The Mount Cook National Park is located on New Zealand’s South Island, near the town of Twizel. The Aoraki or Mount Cook village lies within this national park. Established in October 1953, this park is part of the Te Wahipounamu World Heritage Site along with the Fiordland National Park, the Mount Aspiring National Park and the Westland National Park. One of the coldest parks in the country, more than one third of the Mount Cook National Park remains covered in a permanent blanket of snow and ice throughout the year.

Home to 22 of the 27 New Zealand mountains that are over 3000 meters high, the Mount Cook National Park is home to many reserves that were set aside for protection as early as 1887 to safeguard the area's important vegetation and landscape. Covering a total land area of some 700 km2, 40 % of this park is covered in glaciers. The Tasman Glacier is the well known glacier in this national park and is located on the slopes of Mount Cook itself. Mount Cook itself is the highest mountain in New Zealand standing some 3753 meters high. Some other well known peaks inside the park are Mount Tasman, Mount Hicks, Mount Sefton, and Mount Elie de Beaumont.

This park is most famous for its natural beauty and the glaciers, with tramping, skiing, hunting and mountaineering being the activities to enjoy out here. As soon as you enter this national park, you are provided with some awesome views of Mount Cook, which stands imposingly here. It is a wonderful sight to see when there are no clouds covering the summit.

Visit this park for no other reason than to see the aw-inspiring Mount Cook, however here you can find some excellent wildlife watching opportunities as well as tramping trails. In the summer, you will find the world’s largest buttercup the Mount Cook lily, growing here. Also seen inside this park are numerous birds like the kea, which is the only alpine parrot as well as the well-camouflaged pipit. Chamois, Himalayan tahr and red deer also live in this national park.