Planetarium and Stargazing in Aoraki Mt Cook

Mt Cook magic

We make it just in-time at the Alpine Centre to watch Mount Cook Magic, a 3D show about the Maori legend surrounding the peaks of the Southern Alps, as well as a compilation of epic scenic shots of New Zealand’s highest mountain and all the alpine activities people do around it. It’s earth porn at its finest.

You could really make the most of your $20 admission fee just watching shows all day, which is tempting but we decide to have a quick look around the museum displays before getting on with some work.

Hillary memorabilia

The museum displays themselves are concise. The Edmund Hillary Gallery has replicas of the tractors taken over Antarctica complete with caterpillar tracks and baskets on the side filled with vintage skis and boots. There are a few famous photos of Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, the Nepalese Sherpa who was also the first to climb Everest, as well as a photo to see how tall you are in comparison to Edmund Hillary… Ok, then?

Other small display cases give information of Aoraki Mt Cook’s first ascents and early settlers around Aoraki Mt Cook Village. Two vintage cars are on display, one of which was used to transport tourists to the village. Finally, we have the history of the Hermitage Hotel.

Stargazing before we even go stargazing

Big Sky Stargazing

It’s clear that the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre’s strengths are in the planetarium and cinema. As the clouds steadily start to thin towards the evening, we decide to take our chances on the Big Sky Stargazing tour, which starts with in the planetarium!

Planetarium show

We load into the cinema and look up at the huge dome over our heads. Before the show begins, Rodney, one of the guides, tells us the situation of the sky for stargazing is “not flash” however, we can also get a partial refund if we decide we don’t want to go stargazing, or, if the guides think it is worth it, we can go down with them to their stargazing site. We can make a final decision after the planetarium show with more updates.

The lights go dim and the dome lights up with stars. A spectacular British voice starts telling us about where we are in the universe. It’s an orientation of the night’s sky that we are hopefully going to be seeing tonight!