The Mount Taranaki huts include private and public ones. Some are good for families for the night and others are good for those wanting more of an adventure.
Mount Taranaki or Mount Egmont National Park is a lovely protected area located on the north island of New Zealand. The center of the park is Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The mountain, a stratovolcano, is surrounded by a ring of native forest whose boundary is very clear. There are 11 huts located around the mountain, making it easy for visitors to spend the night all around the mountain.
Mount Taranaki Huts – Private Lodges
There are two private lodges on the mountain that are owned and maintained by clubs, but can be booked by the public at a higher cost than the public huts.
Kapuni Lodge – run by the Mt. Egmont Alpine Club is available for the general public at a slightly higher cost than the public huts. This lovely lodge is located above Dawson Falls. It has water, stoves, gas, all the cookware and plates, and even solar powered lights! Find more about Kapuni Lodge here.
Tahurangi Lodge – run by the Taranaki Alpine Club is located at the top of the puffer above North Egmont Visitor Centre. This lodge is in a good location to walk to the summit. The public can stay here, but it’s a bit pricey.
Mount Taranaki Huts – Public Huts
General Hut Information
As of now (May 2019) all the public huts within Mt. Egmont National Park are on a first come first serve basis. This means that they can’t be booked ahead of time. I’m going to guess that this may change in the future due to increased usage and the possible creation of a Great Walk.
All of the huts have mattresses and water and a drop toilet. All of the huts except Kahui Hut, have a stove and firewood.
The Mount Taranaki Huts
Pouakai Hut
A very popular hut that is located along the Pouakai crossing. The views from just above the hut are among the best of the mountain! This hut is a long walk from North Egmont or about 2 hours from Mangorei Road.
Holly Hut
Another super popular hut that fills up. This hut is bigger than Pouakai, but is used by those doing the Pouakai Crossing and the Around the Mountain track.
Maketawa Hut
This hut is a short walk from North Egmont visitor center and is popular for a short overnight trip for families.
Kahui Hut
This is a small, primitive hut on the west side of the mountain. It only has 6 bunks and no fireplace. The views from the tussock in front of the hut are nice. This hut is in a good location to break up the walk in the forest on the west side of the mountain.
Waingongoro Hut
This hut is a short walk from the Dawson Falls visitor center and is another good one for short overnights for families.
Konini Lodge
This lodge, located at the Dawson Falls, is good for large groups. It can serve as a good base from which to take short day walks around the area.
Syme Hut
This hut is perched at the top of Fanthams Peak and is perfect for those looking to do some serious exploring of the alpine areas of the mountain. It is quite basic and can get full.
Lake Dive Hut
This is another basic hut that has great views of the mountain and does actually have a small lake in front of it. It is in a good location for a longer overnight loop from Dawson Falls. This is one of the two huts located along the southern side of the mountain.
Waiaua Gorge Hut
This is a nice hut with great views of the mountain. It is the only hut in it’s section of the mountain on the south-western side. It can be reached via a 9 hour walk from Dawson Falls, 9 hours from Holly Hut, 4 hours from Kahui Hut, or a couple of hours from the road end.