Our top pick15 min
15 minTaste of Taupo Helicopter Flight
★ 4.6 · 17 reviews
- 15m, Lake, Huka Falls and the town
- Small group
- Most booked
- Free cancellation
$191$764.00 / hour
Check availability→ Eleven flights, compared
Taupo helicopter tours: the eleven flights, timed and priced
The Taupo helicopter tours on sale right now run from ten minutes to an hour and a half, and from $124 to $1,128. That is a wider spread than almost any other short flight you can book in New Zealand, and the reason is that two completely different half-days are being sold under one name: near flights that stay over the water and the falls, and mountain flights that carry you south to the volcanoes. This page puts the eleven side by side — minutes in the air, fare, where each one goes and how much proof of quality it actually carries. Read in one screen, the Taupo helicopter tours stop looking like eleven near-identical products.
Quick answer
The short answer. If you want the falls and the water for the smallest sum, the ten-minute ride at $124 is the cheapest flight on this site. If you want the volcanoes, the fare jumps: the cheapest mountain flight is $620 for fifty minutes. The one listing here with a settled review record is the fifteen-minute flight at $191, with 17 reviews at 4.6 — and that is the largest review count among the Taupo helicopter tours, not a large number by any standard.
Taupo helicopter tours at a glance
- Flights bookable here
- 11 listingsfrom $124
- Cheapest flight
- $12410 minutes, the falls and the river
- Highest fare
- $1,12825 minutes over Tongariro National Park
- Shortest time in the air
- 10 minutes$124
- Longest time in the air
- 1 h 30 mtwo listings, $406 and $795
- Near flights, over water
- 5 of the 11$124 to $479
- Mountain flights, to the volcanoes
- 4 of the 11$620 to $1,128
- Flights that land somewhere
- 2 of the 11the other nine stay in the air
- Reviews across the 11
- 35 in totalsix listings have none yet
- Best-reviewed listing
- 17 reviews at 4.6the 15-minute flight, $191
- Cheapest hour in the air
- $530the 90-minute alpine flight
- Free cancellation
- 4 of the 11 listingsshown on those listings, not the others
The one distinction that matters
Near flights and mountain flights
Water and falls, or volcanoes and snow. The fare tells you which you are buying.
Read the eleven listings in a row and they split cleanly in two, with a price step between them that is impossible to miss.
Near flights take off and stay in the Taupo basin. They name the falls, the Waikato River, the farmland and geothermal ground around the town, the shoreline and, on the longest of them, a circuit of the water. They run ten to forty-five minutes and cost $124 to $479.
Mountain flights head south to the volcanic plateau. They name Tongariro, Mount Ruapehu, the crater lakes and the snow. They run twenty to ninety minutes and cost $620 to $1,128. The step up is real: the cheapest mountain flight costs five times the cheapest near flight.
Everything else in the Taupo helicopter tours line-up — the landings, the small groups, the skydive combination — sits on top of that one choice. Make it first and the shortlist drops from eleven to four or five.
The whole line-up
The eleven flights, in order of fare
Durations, fares and review counts are the live listing figures. Where a flight has no reviews yet, it is said plainly rather than dressed up — six of the Taupo helicopter tours are in that position.
- Ten minutes over the falls — $124
The shortest and cheapest flight here, and the one that sets the $124 figure you see on every page of this site. The listing describes farmland, geothermal power stations and the Waikato River crashing into the pool below. 13 reviews at 5.0, a small group.
- Fifteen minutes over the falls and the geothermal ground — $191
Five minutes more in the air than the short ride for $67 more. The listing adds the Maori Rock Carvings seen from above and Craters of the Moon to the falls and the river. With 17 reviews at 4.6 it carries more feedback than any other listing on this site, which is why it is our top pick rather than a proven favourite.
- Eighteen minutes with a landing — $226
One of only two flights here that put the skids down somewhere. It follows the Waipakahi River and lands at Patutu Tops for views over the Central Plateau and the Lake Taupo basin. A new listing with no reviews yet, a small group, free cancellation, and it must be booked at least six hours ahead.
- Half an hour over the town and the water — $411
Thirty minutes, described by the operator as the full circuit of Taupo and the country around it. A shared flight and a new listing without reviews, and at $822 an hour it is the highest cost minute-for-minute of the near flights.
- Forty-five minutes round the lake — $479
The longest of the near flights and the only one that names a circuit of the water: Kinloch, the Western Bays and the Karangahape cliffs, with the volcanic plateau in the distance. Shared, new, no reviews yet — but at $639 an hour it is the cheapest flying time you can buy without leaving the basin.
- Fifty minutes to the volcanic plateau — $620
The cheapest way into the mountains and, at fifty minutes, the longest of the volcano flights. It runs down the shore of Lake Taupo and out over the plateau at the far end with commentary on the history. Shared, and rated 5.0 from one review — one review is one person, so treat the score as unproven.
- Twenty minutes over the crossing — $733
The same corner of the plateau in a third of the time and for $113 more. The listing names the Tongariro Alpine Crossing below you and the Tama Lakes. A small group, 3 reviews at 5.0. It flies over the walking route; it does not land on it or replace it.
- Twenty minutes to Mount Ruapehu — $733
The same fare and the same twenty minutes as the flight above, pointed at Mount Ruapehu, the Central Plateau and Lake Taupo instead. A small group, a new listing, no reviews yet.
- Ninety minutes with an alpine landing — $795
The longest scenic flight here and the second of the two that land. An hour and a half across the alpine plateau of the North Island, snow-capped peaks and crater lakes, with a landing in the snow near Mount Ruapehu. Wheelchair accessible by the listing, free cancellation, three hours notice, and no reviews yet. At $530 an hour it is the cheapest flying time on this site.
- Twenty-five minutes over the cone — $1,128
The highest fare here. Twenty-five minutes over the volcanic peaks of Tongariro National Park, and the one listing that calls Ngauruhoe by its film nickname, Mount Doom. A small group, free cancellation, six hours notice, and 5.0 from one review.
- Ninety minutes with a skydive attached — $406
The odd one out, and we keep it separate on purpose: the helicopter is the lift, and the thing you are buying is a 15,000 ft tandem jump. It passes the lake, the falls and Craters of the Moon on the way up. Free cancellation, ten hours notice, no reviews yet. If you want a scenic flight rather than a jump, this is not the listing.
The Taupo helicopter tours all sound alike in a listing. Not sure what a short scenic flight actually involves, start to finish?
How a Taupo flight works→Reading the numbers honestly
What 35 reviews across eleven listings means
This is a small niche and the review record shows it. Added together, the eleven listings carry 35 reviews. Six of them carry none at all. The largest single count is 17, on the fifteen-minute flight, and the next largest is 13 on the ten-minute ride. Four listings sit on one or three reviews.
That has a practical consequence. A 5.0 built on one review tells you one person enjoyed their morning; it does not tell you the flight is better than a 4.6 built on 17. Where you see a perfect score on this site, check the count printed next to it before you let it move you.
It also means the usual shortcut — sort by rating, book the top — does not work on the Taupo helicopter tours. The things that do separate them are printed on the listings themselves and cannot be faked: how many minutes you are in the air, what the fare is, where the route goes, and whether it lands. Those are the columns in the table below.
Six listings being new is not a warning, either. It means nobody has reviewed them yet, which for a flight sold in small numbers can simply mean a quiet first season.
Book direct
Six flights worth shortlisting
The two Taupo helicopter tours with a review history, the two that land, the longest circuit of the water and a short mountain flight. Live listing fares and review counts.
Lowest price here10 min
10 minTaupo: Huka Falls Helicopter Ride
★ 5 · 13 reviews
- 10m, Straight over Huka Falls
- Small group
- Cheapest here
- Free cancellation
$124$744.00 / hour
Check availability→ 
Eighteen minutes in the air18 min
18 minTaupo: Scenic Helicopter flight with exclusive landing
- 18m, Lands on Patutu Tops
- Small group
- Eighteen minutes in the air
- Free cancellation
$226$753.33 / hour
Check availability→ 
Forty-five minutes in the air45 min
45 minTaupo: Loop the Lake Helicopter Flight
- 45m, A full loop of Lake Taupo
- Forty-five minutes in the air
- 45 minutes
- Free cancellation
$479$638.67 / hour
Check availability→ 
Twenty minutes in the air20 min
20 minTaupo: Tongariro Crossing Scenic Helicopter Flight
★ 5 · 3 reviews
- 20m, Over the Tongariro Crossing
- Small group
- Twenty minutes in the air
- Free cancellation
$733$2199.00 / hour
Check availability→ 
Ninety minutes in the air90 min
90 minTaupo’s Mountain Magic Helicopter Flight and Alpine Landing
- One and a half hours, Alpine landing in the mountains
- Skip the line
- Ninety minutes in the air
- Free cancellation
$795$530.00 / hour
Check availability→ Every trip, current fare
Every flight, priced by the minute
All eleven listings with cost per hour worked out, so a ten-minute ride and a ninety-minute flight can be compared on the same basis. The Taupo helicopter tours that look dear per ticket are not always the dear ones per hour.
| Flight | Length | Price | What is included | Cost per hour | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taste of Taupo Helicopter FlightLake, Huka Falls and the town | 15 min | $191 | Lake, Huka Falls and the town | $764.00 | 4.6 · 17 |
| Taupo: Huka Falls Helicopter RideStraight over Huka Falls | 10 min | $124 | Straight over Huka Falls | $744.00 | 5 · 13 |
| Taupo: Scenic Helicopter flight with exclusive landingLands on Patutu Tops | 18 min | $226 | Lands on Patutu Tops | $753.33 | New |
| Taupo’s Best Helicopter FlightLake and the Waikato River | 30 min | $411 | Lake and the Waikato River | $822.00 | New |
| Taupo: Loop the Lake Helicopter FlightA full loop of Lake Taupo | 45 min | $479 | A full loop of Lake Taupo | $638.67 | New |
| Taupo: Helicopter Flight and 15,000 ft Tandem SkydiveHelicopter lift to the jump | 90 min | $406 | Helicopter lift to the jump | $270.67 | New |
| Taupo: Tongariro Crossing Scenic Helicopter FlightOver the Tongariro Crossing | 50 min | $620 | Over the Tongariro Crossing | $744.00 | 5 · 1 |
| Taupo: Tongariro Crossing Scenic Helicopter FlightOver the Tongariro Crossing | 20 min | $733 | Over the Tongariro Crossing | $2199.00 | 5 · 3 |
| Taupo: Ruapehu Rush Scenic Helicopter FlightOver Mount Ruapehu | 20 min | $733 | Over Mount Ruapehu | $2199.00 | New |
| Taupo’s Mountain Magic Helicopter Flight and Alpine LandingAlpine landing in the mountains | 90 min | $795 | Alpine landing in the mountains | $530.00 | New |
| Taupo: Mount Doom Scenic Helicopter FlightOver the Ngauruhoe cone | 25 min | $1,128 | Over the Ngauruhoe cone | $2707.20 | 5 · 1 |
Choosing without a rating to lean on
Four questions that settle it
With the ratings this thin, four plain questions sort the Taupo helicopter tours faster than any score does.
How long do you want to be up? Ten minutes is a look at the falls and back. Fifteen to thirty adds the geothermal ground and the shoreline. Forty-five gets you round the water. Ninety takes you across the plateau and back with a landing in the middle.
Do you want to get out of the aircraft? Two listings say so: the eighteen-minute flight lands at Patutu Tops, and the ninety-minute one lands in the alpine snow. The other nine are flights, not landings, and none of them claims otherwise.
Small group or shared? Six listings are marked small group and three are marked shared. The remaining two are sold as combinations and print neither label. Group type tells you more about the morning than a one-review score does.
How firm are your dates? Four listings carry free cancellation and four state a minimum notice — three, six or ten hours depending on the flight. If your plans are loose, those four are the ones to start with.
Common questions
Taupo helicopter tours, answered
How much does a helicopter flight in Taupo cost?
From $124 for a ten-minute ride over the falls up to $1,128 for twenty-five minutes over Tongariro National Park. The middle of the range sits around $411 to $479 for half an hour to forty-five minutes.
Which is the cheapest of the Taupo helicopter tours?
The ten-minute Huka Falls ride at $124. It is the lowest fare on the site and the shortest flight, with 13 reviews at 5.0. Per hour in the air it is not the cheapest — that is the ninety-minute alpine flight at $530 an hour.
How long are the helicopter flights Taupo operators sell?
Ten, fifteen, eighteen, twenty, twenty-five, thirty, forty-five and fifty minutes, plus two listings of an hour and a half. Most of the Taupo helicopter tours run between fifteen and thirty minutes in the air, which is shorter than people expect.
Do any of the flights land in the mountains?
Two of the eleven. The eighteen-minute flight at $226 lands at Patutu Tops, and the ninety-minute flight at $795 includes an alpine landing near Mount Ruapehu. The other nine stay in the air from take-off to landing back at base.
Which flight should I book if I only have half an hour?
Three fit: the ten-minute falls ride at $124, the fifteen-minute flight at $191, and the eighteen-minute flight with a landing at $226. The first two are the listings with a review history; the third is the cheapest way to get out and stand on a hilltop.
Are the ratings on these flights reliable?
Treat them carefully. The eleven listings share 35 reviews between them and six have none at all. A 5.0 from one review is one person. The two counts worth anything are 17 reviews at 4.6 and 13 reviews at 5.0, and even those are small. Across the Taupo helicopter tours as a whole there is simply not enough feedback yet to rank them by score.
Can I cancel if my plans change?
Four listings state free cancellation: the eighteen-minute flight with a landing, the ninety-minute alpine flight, the twenty-five-minute flight over the cone and the helicopter-and-skydive combination. The other seven do not say so, so check the terms on the listing itself before you pay.
How far ahead do I need to book?
Four listings print a minimum: three hours for the ninety-minute alpine flight, six hours for the eighteen-minute landing flight and the twenty-five-minute mountain flight, and ten hours for the skydive combination. The rest do not state one.
Go deeper
More on helicopter flights from Taupo
Over the lake
Over the lake
Which flights stay over Lake Taupo itself, and how far around it each one gets.
How it worksHow it works
What a Taupo helicopter flight involves: length, price, landing or no landing.
Huka FallsHuka Falls
The falls from the air: the short flight that goes there and the longer ones that pass over.
