Tandem Skydive over Lake Taupo

Taupo, a favourite place to skydive in New Zealand

Taupo sits on the northern shore of Lake Taupo, roughly in the middle of the North Island, and is one of the busiest places in New Zealand for tandem skydiving. The reason is the scenery: from altitude you see a huge blue lake, the green farmland of the central plateau and snow-capped volcanoes in a single sweep. The area also enjoys plenty of settled weather, so jumps run on most days of the year.

If you are wondering how to get to Taupo, it is about three and a half hours' drive south of Auckland, and a little under an hour from Rotorua. With the default option you do not need a car once you are there: we arrange pickup from your accommodation or the town centre up to 30 minutes before your jump time, and you are dropped back at the same place afterwards.

The drop zone at Taupo Airport

All jumps take off from the skydiving base at Taupo Airport, on Anzac Memorial Drive at Wharewaka, a few minutes south of the town centre along the lakeshore. On arrival you check in, complete a short health declaration and watch a safety briefing that explains the body position for freefall and landing. Your tandem instructor then fits you into a harness and goes through every step with you.

Friends and family who come along can usually watch the landings at the drop zone, which is part of the fun. The whole visit, including transfers, briefing, waiting for your aircraft and the jump, takes about 3 hours, so plan a morning or afternoon for it. Is a Taupo skydive worth it? For many visitors it is the most memorable thing they do in New Zealand.

Freefall and the parachute ride over Lake Taupo

The aircraft climbs for around 20 minutes, giving you time to take in the lake and the mountains as the ground drops away. At 15,000 feet the door opens, you shuffle to the edge with your instructor and leave the plane. Freefall lasts up to 60 seconds at speeds of around 200 kilometres per hour, a rush of wind and noise that most people describe as more exhilarating than frightening.

Then the instructor deploys the parachute and everything goes quiet. The canopy ride lasts several minutes, and if you wish you can help steer while your instructor points out landmarks below. The landing is a gentle slide on the grass of the drop zone. Photo and video packages are available to add on the day if you would like to keep a record of your Lake Taupo skydive.

The view: Lake Taupo and the volcanoes of Tongariro

Below you lies Lake Taupo, which fills a vast volcanic caldera of more than 600 square kilometres. To the south rise the three volcanoes of Tongariro National Park: Ruapehu, the highest mountain in the North Island at 2,797 metres, the near-perfect cone of Ngauruhoe and broad Tongariro. The park was the first in New Zealand and is listed by UNESCO for both its natural and its cultural values.

On clear days you can also follow the Waikato River leaving the lake and spot the steam of the Wairakei geothermal fields to the north. The best time to skydive in Taupo is on a calm, clear morning, when visibility is usually at its best; summer from November to March gives the warmest conditions, though winter days with snow on the volcanoes are spectacular.