covered the ground as far as the now-closed Chateau Tongariro hotel.

Snow has finally arrived in New Zealand. Photo: Colin Baker.

Poor visibility and weather conditions meant the Sky Waka Gondola was not able to operate on either Saturday or Sunday, which was disappointing - 'but it's looking promising from our perspective, with more snow forecast for later in the week”.

The early days of the season are when families with young children are encouraged to partake in what, for many, will be their first experience of snow - before the usual influx of skiers began arriving later in the season.

'We are looking forward to seeing more and more people come along as the school holidays continue. We will be progressively opening all the lifts throughout July.”

The Tūroa team are expecting to open all lifts, except for the Nga Wai Heke lift which is undergoing maintenance but may potentially open later in the season. Which lifts are active will be advised on mtruapehu.com.

Dean wants to thank every member of the company's staff who have stuck with the firm over 'a very tumultuous past nine months”.

Snow has finally arrived in New Zealand. Photo: Colin Baker.

Ruapehu Alpine Lifts, which runs ski field operations at Whakapapa and Tūroa, went into voluntary administration last year after the combined effects of Covid-19 lockdowns and a poor ski season left the firm buried under an avalanche of almost $40 million of debt.

The firm was put into liquidation last month, and for a time it looked like the ski fields might be closed in their entirety - however a lifeline came on June 26 in the form of a $5m loan from the Government.

'I'm very proud of all of [the staff]. They have put in a Herculean effort to get us to where we are now.”

Ruapehu Alpine Lifts employs 65 permanent staff, however, those numbers usually swelled to about 500 employees on both ski fields at the peak of the season.

'We are at the 300 point right now.”

Day passes, Sky Waka and sledding passes were available online, while season passes will go on sale on Monday for a two-week period.

'Life Passes” will remain active and valid throughout the 2023 winter season, says Dean.

-Mike Mather/Stuff.