Coronet Peak in New Zealand opened its slopes for the season on Sunday and thousands flocked to enjoy the first turns of the season.

The mountain resort had officially opened on Saturday unveiling a $30m plus redevelopment including a new base building and a massive automated snowmaking system. However rain saturated the lower mountain making it unskiable and severe gales prevented lifts from operating.

Ski Area Manager Hamish McCrostie said it was an amazing turnaround in conditions made possible by cold temperatures and the firepower of the new automated snowmaking system.

James Coddington, CEO of Coronet Peak parent company NZSki Ltd, said it was fantastic to be finally operating after an intense seven months of building and preparation.

“We have delivered an amazing project in a very short period of time. It’s great to see a big crowd here today to experience it.”

www.nzski.com